IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - December 2023 - 20

ternet Protocol address, plus included legal
documents for the volunteers as they
were working with children.
Pía Torres holding the Robot LEGO Mindstorms EV3, one of the educational
robots used for Roboteam workshops.
fear to change industry because I know I
can adapt, " says Torres.
Her current role puts her in the position
to work across the globe, furthering
her learning opportunities about other
cultures and people's needs around
the world. Because Globant offers the
flexibility to work from home, Torres's
mom can live with her in Buenos Aires
and she is able to balance her work, life,
and volunteering.
Making Time to Give Back
Time to volunteer is essential to Torres, who
has been involved with IEEE since 2001 as a
part of her local student branch and served
in various roles throughout her professional
career. Currently, she is an IEEE
Senior Member, a part of the honor society
IEEE-Eta Kappa Nu, serves as the Project
Monitoring Ad-Hoc Committee chair of the
Humanitarian Technology Board, the
IEEE IAS Exec-Board Standing Committee
for Equity Diversity & Inclusion chair
of the Industry Applications Society, and
is a part of the IEEE Diversity and Inclusion
Committee.
Perhaps her most meaningful volunteer
experience, the program she calls
" my baby, " came about while she was
chair of the IEEE Women in Engineering
(WIE) Argentina Section in 2015, but it
was not without obstacles. " We were discussing
what other things we could do to
address the needs of women in industry, "
20
describes Torres. " By that time, I'd had a
lot of experience in different industries,
and I saw the impact of companies or industries
not focused on attracting women
into this field. We held inspiring talks with
other engineers but, in my experience,
that could attract young female students
coming from university, but we didn't
have the opportunity to reach younger
students and break the bias women have
toward the industry at a young age. "
To reach out to this preuniversity audience,
the Section started a series of
workshops, games, and other activities in
robotics for kids of all genders to promote
working together. They were having so
much success that some of the organizations
that were offering space and materials
for the initiatives insisted the team
begin charging for the activities. Torres
was opposed to the idea. " We were volunteers
and this was not for profit; it was all
for the kids, for the future, " says Torres.
" We decided that no one could steal our
purpose, so some of us started again
from scratch. "
The program " Roboteam " was born,
and now it would be bigger than ever. The
team designed new workshops, not just in
robotics but in electricity, physics, electronics,
and other topics within engineering
and technology. They also expanded
the age range, opening up activities to
teenagers through age 18. And this time
they registered the name to protect its InIEEE
WOMEN IN ENGINEERING MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2023
Since 2018, the team has reached
thousands of kids (and adults!), not only
to teach technology but also to introduce
the idea from an early age that young
people can be changemakers. During the
COVID-19 pandemic, Roboteam volunteers
sent kits with Arduino boards to kids
all over Argentina, challenging them to
find a problem in their communities and
design and prototype a solution, then craft
a pitch as if selling their idea to a jury,
" like entrepreneurs on the show Shark
Tank, " describes Torres. The projects were
meant to encourage the development
of skills in entrepreneurship, leadership,
teamwork, and social engineering, building
pride through a COVID situation that was
particularly tough in Argentina.
" I'm so proud of the program because
I've seen a lot of growth in the kids and
also in my team members, " shares Torres,
adding that some of the students are now
studying math and engineering while
some are continuing with entrepreneurship.
" It is a huge endeavor reborn from
a situation that was very sad for us and
gave us a new purpose. " Supported by
more than 40 companies and organizations,
Roboteam remains a completely
free endeavor and has been recognized
with several awards, including one from
the United Nations.
Dedicated to Diversity and Inclusivity
Along the way, Torres developed her
own interest in entrepreneurship and
launched a business called Growtec with
her Roboteam cofounder Romina Fairbairn.
Still in its early stages, Growtec is
a consultancy meant to help individuals,
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs),
and organizations expand their understanding
of technology. " Even though
things were tough for me, I'm very privileged
because I was able to study for the
career that I want and had the support
of my family, " shares Torres. " I'm proud
to work in technology and because I have
IEEE Women in Engineering Magazine - December 2023

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