STEM for Everyone: Breaking Stereotypes, Removing Barriers
Join us for an engaging online panel bringing together a diversity of university stakeholders committed to removing barriers in STEM fields.
Through personal experiences, inspiring initiatives and open discussion, our panellists will explore the challenges that remain and share practical ideas for breaking stereotypes, widening participation and creating equal opportunities in STEM.
Bios
Radka Kaneva
Professor Radka Kaneva is a molecular geneticist and Professor at the Department of Medical Chemistry and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University – Sofia, Bulgaria. She is Head of the Molecular Medicine Center and National Coordinator of BBMRI.bg, Bulgaria’s national biobanking node within the European research infrastructure BBMRI-ERIC.
She holds a BSc in Biotechnology (1988) and an MSc in Molecular Biology, Genetic and Cell Engineering (1989) from Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, and a PhD in Molecular Biology (2000) from Medical University – Sofia. She completed research fellowships at the University of Oxford (1993–1994) and the University of Bonn (2001–2003).
Her research focuses on human genetics and genomics, oncogenetics, neuropsychiatric genetics, pharmacogenomics, molecular diagnostics, and precision medicine. She has led and participated in numerous national and international research collaborations, contributing to the identification of genetic variants associated with inherited and complex diseases and to the advancement of genomic research and biobanking in Bulgaria. She is also a co-founder and board member of the Bulgarian Association for Personalised Medicine.
According to her Web of Science-derived author profile, her research output comprises 452 publications, which have been cited over 7,000 times, and she has an h-index of 42 (accessed 27 October 2026). Her scientific contributions span molecular genetics, inherited diseases, cancer genomics, translational biomedical research, etc.
Magaly Machenaud
I had to leave school at the age of 16, in 2012. It was not my choice. At the time, French Guiana had an insufficient number of high schools, and I was not considered a priority for admission. I went on to become a veterinary assistant through distance learning and practical internships with my employer at the time.
In 2018, at the age of 22, I was given an opportunity to return to education through a private high school that offered young adults the chance to resume their studies. I decided to pick up where I had left off and successfully obtained my scientific baccalaureate in just two years, in 2020.
In 2023, I graduated with honours with a Bachelor’s degree in Organismal and Ecosystem Biology from Université Côte d’Azur, at the Nice Sophia Antipolis campus. I completed the three-year programme without having to resit a single exam. Due to financial constraints, I lived aboard a sailboat that I looked after and maintained for its owner, throughout both summer and winter.
In 2025, I graduated with honours with a Master’s degree in Sustainable Management of Environmental Resources and Risks from the University of Rouen Normandy, at the Mont-Saint-Aignan campus. I specialised in environmental chemistry, focusing on contaminated sites and soils, and completed the programme without having to resit any exams. During my first year, I tragically lost my father in an accident. During my second year, cancer took my mother’s life.
In 2026, I began the second year of my PhD at the Guiana Space Centre (Centre Spatial Guyanais), conducting research for the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) on the characterisation of contamination in cleanrooms used for spacecraft preparation.
During my first year of doctoral research, life gave me the most precious gift I could ever have hoped for: I became the mother of a beautiful little girl.
Daniel Miranda
Daniel Miranda Prieto is a PhD student in Immunology at the University of Oviedo and a science communicator who has experience in outreach activities such as Pint of Science, TEDx and school talks across different educational levels.
Project Blurb: Do you want to understand what happens inside your body? ImmunoBattle-The warriors within you is here to explain it to you! Discover how the immune system works and fights against different types of microbes in an engaging way through two new educational tools: a card deck representing our immune army and some of their fiercest enemies and a booklet filled with comprehensive, evidence-based information that can be adapted to any level.
