With their Girl Scout Patch Program, Women in Trucking hopes to empower and educate young women looking to work within logistics in the future. It’s no secret that logistics and truck driving is a male-dominated industry, holding 10-15% of the workforce’s CDLs. There are several factors at play, but two primary barriers to entry are:
- Career exposure to the commercial transportation industry
- Safety concerns
The Girl Scout Patch Program sponsored by Women in Trucking is hoping to shape a different future for this new generation of girls. Their program hosts events with local Girl Scout councils that aim to educate young girls on aspects of the trucking industry. They offer several opportunities from hands-on activities like truck driving simulators and real truck tours to educational talks from women in the logistics industry. Exposure like this can spark interest and curiosity in young females and help them explore a non-traditional career.
These experiences for Girl Scouts can extend far beyond the logistics industry, as well. Take Sylvia Acevedo, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA, who after joining her local Brownie Girl Scout group, was exposed to experiences that led to her fascination with space. This passion for the stars helped Sylvia to pursue a degree in engineering from Stanford where she went on to work as a rocket scientist for NASA. Sylvia stated in an interview with NPR that the all-girls environment of her Girl Scouts troop created a space where she felt safe to explore her interests and pursue her aspirations.
Whether it’s trucking or rocket science, creating a stimulating and supportive environment that exposes girls to the great big world out there and encourages them to shoot for the stars is an incredible thing.
