One of the finalists for the Science and Sustainability Awards is Mariella Ardiyanti Haryanto. She is a food technologist and scientist who studied food bioscience at Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland. Having worked for five years in product development within the food industry, Mariella excels in food processing, new product concepting, production and quality control.

Before returning to Indonesia, Mariella worked with Genius Foods as an MSc placement student from Glasgow Caledonian University during the summer of 2015. She received a permanent position in their research team, where she continued to develop her food and ingredient knowledge, specifically gluten-free food. She also proved her merit as a new product development specialist at the same company.

Her genuine interest in baked goods led her to work at PT Kalbe Nutritionals, where she was in charge of products ranging from baby biscuits to low calorie cookies. Then in 2019, she joined PT. Prima Top Boga, where she continued to pursue her interest in baking and product development. That same year, she made a big leap by innovating long shelf-life croissants, which was also the first long shelf-life baked pastry to be distributed at an affordable price across Indonesia and Asia Pacific.

Another finalist in the Social Action category is Averina Geffanie Suwana, who graduated as a Master of Research in Cardiovascular Science and Disease from Newcastle University.

Even during her days as an undergraduate medical student, Averina was highly aware of Indonesia’s healthcare landscape. It led her to establish the Yayasan Indonesia Sehat, where she launched several programs including the provision of primary health care services to rural communities in East Nusa Tenggara, Kalimantan and Banten. Currently, Averina’s organization is planning to move forward with projects related to malnutrition prevention.

Averina’s decision to study at a UK university was driven by her belief that the UK is a leading country in medical research and healthcare systems. Studying at Newcastle University, in fact, also helped her understand the different cultural and social backgrounds of her patients. Furthermore, her time in the UK helped to develop not just her medical knowledge, but also her emotional intelligence and empathy.

British Council Indonesia is eager to see more budding female scientists advance their careers and make a meaningful impact on their communities. The external judge of this year’s Study UK Alumni Awards, Femmy Soemantri, echoed this sentiment as a woman who has a flourishing career in science management and research management.

“There are a lot of barriers throughout my experience in the science sector [when it comes to women], whether it’s societal, personal or regarding opportunity, and access. That’s something we should put more attention to,” Femmy said in an interview with The Jakarta Post.

“No matter how people perceive [the science] community, it’s sometimes not giving a lot of opportunities to women. When in reality, you see a lot of good Indonesian female scientists. There are many in terms of numbers and their quality is amazing.” She continued.

However, Femmy also acknowledged there had been a lot of improvements on the side of policymakers, the larger society and even the science community itself. As more women apply for research grants and competitions, she states, it will justify that women scientists are present and contributing to society.

“When leaders change, these kinds of notions might also [trigger a shift]. So, really, there are a lot of aspects to think about. We can’t work alone, there needs to be a collective effort in facilitating women in STEM.” Femmy added. “For women in STEM, we are not in a state of engaging —we are now supposed to be in the stage of supporting or fully facilitating.”

Meet these amazing female scientists at the Study UK Alumni Awards over on Zoom on Feb. 11.

For more information, please contact Yuli.Tukidjo@britishcouncil.or.id

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