EMPOWERING WOMEN IN DIGITAL SPACES

In a digital landscape historically painted with masculine strokes, women’s experiences bring a unique blend of challenges and triumphs. From battling biases to leveraging WordPress as a tool for empowerment, this session The presentation is designed to inspire women, share their stories, encourage diversity, and enrich the broader digital community.

Presented by Laura Kuimba Yu

https://LauraKuimba.com

============================

Laura Kuimba is a passionate WordPress user and digital entrepreneur. Through her journey of building an online presence and growing her business, Laura has harnessed the power of WordPress.

As a long-time WordPress user, she’s encountered both the challenges and opportunities the platform presents, making her insights invaluable for those navigating the digital landscape. Outside of her business, Laura champions women’s leadership, entrepreneurship, and empowerment initiatives.

At WordCamp, she’s eager to share her experiences and advocate for a diverse digital future, while also learning from fellow enthusiasts and contributing to the vibrant WordPress community.

=========

ABOUT LAURA KUIMBA

Laura creates frameworks and systems to help people successfully and strategically navigate the world with wisdom and compassion.

• 7-figure business owner & digital strategist for 10+ years
• Director & Co-founder, SpurPress & Puppet String Marketing
• Clients include McDonalds, Fujitsu & Zurich Insurance
• Board Chairperson, NZ-based NGO World Outreach International.
• Founder, SHENetworkAsia & WomenWILL (Women in Leadership Limelight)
• Genos-Certified Emotional Intelligence Practitioner
• Certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming Practitioner

Transcript

1. DIGITAL SPACES
   EMPOWERING WOMEN IN
   REFLECTIONS ON WORDPRESS
   LAURA UIMBA
   K
   LK
   

   View Slide

2. ROADMAP 01
   02
   03
   04
   05
   06
   HELLO WORLD
   MY FIRST WORDPRESS
   WOMEN WHO WP
   CHALLENGES: WOMEN IN TECH
   NEXT STEPS
   CONCLUSION
   

   View Slide

3. ABOUT LAURA KUIMBA
   • 7-figure business owner & digital strategist for 10+ years
   • Director & Co-founder, SpurPress & Puppet String Marketing
   • Clients include McDonalds, Fujitsu & Zurich Insurance
   • Board Chairperson, NZ-based NGO World Outreach International.
   • Founder, SHENetworkAsia & WomenWILL (Women in Leadership
   Limelight)
   • Genos-Certified Emotional Intelligence Practitioner
   • Certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming Practitioner
   I create frameworks and systems to help people successfully and
   strategically navigate the world with wisdom and compassion.
   

   View Slide

4. https://wordpress.org/news/2023/05/celebrating-20-years-of-wordpress/
   2003
   

   View Slide

5. 2007
   -2009
   Laura x WordPress
   The Journey
   WordPress
   Inception
   Inflexion point
   A new world
   order
   Covid19
   Today, Tomorrow
   and Beyond
   Hello world
   Changes changes
   changes
   Growth & new
   beginnings
   A new era of adoption
   and expansion
   Embracing the Future
   2003
   -2006
   2009
   -2019
   2020
   2023
   

   View Slide

6. SUCCESS
   STORIES
   • WordPress has helped women to
   have a voice, to influence public
   opinion, and carve out their niche
   in the digital space.
   • Writing, publishing and
   contributing on a platform like
   WordPress can provide women
   with increased freedom in various
   ways.
   WOMEN WHO WP
   

   View Slide

7. M y W P S t o r y …
   A S e r i e s o f M a l a y s i a n
   W o m e n D r i v e n
   WORDPRESS
   SITES
   

   View Slide

8. View Slide

9. Director of Early Autism Project Malaysia
   Director of Early Autism Project Malaysia
   Jochebed Isaacs is the lead instructor on Autism at Home and also serves as Director at EAP Malaysia. She
   is also a Clinical Psychologist, having completed her Masters of Clinical Psychology at University
   Kebangsaan Malaysia (the National University of Malaysia) and her Bachelor of Psychology at Curtin
   University of Technology, Australia.
   She has worked with hundreds of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Malaysia,
   Wisconsin (United States of America), Perth (Australia) and Singapore.
   

   View Slide

10. View Slide

11. View Slide

12. View Slide

13. View Slide

14. View Slide

15. View Slide

16. View Slide

17. View Slide

18. WORDPRESS
    Powers approximately 43%
    of ALL websites and is by
    far the leading content
    management system
    43%
    https://www.searchenginejournal.com/wordpress-20-years/487756/
    

    View Slide

19. https://wpengine.com/resources/value-of-wordpress-worlds-first-study-of-wordpress-economy/
    

    View Slide

20. View Slide

21. View Slide

22. #WPmom
    WOMEN OF WORDPRESS
    • Kim Parsell, affectionately called #wpmom, is
    regarded as one of the first “women of WordPress.”
    • She invested a lot of her time in women who
    wanted to break into tech, working to create a safe
    environment sharing herself and her knowledge.
    • She contributed countless hours of volunteer time,
    receiving “props” for 5 major releases of
    WordPress, and was active on the documentation
    team.
    

    View Slide

23. WordPress Lead Developer
    WOMEN OF WORDPRESS
    • Helen is the Director of Open Source Initiatives at
    10up and a Lead Developer for the WordPress open
    source software project, now powering more than
    40% of the web.
    • From her start as a PHP/MySQL applications
    developer to focusing on “the front-end of the back-
    end” from both the development and UX
    perspectives, she has a knack for figuring out what
    people need to get things done on their websites,
    including most recently on the relaunch of
    WhiteHouse.gov for the Biden-Harris Administration.
    

    View Slide

24. At its core, WordPress is all about the democratization
    of publishing. It gives everyone a voice on the web.
    VOICES
    Heather Brunner, WP Engine CEO
    

    View Slide

25. View Slide

26. Maria Popova is a Bulgarian-born, American-based
    essayist, book author, poet, and writer of literary and arts
    commentary and cultural criticism that has found wide
    appeal both for her writing and for the visual stylistics that
    accompany it.
    In 2006, she started the blog Brain Pickings, an online
    publication that she has fought to maintain advertisement-
    free. The blog, renamed to The Marginalian upon its 15th
    birthday in 2021, features her writing on books, the arts,
    philosophy, culture, and other subjects.
    In addition to her writing and related speaking
    engagements, she has served as an MIT Futures of
    Entertainment Fellow, as the editorial director at the higher
    education social network Lore, and has written for The New
    York Times, The Atlantic, Wired UK, and other publications.
    Since 2010, she has resided in Brooklyn, New York. She is
    the creator of "The Universe in Verse", a large-scale annual
    celebration of science and the natural world through poetry.
    

    View Slide

27. https://www.roadsofsuccess.org/programs/empowerment/
    

    View Slide

28. View Slide

29. CHALLENGES
    • Gender Dynamics
    • Supportive Environment
    • Empowerment through Representation
    • Networking Promoting Diversity and Inclusion
    • Focused Learning
    • Addressing Gender-Specific Challenges
    • Combatting Imposter Syndrome
    • Safe from Harassment
    • Boosting Confidence
    

    View Slide

30. From a leadership perspective. It’s always important for me to look at how
    we can make sure the organization outlasts anyone who’s leading
    right now. Outlasts me, outlasts Matt, because everyone is one …
    catastrophic event away from not being able to do what they used to do.
    That’s always a very important part of this for me. I’m constantly training
    people who are with us in this work toward WordPress. I’m always training
    them to do what I know how to do because it’s never appropriate for me to
    be the only person who knows how to do anything that is vital to
    WordPress’s success.”
    EMPOWERING LEADERSHIP
    Josepha Haden Chomphosy, Executive Director, WP
    

    View Slide

31. STRATEGIES
    Highlighting female leaders
    and contributors within the
    community can inspire more
    women to step forward and
    participate
    Understand the gender
    dynamics in your
    community. Openly discuss
    the challenges women face
    in digital spaces and
    promote solutions.
    Offer workshops, webinars,
    and training sessions
    tailored to women,
    especially those new to tech
    or WordPress.
    REPRESENTATION ADDRESSING
    BARRIERS
    EDUCATION AND
    TRAINING
    

    View Slide

32. https://www.womenwhocode.com
    

    View Slide

33. https://www.techrepublic.com/article/alaina-percival-women-who-code-ceo-grassroots-leader-hiker/
    https://eightfold.ai/learn/alaina-percival-ceo-of-women-who-code-on-how-to-design-for-equity/
    

    View Slide

34. View Slide

35. AWARENESS
    REFLECTIONS
    • Many women might not be
    aware of WordCamps or
    might not see them as
    spaces for them due to lack
    of representation.
    HISTORICAL
    TRENDS
    • Tech, in general, has historically been
    male-dominated, and while strides are
    being made, events like WordCamp
    reflect broader industry trends.
    INCLUSIVE
    ENVIRONMENT
    • Events like WordCamp have
    a clear code of conduct
    that addresses harassment
    and promotes inclusivity.
    

    View Slide

36. WHAT’S YOUR NEXT STEP?
    EDUCATE
    YOURSELF
    Reflect on your own explicit
    and implicit biases that might
    exist and challenge them. If
    you're part of a hiring or
    selection process, ensure that
    it's as unbiased and inclusive
    as possible.
    ENGAGE IN
    DISCUSSIONS
    When women share their
    experiences, listen without
    immediately jumping to
    solutions or dismissing
    their concerns.
    If you notice women
    holding back in discussions,
    encourage them to share
    their thoughts. Engaging in
    open conversations can be
    an eye-opener. ENCOURAGE &
    COLLABORATE
    Seek opportunities to
    collaborate with women in
    your field. Attend events or
    webinars organized by
    women-centric tech groups.
    Even if you're not a woman,
    your presence and support
    can send a powerful message.
    Empowering women in digital spaces requires both
    systemic changes and individual actions.
    

    View Slide

37. View Slide

38. Questions?
    THANK YOU
    LAURA UIMBA
    K
    LK
    LAURA K U I M B A
    

    View Slide