Intel, in association with The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, kicked off their effort to uphold gender diversity in the video game industry. They have launched a new initiative called WomenIn, to promote gender diversity in the video game industry. The effort is one of the many such initiatives by Intel to change the face of game and tech industries, which are now primarily dominated by men.
The initiative will focus on providing educational and career guidance to women. Even though 48 percent of game players are women, only 22 percent are into game development.
According to VentureBeat:
“Last year, Intel and the International Game Developers Association announced an alliance to double the number of women working in gaming.”
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) will implement a scholarship for women, with specific focus on technical skills. The program will help create internships, working with companies that already have similar programs. It will also tap both male and female talent to serve as mentors for women.
Martin Rae, head of the AIAS said, “Money is going to go out to women in the game industry in the form of scholarships. We’re going to build a mentor database. I want your help, if it’s just to be an evangelist for your program.”
The AIAS runs the DICE Summit game event. DICE has had a scholarship program for the past three years for women and under-represented minorities to attend the elite event.
“The power of mentorship to give easy and free access, of having a 1-to-1 relationship, is important,” said Don Daglow, the president of the AIAS Foundation. Daglow has been in the industry making games for 36 years and says half his projects had female leads or producers.
This is a great initiative by Intel and AIAS. This program will enable talented women to showcase their skills and interests to choose careers in game programming. We hope to see many more such initiatives across male-dominated domains.
