Estée Lauder Companies Technology Team and Girls Write Now Join Forces For Intergenerational Creative Think Tank
December 9, 2024
Leading technology professionals from the Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) gathered with the Girls Write Now (GWN) community at the organization’s headquarters in New York City. Participants took part in a panel on women in technology, networked across generations, and formed mini “think tanks” to collaborate on curriculum at the intersection of language, technology, and beauty. We are grateful for our longstanding collaboration with the Estée Lauder Companies through the WRITING CHANGE initiative, launched in partnership with poet and GWN champion Amanda Gorman.
Founder and Executive Director of Girls Write Now, Maya Nussbaum, started the evening with a warm welcome to the room of gathered professionals and students, highlighting the longstanding collaboration between Girls Write Now and Estée Lauder Companies, whose teams have supported the organization through the Writing Change Initiative with poet and Girls Write Now champion Amanda Gorman. Nussbaum was followed by Lynda Pak, Girls Write Now Board Member and Technology Leader for Global Brands and Corporate Functions at Estée Lauder Companies. Pak spoke about why the mission of Girls Write Now to elevate the voices of underserved young women and gender expansive young people is more crucial than ever.
Pak also spoke about the importance of creativity in the realm of technology, which led perfectly into a panel discussion hosted by Girls Write Now mentees Sophia One and Morgan Lin. The panel featured Brittney Kim (ELC), Ellen Morgenstern (ELC), Felicia Dodge (GWN Mentor Alum & Tech Committee Member, Monks), Ashna Shah (GWN Mentor Alum & Tech Committee Member, Glasshouse), and Alisha Stull (GWN Tech Committee Member, Google). Many of the panelists spoke about empathy and human understanding being a crucial part of emerging technologies. They also stressed how Girls Write Now makes a huge difference in bridging STEAM with social emotional learning.
“One of the things I think Girls Write Now does so well is really get behind the human story… to help mentees find their inner voices and pull them outward. You can tell that they have come to deeply understand themselves,” Shah said.
She said that working with her mentee for two years showed her how “the magic comes out” when young people are able to get clear about who they are and what matters to them.
Mentees then had the rare chance to work directly with ELC employees, building lesson plans around specific technology subjects, from app development to viral music analysis, and beyond.
Together, Estée Lauder Companies and Girls Write Now are building an intergenerational coalition to address new challenges and ideas in the field of technology.