Out of the Box: Women in Tech

Last year, I talked about my own journey of stepping (or breaking) out of the box, so to speak. It definitely hasn't been easy, but I'm grateful for all that I'm learning. Being in a society that may not value creativity as much as I'd like hasn't been very easy, but I'm fortunate enough to have the support of the people around me: family, friends, mentors and even strangers.

However, there are many others who aren't so lucky. There are certain fields which certain types of people are not allowed to break into, certain careers which some people just aren't 'allowed' to do, and countless boundaries that people keep imposing on others.

Just think about the stereotypes we associate with stay-at-home dads. If a woman was to make the choice to put her career on hold to raise children, she would be praised. The same decision, when taken by a man, is often ridiculed. He isn't given support by the people around him, including friends and family.

A similar struggle is faced by women in tech. Yes, we do hear of rising numbers of women engineers and scientists; but these stories are generally highlighting the outliers, not the norm.

Ghergich & Co. teamed up with SurePayroll to create a graphic that does a great job of digging into and highlighting this problem, and I wanted to share it with all of you (and hopefully get you to share it too!)

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The lack of women in what have typically been the male-dominated fields of computer programming and engineering has long been documented. But the statistics about this divide have become more, not less, stark. The percent of women in tech-related fields comes nowhere near to matching the percent of women in the general population�and that takes into account the representation at big-name companies, some of which are known to have more family friendly policies. Isolation can exacerbate the situation, as can the diverse reasons that women with such promise choose to leave tech. The under-representation is repeated at the educational level too, with fewer female students choosing to pursue these promising careers.

The benefits for education and business of women in tech are many, but the solutions to the problem may be diverse. There are steps that leaders in the industry now can take to ensure there�s change in tech for women, but it will take time and dedication.

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The Mayura: Restaurant Review

Happy new year, everyone! It's been a while, so I thought to break tradition and post on a Tuesday this time - I'm sure you're in need of new restaurant recommendations, right? Located in Kenrail towers, the Mayura is an Indian restaurant that you may not have been to yet. I'd heard about it, but never been, so when I was invited to do a review, I naturally jumped at the chance. Located in Kenrail Towers, the ambience of the Mayura has peacock-themed, warm interiors. There's a lot of space to sit down, both inside and outside. The restaurant is the brainchild of Rajiv Segal, who has a corporate background and being from Delhi, had a high standard of quality and had developed a distinctive palate, which he wanted to bring to the people in Nairobi. The menu was chosen for us by Rajiv (and boy, did we eat a lot!). For starters, we had some paneer tikka, mutton chops, fish amritsari and banu kebab (chicken). The paneer tikka was absolutely amazing! The paneer was fresh...

Fashion, Food and Furniture: A Night with Panesar Kenya

Pic by Catherine Muchira Now, part of being a nomad does involve socialising, although this probably hasn't been all too evident in my recent posts! The evening of Thursday, the 5th of November found me attending an invite-only event entitled 'Fashion, Food & Furniture' at the Rouge Deck , hosted by Panesar Interiors . I was allowed a plus one, and decided to make my best friend tag along with me. I must admit, when I first received the invite, I was a little curious to see how the 3 themes were meant to fit together, but everything flowed seamlessly on the day of the event! I must admit, I was quite impressed. The Fashion Pic by Official Photographer The clothes on display were designed and created by Njema Helena , a company that was formed by a mother and daughters team in honour of their late daughter and sister, who passed away from cancer a few years ago. The designs were absolutely beautiful, and I loved the modern take on traditional African prints. There were ...

How to Organize Your Closet

Today�s guest blogger is fellow Her Campus Blogger Network member, Ak Brown! This is the first post in a series of posts she�ll be doing on The Kenyan Nomad. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have! Ak�s bio: Fashionable with a hint of unconventional rawness, that's what I used to describe myself and my blog Mind of a Fashionista. Started in 2013, I have transformed this blog along with my best friend into a diverse source of fashion, style, and beauty news, trends, tips, and tricks while also conveying opinions that normally don't go with the "norm" opinion. It's morning, 6:58 to be exact. It's time for you to get up, get ready, and get going. After showering, brushing and flossing your teeth you head over to your closet and say to yourself "What in the f***". Shirts are hanging off of their hangers, pants look like they got up for a late night drink and passed out on the floor, and long story short, your closet looks like an abomination. But y...

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