Regina Moran, chartered engineer and CEO of Fujitsu Ireland, has been appointed president of Engineers Ireland. She highlighted the convergence between engineering and technology, improvements in education, and women in technology as three primary themes she will address during her presidency. Speaking at the inauguration, which took place in Engineers Ireland HQ in Dublin on May 29, the new president expressed her goal to promote the integration between engineering and technology: “There’s a collision between the physical and the digital world, which is creating many opportunities for all of us in the engineering and technology sectors. For example, you can’t design and build the Samuel Beckett Bridge without technology and you can’t design a smart phone application without engineering.” In her speech, Moran also outlined her plans to visit schools across the country, promoting engineering to primary and post-primary students, in particular girls. She said she would work closely with the Engineers Ireland’s STEPS team to support the school’s outreach programme, which encourages students to explore the world of engineering and science. In her role as Fujitsu Ireland CEO, Moran has spoken extensively on the need to encourage women to embrace the subjects of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM): “Many secondary school students believe that STEM subjects are more suited to males than females. A lack of female role models and encouragement from parents and teachers contribute to these misperceptions and as an organisation, this is something we must change.” She highlighted that despite these misconceptions there were positive signs of change recently: “2013’s Engineering Perspectives report gives us an insight into the evolving engineering profession in Ireland – on average, the ratio of men to women in engineering has been around 9:1. A fifth of all respondents in the survey were women and, of these, half were under the age of 35 years. This shows a very promising gender balance shift in the engineering landscape in Ireland. We must build on this and encourage young students, especially young women, to explore opportunities in engineering.” To read Regina Moran's full inauguration speech, click here.