For the first time ever, an all-woman committee organized the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, helping to raise the visibility of women in the industry. Ashesi’s Head of Computer Science, Dr. Ayorkor Korsah, was one of the 50 women who helped organize the historic conference.
While there, Ayorkor shared insights into getting more women in the field, and the future of robotics. “Robotics is a vast field and requires a variety of expertise, and this can be overwhelming to those trying to enter it,” said Ayorkor. “You should start by getting an overview of the field, which can be done by taking an introductory course at a university or by simply reading about it. Then, depending on your interest and background, begin an in-depth exploration of some aspect of robotics such as sensing, controls, planning, cognition, human-robot interaction, or vision.”
At the Ghana Investment Summit 2017, Ayorkor received the Dream Makers Award in celebration of her philanthropic contributions to the field of robotics. Since co-founding the African Robotic Network at Ashesi in 2012, Ayorkor and her team have highlighted, enhanced, and provided support to several institutions and individuals working on robotics-related areas in Africa.