Dawn Bonfield
Dawn Bonfield MBE CEng FIMMM FICE FIStructE FWES is a Materials Engineer and Founder & Director of Towards Vision,[1] a company which aims to work towards a vision of diversity and inclusion in engineering. She is past President and former Chief Executive of the Women's Engineering Society (WES),[2][3] and in 2018 was an Ambassador for the Year of Engineering, promoting engineering careers through a roadshow aimed at meeting parents.
Career
A materials engineer by profession, training and experience - having studied Materials Science at Bath University - Bonfield has worked at AERE Harwell, Citroen Research Centre (Paris), British Aerospace (Bristol), MBDA (Stevenage), and the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (London). She is currently a Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor of Inclusive Engineering at Aston University, developing undergraduate content on Inclusive Engineering to equip our next generation of engineers with the skills and competencies they need to be inclusive. She is also Co-Founder of IncEng,[4] a platform to bring together under-represented groups in engineering.
Activism
Whilst at WES in 2014 Bonfield was the founder of National Women in Engineering Day and in 2015 established the inaugural 50 Women in Engineering List with the Daily Telegraph. She established and still runs the "Magnificent Women" schools outreach project, and the Sparxx project to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) students. She is a STEM Ambassador who regularly promotes engineering and materials in schools.
Awards
In 2015 Bonfield won a WISE Award [5] and an Association Congress Award for the INWED campaign, and in 2016 she won the SEMTA Skills Diversity Award.[6] In 2016 she was a Finalist in the Airbus GEDC Diversity Award,[7] and in 2017 she won the Women's Business Council STEM 'Starting Out' award.[8]
She was made MBE in the 2016 Queen's Birthday Honours list [9][10] for 'Services to the promotion of diversity in engineering'.
Membership of groups
Dawn is a member of a number of groups including:
- T level panel member: Design, Development and Control [11]
- Member of the DfE Technical Education Inclusivity Working Group [12]
- Member of the Royal Academy of Engineering Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Group on Measurement [13][14][15]
- Member of Bath University Court [16]
- Patron at Alton Convent School, Hampshire [17]
- External Athena Swan Advisory Group Member, City University [18]
- Member of the Visiting Professors' Management Group [19]
- Member of the Women’s Business Council STEM Starting Out Subgroup [20]
- Member of Women in Materials Committee of Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining [21]
References
- "Towards Vision Home Page. Diversity and Inclusion in Engineering". Towards Vision. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Dawn Bonfield MBE | Women's Engineering Society". www.wes.org.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Women in Engineering Day prompts gender debate", CIBSE journal, June 2016
- Administrator. "IncEng: strengthening the voice of diversity and inclusion in engineering | International Fire Professional Latest News". Retrieved 3 March 2020.
- "WISE Awards 2015 - Welcome to the WISE Campaign". Welcome to the WISE Campaign. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Diversity award for inspirational Dawn". semta.org.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Airbus GEDC Diversity Award". airbusgroup. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "WBC Awards 2017 – Women's Business Council". www.womensbusinesscouncil.co.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- Martin Ford (10 June 2016), "Inspiring Codicote and Stevenage engineer Dawn Bonfield receives MBE in Queen's honours", Hertfordshire Mercury
- "Order of the British Empire: Jacqueline Dawn Bonfield". The Gazette. 11 June 2016.
- "Membership of T level panels for 2020 and 2021 delivery" (PDF). November 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Awaiting citation". Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- "Engineering diversity and inclusion - toolkit and survey launch event". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Increasing diversity and inclusion in engineering". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Royal Academy of Engineering diversity and inclusion leadership group (DILG) - measurement". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "University of Bath Court MoM January 2018" (PDF). Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- "Patrons of Alton School". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "City University Gender Equality Advisory Group". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "Awaiting citation".
- "Womens Business Council 'Starting Out' 2017 award". Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- "IOM3 Women in materials group". Retrieved 19 August 2018.