Career aspirations of women
ESA Barbie wants to inspire girls to become astronauts
Barbie in space: This doll is supposed to inspire children for the job as an astronaut: in
A dozen Germans have been in space so far, all men. So that it can be a little more balanced in the future, ESA now wants to inspire future generations of the job with a Barbie.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” So that more girls can finally answer this question by choosing to be an astronaut, the European Space Agency has teamed up with a toy manufacturer to promote women in space with a doll. With a barbie of all people.
Astronaut Barbie aims to inspire children to explore space
This one is modeled after the Samantha Cristoforetti. The Italian astronaut is scheduled to leave for her second mission on the ISS in March. “We astronauts are very keen to encourage the next generation to pursue careers in space exploration or science and technology in general. This year’s World Space Week is specifically designed to get more girls interested. I know the Mini -Samantha has already completed a parabolic flight, so she already has some experience with weightlessness. I really hope that we can arouse enthusiasm, especially in young girls. I think boys and girls are enthusiastic about things when they find something fascinating or see something funny. “
Doll raises money for a good cause
But the special edition of Barbie is supposed to achieve far more than just children for the possible profession as astronauts: to inspire them: The proceeds from the sale of the new Samantha Cristoforetti doll will be donated to the organization “Women In Aerospace”. By the way: A German astronaut has not yet been on the ISS – but perhaps this initiative can really make its contribution to ensuring that this will soon no longer be an issue in this work environment. Nevertheless, it would of course be desirable that something changes on this point before the current Barbie target group has yet to grow up.
Source used: Reuters