Gender equity in the maker space

In 2025, I taught women and non-binary people practical tool and fabrication skills through University of Melbourne Architecture, Building and Planning workshops supported by a Peter McPhee grant.

The earlier programme proposal focused on access for people with little previous tool experience. My later professional records document the teaching contribution; participant outcomes are not quantified here.

The proposed activities brought tool use and fabrication together with opportunities to build confidence and peer connection. Free participation and attention to participants’ starting points were part of the design.

The wider question was what makes a technical environment accessible and welcoming. Induction processes, expectations about prior knowledge, communication and the way support is offered can all be examined alongside the activity itself.

I proposed participant feedback and a Gender Impact Analysis conversation with maker-space staff. The purpose was to connect experiences from the workshops with recommendations about longer-term access and inclusion.

This approach draws on my local-government gender-impact-analysis work: examine the process, listen to different experiences and connect findings with organisational decisions. Gender diversity is part of that analysis.

The concept shows how community-programme design and organisational review can inform one another. Practical learning offers a setting in which barriers can be discussed and potential changes tested.

Soft Infrastructure can support inclusive programme development, gender impact analysis and evaluation planning. The related project story describes my completed contribution to piloting a GIA approach in local government.