Team Members
Haifa Takruri-Rizk, BSc, MSc, PhD, MIEE, MBCS, ILTM, MWES
Haifa is leading the ESF partially funded project “Women Audio Video Engineers ” (WAVE) and previously led the “Developing Female Engineers” and "Women in North West Engineering" projects. She is also leading Salford’s share in the Jive North West Hub for Women in SECT and is co-managing the BME Participation in North West SET (researching SET graduates and their lack of progression into SET careers).
Haifa is a senior lecturer in the School of Computing, Science and Engineering at Salford University. Her technical research is within the Computer Networking and Telecommunications Research Group, focusing on the development of wireless sensor networks for varied applications.
One of her passions has been, for a number of years, the promotion of engineering, in particular, to young women. Thus, her involvement in a number of initiatives such as Coordinating the MENWU project on behalf of Salford, organising and running the Insight programme at Salford for many years. Insight is an annual national initiative organised jointly with SEMTA (Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies Alliance) and recently with Headstart of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Insight aims at encouraging young women to study engineering for a future career in engineering. Insight at Salford is a valuable introduction to engineering and life on campus.
Email Dr Takruri-Rizk
Natalie Sappleton, MA
Natalie is currently working as a Researcher for “Women Audio Video Engineers ”.
Natalie graduated from The University of Glasgow in June 2002 with First Class Honours in Economics and Politics, and began a career in Policy and Research. In 2003, she began working at the Equal Opportunities Commission on an Investigation into occupational segregation and gender stereotyping in Construction, Engineering, Plumbing, ICT and Childcare. She is particularly interested in strategies for improving the participation of women in the non-traditional occupational areas, especially e-learning and the improvement of workplace culture.
Sunrita Dhar-Bhattacharjee, MA
Sunrita has worked internationally, in knowledge based industries, since 1999. She completed her Masters in International Relations from Jadavpur University, India in July 1999, and worked in a DFID and Keele University project on pro-poor governance. She has worked towards promoting increased participation of women in the Financial Services sector and has closely worked with EWMD (European Women's Management Development), Austria.
Sunrita is presently working as a Researcher for the ‘Women Audio Video Engineers ’ project in the University of Salford. Her research interests include gender studies, work and labour, and socio-economic analyses of gender segregation in the labour market.
Rae Bezer, BSc (Hons)
Rae is currently working as a Project Administration Co-ordinator for Women Audio Video Engineers.
Rae holds a first degree in Sociology, awarded in 1999, from the University of Salford and has been working in areas of student administration across Salford and Manchester Universities since 2002. She has always been interested in social issues, particularly that of inequality, and also has a strong interest in areas of technological determinism and is pleased to be able to put her knowledge gained in her degree to good use.
In her spare time, Rae also has a growing interest in computing and has taken numerous courses in programming and web design. She hopes that this combined with other admin skills will help support the running of the project whilst she becomes more involved with the research.