MDPI 2025 International Women in Engineering Day Webinar
Breaking Barriers as Rising Stars
Meet Our Speakers
Dr. Giulia Scalet
University of Pavia, Italy;
Giulia Scalet is Associate Professor of Structural Mechanics and Founder and Director of the Laboratory of Programmable Materials and Structures (ProMast Lab) at the Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture of the University of Pavia (Italy). She received a Ph.D. (2014) in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Bologna (Italy). She has been a postdoctoral researcher at Ecole Polytechnique (France) and at the University of Pavia, as well as an assistant professor at the University of Pavia. She was awarded an ERC Starting Grant 2021 for the project CoDe4Bio (COmputational DEsign for 4D BIOfabrication: harnessing programmable materials for dynamic pre-clinical cancer models), and she is the principal investigator of various projects, including Scientific Cooperation Italy–Israel F2SMP and the PRIN StArT. She won the “Junior Researcher Award 2022 in Mechanics of Solids and Structures” from the Italian Association of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, the “Actuators 2022 Best Paper Award” from MDPI Actuators, the “2020 Young Researchers Prize” in the Engineering sector, instituted by the 2003 Group for Scientific Research, the “Best PhD Thesis 2014 in Computational Solid Mechanics” Award by the Italian Group of Computational Mechanics, and the prize “Best Graduated Women of the Engineering and Chemistry Faculties of the University of Bologna” by Unindustria et al. in 2011. She visited several international institutions, among others, the Texas A&M University (US), the University of Houston (US), and the RWTH Aachen University (Germany). She is a member of the 4D Printing Society’s Senior Board Directors. She is an expert in smart materials, constitutive modeling, advanced computational mechanics for industrial applications, 4D printing and biofabrication, and fatigue modeling. She published over 40 peer-reviewed papers, 5 book chapters, and several conference proceedings.
Dr. Miriam Filippi
ETH Zurich, Switzerland;
Miriam Filippi is an Established Researcher in Bio-hybrid Robotics at the Soft Robotics Lab at ETH Zurich, where she develops innovative solutions for bio-interfaces and biofabrication. She earned her Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical and Biomolecular Sciences in 2016 from the University of Turin, where she focused on magnetic systems for drug delivery, molecular imaging, and stem cell tracking. At the Tissue Engineering Lab at the University Hospital of Basel, she investigated magnetic nanotechnologies for theranostics and tissue regeneration, with a focus on stem cell actuation.
She also served as the coordinator of the AVETH Diversity Team, the official ETH volunteer group dedicated to promoting inclusivity in academia. In this role, she has actively led and organized initiatives to support gender equality, social advancement, and female representation.
Beyond biology, her research explores the emerging field of biointelligence, operating at the intersection of manufacturing, materials science, mechanical engineering, and robotics.
Dr. Kyriaki-Evangelia Aslani
University of the Peloponnese, Greece;
Dr. Kyriaki-Evangelia Aslani is a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of the Peloponnese, Greece. She holds a PhD from the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of West Attica, Greece. Her doctoral thesis, "Biological flows under the influence of high magnetic fields based on micropolar theory”, was awarded the grade “Excellent with distinction”. In June 2023, she received the "Most Performing Young Researcher Award" from the ModTech Association. Her research interests include micropolar-ferromagnetic fluids, magnetohydrodynamics, biological flows, and the thermodynamics of irreversible processes. She is the author (or co-author) of more than 20 papers published in reputable journals and conferences. She has more than 450 citations according to Scopus (h-index: 9).
Dr. Athanasia Tolkou
Democritus University of Thrace, Greece;
Dr. Athanasia Tolkou is a Chemist, graduated from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Greece, holds a PhD in Chemistry, in the field of wastewater treatment. She is now working at the Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Democritus University of Thrace (DUTH), Kavala, Greece as Assistant Professor. Her research interests include wastewater treatment, municipal, industrial, and hazardous wastewater treatment technologies (coagulation/flocculation, adsorption, ozonation, membrane bioreactors), recovery of nutrients (phosphates, nitrates) from wastewater, and removal of ions, heavy metals, and dyes from water and wastewater. Her scientific work has been published in more than 65 Papers in international journals, while she has published 3 Chapters in scientific Books. Her work is widely recognized with more than 1350 Citations (h-index 23) in Scopus and 1700 Citations (h-index 24) in Google Scholar. She was/is the Guest Editor of 5 Special Issues, and she is a reviewer in over 30 international scientific journals (Elsevier, ACS, Springer, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, MDPI, etc.). She has also participated in about 18 research projects related to her field. She has research experience at the Technical University of Hamburg (Germany), Laboratory of Water Resources and Water Supply, and at the University of Insubria, Varese (Italy), Department of Theoretical and Applied Sciences. She has also gained experience in the Department of Chemistry of the University Maria Curie-Skłodowska, Lublin, Poland.
Dr. Sabina Alexandra Nicolae
National Institute of Materials Physics, Romania;
Sabina Alexandra Nicolae is a Scientific Researcher at the National Institute of Materials Physics, with expertise in materials science and a focus on sustainable energy and environmental applications. She earned her PhD from Queen Mary University of London, where her research centered on biomass-derived carbon materials for CO₂ capture and storage, under the guidance of Maria Magdalena Titirici. She obtained her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry from the University of Bucharest.
Sponsors and Partners
Organizer
MDPI 2025 International Women in Engineering Day Webinar:
Breaking Barriers as Rising Stars
International Women in Engineering Day (INWED), observed annually on 23 June, is a global initiative that celebrates the outstanding achievements of women in engineering while inspiring more young women to pursue engineering careers. Aligned with the 2025 theme, "Together We Engineer" and Goal 5 of the SDG Publishers Compact: Gender Equality, MDPI emphasizes the power of collective action to break down gender barriers and foster a more inclusive engineering culture.
Join us in celebrating International Women in Engineering Day and supporting initiatives that empower women in STEM.
Date: 23 June 2025
Time: 11:00 a.m. CEST | 7:00 p.m. AEST| 5:00 p.m. CST Asia
Webinar ID: 834 2423 4697
Webinar Secretariat: journal.webinar@mdpi.com
Engineering is one of the most transformative disciplines of our time, yet female engineers remain underrepresented, especially in leadership and academic roles, due to stereotypes and difficulties in balancing work and family duties. Each year, on June 23rd, we celebrate those changing this reality. The 2025 MDPI International Women in Engineering Day Webinar, “Breaking Barriers as Rising Stars”, brings us closer to exceptional female scholars whose research and perseverance are advancing the frontiers of engineering in many fields. Their inspiring experience and studies remind us that greater inclusion is not just a goal but a crucial driver of innovation. It is up to all of us to help accelerate this change.
"Analysis and Integration of Micropolar Fluid Systems"
Guest Editors: Dr. Kyriaki-Evangelia Aslani and Prof. Dr. Efstratios Tzirtzilakis
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 August 2025
"Carbon-Based Materials Applied in Water and Wastewater Treatment"
Guest Editor: Dr. Athanasia Tolkou
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 22 August 2025
"Advanced Soft Robotics with Miniaturized and Flexible Designs"
Guest Editor: Dr. Miriam Filippi
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025
"Innovations in CO2 and Hydrogen Storage: Emerging Technologies and Applications"
Guest Editor: Dr. Sabina Alexandra Nicolae
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 23 January 2026