When Brilliant Women Lead the Way: Day Two of Green Light for Girls

The second day of Green Light for Girls at H-FARM International School was something rare and powerful.
Not a conference, but a meeting of stories that felt like sparks, passed from hand to hand, from mind to mind.

It was a morning that gave space to extraordinary women who, through courage, curiosity, and often pure determination, carved out roles where women are still few. They sat in front of hundreds of girls, ready to share not only their résumés, but the questions, fears, and dreams that shaped them.

From aerospace engineers launching satellites to surgeons leading complex cancer operations; from chemists protecting our cultural heritage to energy leaders deciding how to power the world — each woman carried with her a piece of the future. And each opened up about the moment when it all began.

Where it all begins: a spark of curiosity

Melissa Rancourt, Founder and Board President of Green Light for Girls, recalled being twelve years old when she read a book about industrial engineers. “It was written like a story,” she said, “and when I closed it, I told my mom: I wish this were real. She looked at me and said: It is real. And in that second, I knew what I wanted to become.”

The hardest lessons and the most human truths

When asked what the hardest skill to learn had been, their answers swept away any illusion of easy success.

Melissa Rancourt spoke about overcoming shyness by forcing herself to say yes to every public speaking opportunity, even when her voice trembled.
Elena Toson, COO Business Development Director and Board Member at T4i, Technology for Propulsion and Innovation, revealed that no rocket launches on its own: “I had to learn to guide 50 people toward a vision, to respect their opinions, to compromise without losing my values.”

Many agreed on this point: science is not just formulas, it’s people.
Herlinde M. Annaerts-Drew, SVP Technology at bp, said: “You can be the smartest person in the room, but if you don’t know how to work with others, if you can’t sell your idea or inspire a team, it doesn’t matter. I’m still learning every day how to turn a ‘no’ into a ‘yes.’”

They also spoke about patience.
Roberta Zanini, Post Doc Conservation Scientist at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, explained: “In research, results rarely come quickly. I had to learn to keep trying, to experiment, sometimes for years, before finally seeing success.” When she patented her method for creating nanoparticles, she described it simply: “It was my happiest moment so far.”

The invisible barriers and the choice to move forward

The issue of gender could not be avoided.
Gaya Spolverato, Director of General Surgery at the University and Hospital of Padua, recalled the cold operating rooms where crude jokes once made women feel out of place. “Surgery is still mostly men — especially in leadership. But we are changing this, changing how we teach, how we treat each other, how we speak.”

Others described being the only woman on a construction site, or the only woman in a room full of engineers.
Charlotte Phillips Salvador, Structural Engineer at Eckersley O’Callagan, recounted how she once had to visit building sites wearing oversized boots and jackets designed only for men. “It’s changing,” she said, “but slowly. We have to keep pushing.”

The most revealing part was how many admitted that their hardest barriers weren’t always external.
Ila Glennie, FREng CEng FIMechE VP of Subsea at bp, explained: “Often it was my own doubts. Walking into rooms where no one looked like me, I sometimes felt I had to prove I belonged there. But you do belong. Even if you’re the only one, go anyway.”

Redefining success, and designing a life with joy at the center

When someone asked what happiness meant, their answers painted a tapestry of lives lived wholeheartedly.

For Melissa Rancourt, it was designing her days so she never truly felt “at work” running her engineering company, a yoga studio, leading Green Light for Girls, raising a daughter who now runs her own science workshops. “It’s hard, but it’s all built around joy.”

For Gaya Spolverato, happiness was sending a patient home healthy, but also changing the mindset of fifty young doctors so that compassion, not ego, becomes the norm.
For Elena Toson, it was waking up knowing her work could one day protect humanity.
For Herlinde M. Annaerts-Drew, it was that first quiet coffee in the morning before tackling complex geophysics problems.
For Charlotte Phillips Salvador, it was walking through London and seeing a skyline dotted with buildings she had helped design.

They all agreed: happiness is being aligned with your values. It’s knowing your impact. It’s being surrounded by diverse minds that challenge and inspire you.

What really happened today

By the end of the day, the impact was evident. The audience had heard stories of ordinary women who faced real obstacles, made mistakes, had doubts but did not give up.

Because when you meet people who once sat exactly where you are now, who show that “different” is a strength, who turn barriers into springboards, you start to wonder: what if I tried?

And maybe it’s from that question that the next incredible story will begin.