Women In STEM Podcast

She was 10 years old when she saw a problem, and her mum helped her build the solution.
To open our Black History Month series, I sit down with Avye Couloute and Hélène Virolan, the mother-and-daughter team behind Girls Into Coding. I'm Kelly Shungu, and in this episode Avye and Hélène share how it all began: Avye started the organisation after noticing that most of the young people at the tech workshops she ran were boys. Eight years on, they've reached over 20,000 girls across the UK.
Together, they talk about the moment an idea became something bigger, what it's like to build an organisation as a family, and what representation really means as Black women in STEM. They also share why girls need more than a pep talk to thrive in tech: they need spaces where they truly belong.
Avye is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree and UK Young Engineer of the Year. Hélène brings business and strategy expertise as a Director of Girls Into Coding.
Stay to the end for their message to every young Black girl who loves technology but isn't sure she belongs. 💜
🎧 Part of our Black History Month series celebrating Black women in STEM, hosted & produced by Kelly Shungu.
Follow the Women in STEM Podcast:
Podcast Founder LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-ann-shungu/
Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
All Links: https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninstem_podcast/
Social media:
Website: https://www.girlsintocoding.com/
LinkedIn (GIC): https://www.linkedin.com/company/girls-into-coding/
LinkedIn (Avye): https://www.linkedin.com/in/avye-couloute
LinkedIn (Helene): www.linkedin.com/in/hélène-virolan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girls_into_coding/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/girlsintocoding
Learn more: girlsintocoding.com | @girls_into_coding

In this episode of the Women in STEM Podcast, Kelly Shungu sits down with Sonya Lloyd, professional motorcycle racer, biological engineer, and Technical Marketing LDP at Siemens Digital Industries, for a conversation that will completely rewire how you think about what a STEM career can look like.
Sonya doesn't fit neatly into any one box. She graduated with a degree in Biological Engineering from the University of Georgia in 2024, competed in the 2025 FIM Women's World Circuit Racing Championship, and is now preparing for the 2026 MotoAmerica Twins Cup Championship on the Factory Suzuki team, all while working full-time in tech. Her story isn't just inspiring. It's proof that passion, data, and sheer determination don't belong in separate lanes.
In this episode, we get into:
✨ How a Biological Engineering degree shows up on the racetrack from data and telemetry to race strategy
✨ What it's really like navigating two male-dominated worlds: STEM and professional motorsport
✨ Sonya's journey from university to Siemens Digital Industries and why the path was anything but linear
✨ What the FIM Women's World Circuit Racing Championship means for the future of women in motorsport
✨ How Sonya manages a full-time tech career alongside international racing
✨ The unexpected ways tech and racing feed directly into each other
✨ What she'd say to any young woman sitting at the crossroads between passion and practicality
Whether you're a STEM student wondering if your interests are too scattered, a woman navigating a male-dominated industry, or simply someone who needs reminding that there are no rules on what your career can look like, Sonya's story will push you to go faster.

Follow the Women in STEM Podcast:
Podcast Founder LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-ann-shungu/
Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
All Links: https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninstem_podcast/

Podcast hosted & edited by Kelly Shungu
Podcast edited by Erza Bajskolli

Sharon Samjitsingh is not your average tech founder. She was named TechRochester's Technology Woman of the Year in 2020, counts herself among the Top 100 Women in FemTech and HealthTech, and has built a company dedicated to transforming how we manage respiratory disease, one wearable at a time.
In this special episode, guest host Erza Bajskolli sits down with Sharon to explore how Health Care Originals is closing the gaps traditional healthcare has left wide open. Sharon shares the story behind ADAMM, their groundbreaking respiratory wearable, and the Nightingale service that supports patients in real time. She also gets candid about the economics of chronic illness, the unique strengths women bring to health innovation, and what the next decade of wearable tech could mean for the millions living with asthma and COPD.
This one will make you rethink what it really means to build technology that puts patients first.
Follow the Women in STEM Podcast:
Podcast Founder LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-ann-shungu/
Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
All Links: https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninstem_podcast/
Founded and produced by Kelly Shungu. Guest hosted by Erza Bajskolli. Episode edited by Erza Bajskolli.

Dr. Claire Malone is not your average physicist. She completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge, hunting for supersymmetric particles at CERN's ATLAS experiment, has met Stephen Hawking, and has since built a career dedicated to making science work for everyone, not just the few.
Kelly Shungu sits down with Claire for one of the most thought-provoking conversations we've had on the show. Claire opens up about why she walked away from research after her PhD, how she navigated academia with cerebral palsy, and why AI is reshaping who gets a seat at the science table. She also introduces the idea of the "Culture of Speed" and makes a compelling case for why it might be the single biggest barrier holding STEM back.
This one will make you rethink what success in science is actually supposed to look like.
Resources Mentioned:
Dr. Claire Malone's website: www.doctorclairemalonecom
Course: AI with Insight
The Lightyear Foundation
Follow the Women in STEM Podcast:
Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-ann-shungu/
Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
All Links: https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninstem_podcast/
Hosted and founded by Kelly Shungu. Episode edited by Erza Bajskolli.

In this episode, host Kelly Shungu sits down with Rachel Kirkham, CTO at MindBridge, whose career path took her from ACA-qualified chartered accountant and Head of Data Analytics at the UK National Audit Office to leading cutting-edge AI innovation in financial risk intelligence, and she's never looked back.
Rachel is a founding member of R-Ladies Global, a passionate advocate for women in technology, and a recognised voice in the world of ethical, explainable AI for regulated industries. She brings a rare combination of deep financial expertise and technical leadership to one of the most consequential questions in modern AI: how do we build systems we can actually trust?
If you've ever wondered how AI is transforming the way auditors and financial institutions detect risk or how women can break through systemic barriers to reach the top of STEM and tech leadership, this conversation will change the way you think about both.
Check Out Women In STEM Podcast New LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
We dive into:
✨ How Rachel made the leap from chartered accountancy to leading AI product strategy at a global tech company
✨ What it really means to build ethical, explainable AI in a heavily regulated industry
✨ The ideal human + AI collaboration in financial risk analytics — and when it genuinely surprises even the experts
✨ The persistent barriers facing women in STEM and what organisations can actually do to dismantle them
✨ Rachel's experience as a founding member of R-Ladies Global and why community matters in tech
✨ How to tackle imposter syndrome in male-dominated leadership spaces
✨ Where AI in auditing and financial risk is heading in the next 5–10 years
✨ One action you can take this week to start building confidence and competence in AI or data science
Whether you're an aspiring data scientist, a finance professional curious about AI, or a woman navigating your own path in STEM leadership, Rachel's story is proof that unconventional career journeys can lead to the most extraordinary places.

Follow the Women in STEM Podcast:
Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-ann-shungu/
Podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-stem-podcast/
All Links: https://linktr.ee/womeninstem_podcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninstem_podcast/