Global Leadership | Magazine Article | United Kingdom

Inner Wings is flying

by Fiona Murchie | Sep 24, 2024

I was thrilled to attend the launch of the Inner Wings Advisory Council, which was held at the House of Lords and hosted by Baroness Mary Goudie with Melissa Di Donato Roos, who is the co-founder of Inner Wings and chair and CEO of Kyriba, a global fintech company. Melissa knows women in tech leadership are few and far between and is passionate about helping more women pursue STEM careers, writes Fiona Murchie.

The launch was a fabulous occasion, with guests from business, tech and education. It was also a great opportunity to meet and find out more from Advisory Council members Iveta Cabajova and Christine Ashton. They were brimming with enthusiasm for the work the organisation is doing, not only to give children and girls in particular confidence, but also to release their ‘superpowers’ and potentially take up groundbreaking roles in science, tech or their chosen careers.

Children at the launch from participating primary schools, St Joseph’s and Sunny Hill, were also the stars of the day, speaking with confidence and from the heart in an interview with Melissa. Combined with the powerful tributes from their teachers attending, what better testament to the success of the ‘Finding Your Inner Voice’ programmes run by the charity for 20,000 children in the last 12 months.

“Investing in our kids is investing in our future,” Melissa explained. “These are the UK’s future CEOs, policymakers and decision makers. How we help and support them now is integral to building a stronger, more successful UK for the future.

“Their curiosity, enthusiasm and intelligence really brought home why this work matters – they even gave me some confidence and public speaking tips! These are kids who deserve to have their voices heard and the confidence to achieve their full potential.

“Inner Wings creates confidence-building resources for teachers. They are free and focused on pre-teens. Free resources mean we can reach as many kids as possible in the schools where kids need these classes most. We focus on pre-teens because patterns start early. If kids create limitations for themselves at 11, A levels, university and first jobs will be a much harder uphill battle.”

The dynamic Melissa Di Donato Roos is also the author of the three children’s books inspired by her daughter, ‘The Magic Box’, ‘How Do Mermaids Poo?’ and ‘Kick Like a Girl’, encouraging children – especially girls – to reach for their dreams.

Ellen Shustik, director of programmes and outreach, was happy to share the good news that the English-language resources will be available to be used at any English-speaking international school, which has already happened in India, Kenya and the UAE. Find out more at our online International Education & Schools’ Fair in November.