- Results
Tech Girls Camp Porto
As part of the Voltage project and Workpackage 3, on May 28, ATEC in Matosinhos opened its doors to a new generation of curious, creative, and ambitious young minds from the Agrupamento de Escolas Óscar Lopes at Tech Girls Camp 2025 — a dynamic, hands-on experience designed to ignite interest in the world of technology, mechanics, energy, and programming among girls aged between 12 and 15 years old (7º to the 9º grade).
The Camp brought together a vibrant group of young participants for a day packed with inspiration, discovery, and fun. Through immersive activities, interactions with female role models, and real-world applications, the event encouraged girls to explore new pathways and reimagine their future in science and technology
Purpose & Vision
The Camp was designed with a clear mission:
- To spark interest in STEM careers among girls through an immersive, fun, and confidence-building experience — all while addressing gender stereotypes and highlighting pathways into the technological and industrial world.
Specific goals included:
- Providing direct contact with hands-on technologies such as batteries, robot programming and 3D printing;
- Promoting female role models in technical fields;
- Offering exposure to real work environments through a guided process industry visit to the Super Bock Group;
- Creating a space where creativity, logic, and curiosity were not only welcome but celebrated.
How did we do it?
The day began with a warm welcome from ATEC’s Northern Region Director, Paulo Peixoto, and Patrícia Alves from the Cooperation Projects department, who introduced the program and encouraged participants to explore fearlessly and ask questions boldly.
Getting to Know the Participants – Tech Bingo
Led by Patrícia Alves, the morning began with an interactive session where each girl shared a bit about herself, laying the foundation for a supportive and open group dynamic.
Chatting with Our Ambassadors
One of the day’s most powerful moments came from a conversation moderated by Patrícia Alves and Márcio Reis with female engineers, trainers, and former ATEC trainees. They shared their personal stories of pursuing careers in male-dominated fields, offering honest reflections, practical advice, and a clear message: “You belong here too.”
Immersive Labs
Split into two technical workshops, the mid-morning was all about learning by doing:
- Lab 1: Learn to Program a Robot with Micro: bit – Led by Mário Silva, this session introduced basic logic and programming through real-world applications.
- Lab 2: Divided into two parts
- Create a 3D-printed part – Guided by Ana Almeida, the girls got to see their digital designs come to life in physical form.
- Generate Energy – Guided by Márcio Reis, assisted by one of ATEC´s trainees and Ambassador Alexandra Bessa, the girls generated energy and observed the process in action, learning about voltage and other related concepts through an experiment using potatoes and lemons.
These labs were a favourite among our girls, offering a tangible sense of what it means to create, build, and code
Industrial Visit – Super Bock Group
In the afternoon, the group took a field trip to Super Bock Group, where they saw first-hand how high-tech skills are applied in a process industry setting. From automation to quality control, the experience brought classroom curiosity into the real world.
Closing Ceremony
The day concluded with a Closing and Diploma Ceremony, attended by family members. Paulo Peixoto awarded each participant a certificate of participation and a Micro: bit, recognizing not only their involvement but also their courage to explore new territory.
What We Learned
The Tech Girls Camp 2025 reinforced several key ideas:
- Exposure matters — you can’t dream what you haven’t seen.
- Representation makes a difference — seeing women thriving in tech is powerful.
- Fun and play are effective entry points into complex fields like programming and engineering.
- Giving young girls, some of whom are in an essential stage of their academic life and starting to think about their future, the chance to talk with women who choose to follow this technological or industrial life is critical for them to understand better some of the different paths they can take and what they imply. One of the central obstacles raised by the girls was the difficulty they felt in math, which deterred them from considering professions or courses in fields such as automation, engineering, and related technologies. Our ambassadors listened with empathy and shared their own experiences, explaining that while math is indeed a part of these courses, it’s far from the only one. These fields also involve creativity, problem-solving, teamwork, hands-on experimentation, design thinking, and innovation. They helped the girls see that success doesn’t depend on being perfect at one subject, but on being curious, persistent, and open to learning.
- Breaking stereotypes starts early — and it works best when it’s empowering, not corrective.
A Heartfelt Thank You
To our incredible participants: thank you for your enthusiasm, your questions, and your imagination. To our ambassadors, mentors, and facilitators: thank you for showing up, sharing your stories, and lifting others. To our partner company, Super Bock Group: thank you for opening your doors and offering our girls a real glimpse into the world of industry. To the families and parents: thank you for encouraging these young minds to explore, question, and dream bigger. And finally, to our organisation team from ATEC and MOBINOV: thank you for your dedication, care, and tireless work in bringing this meaningful experience to life — your commitment made every moment possible and every detail count.
What’s Next?
The Tech Girls Camp 2025 is part of a broader commitment to promote technical areas among young girls. In Portugal, we are committed to continuing projects like this, and based on the overwhelming success of this edition, more ideas for future initiatives are already zapping.
