The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis
The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis
Authors: Cristina Manzano (Forschungszentrum Jülich), Anna Lührs (Forschungszentrum Jülich), Karina Pešatová (IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center), Verónica Melesse Vergara (Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)), Maria del Carmen Ruiz Varela (AMD), Helena Vela Beltran (Do IT Now), Laura Parry (Microsoft Corporation), Paola Buitrago (Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center), María del Carmen Heras Sánchez (ACARUS, Universidad de Sonora), Hai Ah Nam (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)), Sadaf Alam (University of Bristol)
Abstract: Members of underrepresented groups often lack access to role models within their minority. The HPC community is still predominantly male, making it difficult for young women to find female "superheroes" to identify with. Such role models are crucial for career planning and guidance. This session aims to provide especially women with the opportunity to meet influential, well-recognized female HPC "superheroes" from academia, research labs, HPC centers, and industry. Join us to be inspired and find relatable role models as we work together to build a more inclusive and connected HPC community.
Long Description: The session will address a critical issue within our community: the lack of representation and role models for members of minorities, particularly women. It will offer a dynamic and interactive platform for attendees to engage with influential and diverse women in HPC, providing inspiration and fostering valuable connections. Our goals are to increase the visibility of women in HPC, provide strong role models, facilitate the exchange of ideas and experiences, create networking opportunities, identify and celebrate “superheroes” in the field, and inspire attendees with relatable stories and achievements. We aim to fill a critical gap in a predominantly male community by supporting and empowering women who often lack connections.
The session will cover a range of essential topics, including empowering women in the HPC community, diversity and inclusion, and the importance of role models.
Early career members of the HPC community are especially encouraged to attend. We extend a special invitation to all women and other minority attendees. We believe the discussion is relevant and potentially beneficial to individuals of all genders and seniority levels, and we welcome everyone to attend.
For the BoF session, we are assembling a diverse and global set of speakers from academia, research labs, HPC centers, and industry. These will be women from different geographic regions and backgrounds, ensuring a rich and fruitful discussion. They will be well-recognized members of the HPC community, including past invited or keynote speakers at conferences, award recipients, and those holding key positions at their institutions. Their diverse experiences and perspectives will foster an engaging exchange of ideas and contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the topics at hand.
This will be the fourth event in our Super(computing)heroes series. The first three BoFs were held at ISC24, SC24 and ISC25. The strong interest (approximately 80 participants attended the last BoF on site) and excellent feedback from both attendees and panelists confirm our belief in the value of this format and motivate us to submit it again for SC25. As an example of what to expect, the panelists at SC24 were: Michela Taufer, University of Tennessee, Knoxville (USA); Lúcia Drummond, Fluminense Federal University (Brazil); Verónica Melesse Vergara, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (USA); Lara Timm, Centre for High Performance Computing (South Africa); Doris Franke, cultural change and business consultant (Germany); and Chia-Lee Yang, National Center for High Performance Computing (Taiwan). Because there are so many influential women in HPC, and one of the things we want to showcase is exactly that, we feature a different group of speakers at each event.
As in the previous session, we will collect feedback on the organization and content at the end of the session. In addition, insights, experiences and lessons learned from this BoF will be summarized in a blog post or white paper. The insights from the previous BoF at SC24 can be found in the following blog post: https://www.fz-juelich.de/en/blogs/juwinhpc-voices/2025/super-computing-heroes-at-sc24-celebrating-diversity-and-impact-in-hpc.
Website: https://www.fz-juelich.de/en/blogs/juwinhpc-voices/tags/super-computing-heroes