March 8 is International Women’s Day! This is a day to recognize the contributions women are making to the world at large. These contributions can be minor, or they can be huge. These women can be behind-the-scenes rockstars or in-your-face deal makers. From local heroes to global icons, there are plenty of women you should get to know. Below, we highlight a few extraordinary women that we think are worth your brain space.
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Taffeta Darling
Kicking off the list is Taffeta Darling. Some people may recognize Darling as a cosplayer, panelist and moderator at various cons. She is a gamer and participates in 24-hour streams for charity. Additionally, Darling owns and runs a small business and has talked about pop culture at a museum event. Darling regularly advocates for women in the geek world, even helping to organize and run smallCon back in 2017.
This all-around geek is living her dream appraising pop culture art by day. She lights up handling original comic book art. Darling released her contribution to the comic book world in 2018. The Mysterious Space Adventures of The Daring Darling: Private Dick is a post-Earth adventure featuring Captain Darling and Houdini, modeled after Darling and her late cat, Houdini.
Mary Anne Mohanraj
If someone were to ask who you know that does it all, would Mary Anne Mohanraj come to mind? A professor, an author, a small business owner, a textile designer, a community advocate, a government official — you name it, she has probably done it. Among her many projects, Mohanraj is working to bring her childhood food to houses worldwide with her recipe book, A Feast of Serendib.
Food is not her only writing offering. In science fiction and fantasy, Mohanraj created the Jump Space universe, which has had shorts published in various places. She has additional work in the shared Wild Cards universe and several other books across Sci-Fi/Fantasy, General Literature, and Erotica genres.
Emily Calandrelli
Fans of Netflix’s Emily’s Wonder Lab will know Emily Calandrelli as a pink overall-wearing pregnant scientist. But she is more than just a children’s show host. A former intern at NASA, Calandrelli advocates for gender equality in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. She has hosted Xploration Outer Space and is a correspondent on Bill Nye Saves the World.
Calandrelli, also known as The Space Gal, has a line of clothing promoting curiosity and encouraging girls to explore space. In addition to her Stay Curious clothing message, she has written books aimed at young learners. Calandrelli has a forthcoming picture book, Reach for the Stars, which she wrote for her daughter. For older audiences, there is her Ada Lace chapter book series. These books follow a third grader that uses her STEM smarts to fix problems and stop crime.
Kellie Gerardi
Moving from one space gal to another, meet Kellie Gerardi. Gerardi is a bioastronautics researcher that has performed microgravity research on spacesuits and technology. She is set to fly as a Payload Specialist with Virgin Galactic, where she’ll be the first industry-sponsored researcher on a commercial spacecraft on this flight. Gerardi’s social media highlights her STEM career and gives visibility to working motherhood. She has a clothing line of STEM and space-themed shirts.
Gerardi pushes for arts education and outside-the-box thinking. She has written Not Necessarily Rocket Science, exploring how space technology’s future requires more than engineering degrees. She recently released the first book in a new children’s series, Luna Muna. Luna Muna is a future astronaut that loves space and has a special helmet that lets her float.
RELATED: IWD 2020: Women From History Who Changed the World
For International Women’s Day, we hope you take the time to look up the women featured here. Each one has offered some words in the form of at least one book that will carry on into the future long after them. But take a moment to see them for more than their stories. Their contributions to the world are more than the books they have written. What women do you know that impact your life or the lives of others? Let us know in the comments!
https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/8-impactful-films-to-watch-to-celebrate-womens-history-month/
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