the equality pursuit

Interview with Dr. Carmen Verissima Ferreira-Halder

interview

MiniBio

Dr. Prof. Ferreira-Halder holds a Bachelor degree in Pharmacy, and MSc and PhD degrees in Biochemistry. She is currently a tenured Professor at UNICAMP, one of the best universities in Latin America, where she coordinates the OncoBiomarkers Laboratory, focused on understanding the biochemical aspects behind metastasis and tumor resistance. She and her group have published over 100 scientific papers that have been cited by over 12,000 publications.

Tell us about yourself and what motivated you to pursue a STEM education?

First of all, I must congratulate iGEM for launching "The Equality Pursuit" magazine. I'm Carmen Veríssima Ferreira Halder, a 52-year-old Biochemistry Professor, pharmacist, born in Mariana, a small town in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. My education was primarily in public institutions, of which I am proud. Since 1999, I have been working at the University of Campinas, where I coordinate the OncoBiomarkers Research Laboratory. Our research focuses on understanding the biochemical aspects behind metastasis and tumor resistance to treatments. In this regard, in addition to personnel resources, we contribute to advances in cancer patient management. The decision to become a scientist came at the end of my undergraduate degree in pharmacy, after completing a mandatory internship in the pharmaceutical industry. The routine that I witnessed and confirmed, along with the stories I received from pharmacists during my internship, was unquestionably the most crucial factor in my decision to pursue a career in another pharmaceutical field. Conviced that I should follow academics, I chose Biochemistry to be my subject of work. Biochemistry was always the subject I liked the most in my undergraduate, in large part, due to the professor responsible for it. Therefore, I chose one of the best universities in Brazil to carry out my postgraduate studies: the University of Campinas. Since then, 28 years have passed, and I can say without any doubt that doing science is a personal and professional achievement!

What are some of the challenges that you have faced as a female person of colour in STEM?

My main challenge was to have my competence questioned. At the beginning of my career, it was common for some people to doubt and look surprised at the position I occupied. But, particularly, this didn't affect me, because, since my childhood, my father always talked about the challenges that black people had to overcome, like growing professionally and having independence. I recall my father advising me on several occasions that I needed a competitive CV to ensure that my professional future was NEVER in the hands of others. And so I did! To put it another way, my family has fought diligently for my self-esteem since I was a child!

What thoughts do you have about the position of underrepresented communities in academia and other fields of STEM?

I think a lot still needs to be done. Not only the total number of people need to increase, but also more prominent positions for them play a decision-making role. Thus, we will have greater representation. But for this, educational and awareness-raising actions are needed.

What measures do you believe are being taken, or could

be taken, in your organization to increase gender diversity?

I believe it is fundamental that research institutions employ strategies to promote diversity. For this reason, I consider it essential that leaders not only believe it is essential, but also they are convinced of its importance. In other words, encouraging diversity must be regarded as more than a marketing strategy or a way for the institution to improve its rating. It's all about promoting dignity! Some of the measures, such as taking maternity leave into account when evaluating a researcher's or teacher's productivity, have just lately been applied. This is only the beginning: much more work remains. An example lays in considering assigning a certain percentage of job openings to women.

What do you think readers of The Equality Pursuit magazine need to know to empower young girls and women in their community to pursue education and careers in STEM?

They need to know stories of success! Stories that emphasize the significance of women’s ability to create, innovate and have a different perspective on the world: Important traits for education and science.

Also, they need to know how important it is to invest in education from an early age. It is a powerful method to channel their youth, vigor, and enthusiasm towards accepting and leading changes.

What is one piece of advice that you would like to give to aspiring female scientists?

Look for research groups that historically have gender and race diversity on the team. The quality of researchers and their positions/jobs are further factors to consider. The final piece of advice is to invest in international internships.

We also aim to debunk some stereotypes associated

with scientists and how science works. Would you like to share a fact about yourself that is not associated with your work?

One of the stereotypes is that a scientist is sullen and a loner just holed up in a lab. It's not true, for example, daily I joke about simple things and I love discovering places around the world together with my husband and daughter.