Current Project – Archives (2014 – now)
The Canadian Archive of Women in STEM / Les archives canadiennes des femmes en STIM
Current main project of CIWES-ICFIS
Priority Objectives
- Build an inventory of existing archives of women in Canadian STEM;
- Develop a guide on how to collect, preserve and donate archives;
- Run an internet campaign of awareness on the importance of planning the donation of archives;
- Develop a web site and show examples of archives collected.
Background Information
Women have made great contributions to science, technology, and engineering and mathematics (STEM), but the known history of women in STEM in Canada is still in its infancy. The invisibility of women in traditional and established archives, which most often collected the records of men and tended to privilege their life and work, has contributed to this issue. This gender gap in our history has also resulted in professional women’s inclination to underestimate their accomplishments. Many women did not seek to preserve their papers, and neither did their family, friends, or colleagues.
There is a pressing need to provide current and future women scientists and engineers in Canada with an accurate and inspiring understanding of their past, to learn about the lives and accomplishments of the pioneering and inspiring women of the past, and to ensure that present women’s contributions to STEM are recorded for posterity.
Creation of the Archive
As a result of the 2014 Workshop, CIWES-ICFIS along with our partners at the University of Ottawa Library and Library and Archives Canada created the Canadian Archive of Women in STEM / Les archives canadiennes des femmes en STIM (CAWSTEM/ACFSTIM). CAWSTEM’s goals are to increase awareness of and access to archival material in Canada and to encourage women in STEM to donate their records to an archive; ensuring that the story of women’s accomplishments in STEM is not lost for future researchers.
The goal of Increasing access to the historical record of women in STEM has been accomplished through the creation of a bilingual portal, built and hosted by the University of Ottawa Library. The portal provides researchers, educators and historians with a link to currently available archival holdings related to women in STEM held by archival institutions across the country. Canadian archival institutions have shared information about their holdings and the portal now has over 500 entries – a number that continues to grow. The portal can be used to quickly locate relevant material and find out how to access it.
The aim of encouraging women involved in STEM to think about their legacy and donate their records to an archive is still underway. Through the development of a donation guide, an online video, collaboration with archival institutions and conversations with women, we hope to lessen the anxiety and trepidation women may feel about the donation process.
For more information on the project, please visit the uOttawa website: https://biblio.uottawa.ca/en/women-in-stem/about
Interested in donating archival materials?
The story of women in STEM cannot be told if the historical record is lost. Donating records to a historical archive ensures that future generations will know your contributions and be inspired. If you are a woman in STEM, or know a woman in STEM, follow the simple steps and think about the questions below to get started with the donation process.
1. Where do you want to donate?
Many archives in Canada are interested in preserving the records of women in STEM. Do you have a connection to a particular academic institution, community or organisation? If they have an archive, that might be the first place to start. For lists of archives in Canada, you can visit the provincial archival association and provincial network websites:
- B.C: https://www.memorybc.ca/repository/browse
- Alberta: https://albertaonrecord.ca/repository/browse
- Saskatchewan: https://www.scaa.sk.ca/members-section/member-list/
- Manitoba: https://main.lib.umanitoba.ca/repository/browse
- Ontario: https://www.archeion.ca/repository/browse
- Quebec: http://rdaq.banq.qc.ca/services/liste/index.html
- New Brunswick: https://search.canbarchives.ca/repository/browse
- Nova Scotia: https://memoryns.ca/repository/browse
- PEI: http://www.archives.pe.ca/atom/index.php/repository/browse
- Newfoundland: https://arc.anla.nf.ca/repository/browse
- Canada: https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca
If you do not have a preference for which archive you donate to, the University of Ottawa Archives and Special Collections is currently building a collection of archives of women in STEM. You can learn about donating to them at: https://biblio.uottawa.ca/en/how-guide-preparing-your-records-donation
2. What types of material are archives interested in collecting?
Typically, archives are interested in records that tell the story about what you did, what activities you were involved in and who you are. Records could include:
- correspondence
- personal diaries
- papers and reports
- articles
- photographs
- personal video or audio recordings
- research data
3. Contacting an archive about your donation offer
Once you have an archive in mind, visit their website and look for their contact information. Most archives have a donation page which will give you information about their particular donation process. When you contact them, tell them who you are, about the work that you do and what records you have to donate.
4. Why an archive might not accept your donation offer
Archives don’t always accept material that is offered to them. It could be because they don’t have space, or the records don’t meet their particular collection mandate. If your donation offer is rejected, don’t give up. You can ask the archives for suggestions of other institutions that may be interested in your records, or you can also look at the list above to find alternatives.
For more information about donating archival material, please contact your preferred organisation directly.
Partners
The Importance of Collecting Women in STEM Archives
Claire Deschênes and Monique Frize. Presentation, May 14, 2025.
Download the presentation (PDF, 1.5 MB)
Project 2014 – Present
Developing Women in STEM Archive and Portal
Archives Workshop 2020
Building The Canadian Archive of Women in STEM/Archives Canadiennes des femmes en STIM: The Next Phase
On Friday October 4, 2019, the University of Ottawa Library, Library and Archives Canada (LAC), and CIWES (formerly INWES-ERI) held a second workshop as a strategic follow-up to the 2014 workshop Creating the Memories and Celebrating the Legacy of the Bold and the Brave: Building the Archives of Women Scientists and Engineers in Canada and to the launch of The Canadian Archive of Women in STEM at the University of Ottawa in June 2018.
This workshop brought together board members and guests from various archival institutions, governmental organizations and educational institutions supporting this initiative. Its aims were to establish a national network of expertise, for the benefit of current and future researchers, and to document the largely unknown history of women who have contributed to Canadian STEM.
“The history of women in STEM remains to be written. The Archive intends to become both a major source and a hub that will help increase interest in this field of research. At the same time, the Archive contains useful material for those interested in science policy, the history of technology and the development of STEM disciplines, including new areas such as biomedicine.”
Participants discussed the next steps and developed recommendations to ensure the long-term growth and sustainability of The Canadian Archive of Women in STEM. The main recommendations that emerged from this Workshop concerned building partnerships and collaborations, create a governance model including a steering committee, further develop the Portal itself and spell out its existence and usefulness, and address sustainability through fundraising and in kind participations.
Read more:
Launching the Canadian Archive of Women in STEM
June 19th, 2018
Increasing signs of interest for the Archive project were expressed throughout 2017 and 2018.
A fundraising campaign was launched by Monique Frize, Claire Deschênes and Ruby Heap, which yielded financial contributions from organizations such as NSERC, Engineers Canada/Ingénieurs Canada, l’AFFESTIM (Association de la francophonie à propos des femmes en sciences, technologies, ingénierie et mathématiques), and the FRQ (Fonds de recherche du Québec). In the meantime, a succession of meetings with the University of Ottawa’s Chief Librarian and the CEO of Library and Archives Canada (LAC) resulted in the creation of a formal partnership between the University of Ottawa Library, LAC and INWES-ERI, which successfully negotiated the creation of the Canadian Archive of Women in STEM.
The project was officially launched at the University of Ottawa on June 19th, 2018, in presence of the Honorable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport, of Dr. Mona Nemer, Canada’s Chief Science Officer, of Guy Berthiaume, CEO of LAC and of Jacques Frémont, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ottawa.
The following links provide examples of the media coverage dedicated to this important event and its outcomes:
http://www.apegm.mb.ca/News.html#253
https://engineerscanada.ca/news-and-events/news/archiving-the-accomplishments-of-women-in-stem
PHOTOS TAKEN DURING THE JUNE 19TH, 2018, LAUNCH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA
Launching event on June 19, 2018. From left to right: Jacques Frémont, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Ottawa, Guy Berthiaume, CEO, Library and Archives Canada, Monique Frize (INWES-ERI), Claire Deschênes (INWES-ERI), Edith Ducharme (student member of Affestim), Mona Nemer (Canada’s Chief Science Advisor), Ruby Heap (INWES-ERI), Mélissa Fortin (PhD student member of Affestim), Leslie Weir,(University of Ottawa Chief Librarian), Catherine Mavriplis (NSERC / Pratt & Whitney Canada Chair for Women in Science and Engineering for Ontario)
Launching event on June 19, 2018. From left to right: Ruby Heap, Claire Deschênes, Monique Frize.
A touching moment when Monique Frize presented her book to the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, at the project-launch on June 19th 2018.
Creating the Memories and Celebrating the Legacy of the Bold and the Brave: Building the Archives of Women Scientists and Engineers in Canada
Archives Workshop September 11-12, 2014
The history of women scientists and engineers in Canada is still in its infancy. This can be largely attributed to their invisibility in traditional and established archives, which collected male records and tended to privilege the life and work of men; but another major obstacle has been these professional women’s inclination to underestimate their own accomplishments, with the result that most did not seek to preserve their papers, and neither did their family, friends and colleagues. At a time when the call for more women in science and engineering careers resonates strongly within governmental, economic and academic circles, and when there is a strong consensus regarding the benefits of gender equity and increased diversity in these fields, there is a pressing need to provide current and future Canadian women scientists and engineers with an accurate and inspiring understanding of their past, to learn about the lives and accomplishments of those “who came before them”.
Description of Event
The event took place at the University of Ottawa on September 11 and 12 2014. This knowledge mobilization event, the first to be devoted to this issue in Canada, brought together individuals, groups and organizations from a large array of disciplines and sectors encompassing the humanities, social sciences, science and engineering, who are committed to working towards the preservation, development and sharing of the documentary heritage of women scientists and engineers in Canada.
The organization of this activity has generated great enthusiasm and, as you will see by consulting the enclosed preliminary program, the workshop will bring together an impressive interdisciplinary group of scholars, students, practitioners and stakeholders from across Canada, the US and the UK, who will each contribute to the discussions and development of an action plan.
The Workshop will be held thanks to the generous financial and in-kind contributions provided by our sponsors, which include the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Science and Institute for Science, Society and Policy, IBM Canada, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the NSERC Chairs for Women in Science and Engineering and from the British High Commission in Canada.
Your experience and strong engagement in the promotion of women in science and engineering will greatly enrich our discussions and the development of an action plan for the future.
