Chi Onwurah on why engineering is a caring profession.
The Life Scientific
BBC
4.6 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 24 May 2022
⏱️ 38 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Chi Onwurah tells Jim Al-Khalili why she wanted to become a telecoms engineer and why engineering is a caring profession.
As a black, working class woman from a council estate in Newcastle, she was in a minority of one studying engineering at university in London and encountered terrible racism and sexism. She went on to build digital networks all over the world, the networks that make today's instant multimedia communications possible. And Chi built the first mobile phone network in Nigeria, when the country was without a reliable electricity supply. Today she is Shadow Minister for Science, Research and Innovation.
When Chi decided to go into politics, her engineering colleagues were not impressed. Why would anyone leave their noble profession to enter a chaotic, disreputable and dubiously useful non-profession, they asked. But, Chi believes, parliament desperately needs more scientists and engineers, not only to help us solve science-based problems but also to create technical jobs and build a strong economy. Producer: Anna Buckley
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Ever wondered what the world's wealthiest people did to get so ridiculously rich? |
| 0:05.5 | Our podcast Good Bad Billionaire takes one billionaire at a time and explains exactly how they made their money. |
| 0:11.9 | And then we decide if they are actually good, bad or just plain wealthy. |
| 0:15.5 | So if you want to know if Rihanna is as much of a bad guy as she claims, |
| 0:19.2 | or what Jeff Bezos really did to become the first person in history to pocket a hundred billion dollars, |
| 0:24.6 | listen to Good Bad Billionaire with me, Simon Jack, and me, Zingsing. |
| 0:28.5 | Listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:31.0 | Hello, today's show is all about digital networks. |
| 0:34.7 | Please don't switch off. |
| 0:36.2 | The internet, mobile phones, social media, video conferencing, telemedicine, online banking, online gaming, |
| 0:43.8 | all depend on digital networks. |
| 0:46.6 | And my guest on the life scientific today is an inspiration. |
| 0:50.4 | Chi Onwara grew up on a counsellor's state in Newcastle. |
| 0:54.3 | As a black working class woman studying engineering in London in the 1980s, |
| 0:59.0 | she didn't have a great time. |
| 1:01.1 | But she stuck with it and spent 20 years building digital networks all over the world, |
| 1:06.7 | including the first mobile phone network in Nigeria. |
| 1:10.3 | Mid-career, she changed direction. |
| 1:12.6 | She stood as a member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central in the 2010 general election. |
| 1:19.1 | Now she's shadow minister for science, research and innovation. |
| 1:23.0 | Chi Onwara, welcome to the life scientific. |
| 1:25.1 | Thank you so much. It's a huge pleasure and honor to be here. |
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