Congrats to all the MIT Graduates - especially the Graduates of Color!
Congrats to all the MIT Graduates - especially the Graduates of Color!

One of the things I cherish most about my time at MIT is the relationships I was fortunate enough to develop, with some of the most brilliant technical minds. Together we not only grew into skilled researchers, but built bonds based on mutual accountability and support. We studied together, partied together, provided listening ears after frustrating days in the lab, advice after unsure interactions with advisors, and showed up whenever and where ever needed - for presentation practice session, start-up launches, and post victory celebrations. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and this is true for scientists and engineers as well. I grateful to my friends for the example they set for me, for their motivation and for their love.

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AwardMareena RobinsonMIT, Graduation, PhD, STEM
Keynote Address - 2018 Dr. Dorothy Height Scholarship and Leadership Luncheon
Keynote Address - 2018 Dr. Dorothy Height Scholarship and Leadership Luncheon

“I was asked to speak about leadership and scholarship, and I thought it would be useful if I spent some time debunking what I have found to be myths or misconceptions about leading and learning. There are sayings we use so frequently that they seem to have become established fact. Upon closer inspection, it was these cliches about battling, vision and passion that don’t always fit nicely with our lived experience. I was invited here today to speak with you about my experience becoming the first black women to earn a nuclear engineering degree from MIT, and I wanted to be sure to paint an accurate picture of how that happened and what advice I found useful, and not so useful, along that path.”

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SpeechMareena RobinsonKeynote, Speech, DST
Younger Generation Leadership Network - Plenary Meeting in Berlin, Germany
Younger Generation Leadership Network - Plenary Meeting in Berlin, Germany

Understanding that a lack of trust and dialogue between Russia and the West is a significant obstacle to Euro-Atlantic Security, NTI and several partners in 2014 launched a unique capacity-building initiative designed to develop and foster a new generation of leaders equipped to tackle global challenges fueled by historic animosities: The Younger Generation Leaders Network on Euro-Atlantic Security (YGLN).

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ConferenceMareena RobinsonTransatlantic Security, Security, Nuclear Security, YGLN
VanguardSTEM #WCWinSTEM Feature
VanguardSTEM #WCWinSTEM Feature

On Feb 1, I was featured on VanguardSTEM.com as their #WCWinSTEM. #VanguardSTEM is an online movement seeking to highlight the contributions of women of color in STEM. Started by the celebrated astrophysicist Dr. Jedidah Isler, #VanguardSTEM hosts a monthly web series featuring a rotating panel of women of color in STEM discussing a wide variety of topics including their research interests, wisdom, advice, tips, tricks and current events.

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MediaMareena RobinsonVanguardSTEM, Media, Interview, Advocacy, STEM, Black in STEM
Disruptive Nuclear Futures Summit
Disruptive Nuclear Futures Summit

On December 4,2016, I had the privilege of being invited by the N-Square Collaborative to the Disruptive Nuclear Futures Summit in Santa Fe, N.M. The goal of the summit was to convene a diverse set of experts, ranging of security to film and television, around a framing question, "How might we achieve global stability without nuclear weapons by the year 2045?"

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ConferenceMareena RobinsonNuclear Weapons, Nuclear Security, NSquare, Bill Perry
MIT community engages in dialogue on race
MIT community engages in dialogue on race

Reif said the ongoing pursuit of racial equality and social justice “is one of the world’s great challenges. … Recent events have shown us, again, that terrible fault lines of race are still a major issue in our society. It would be naïve to think that we at MIT are somehow immune to these problems: MIT is a microcosm of our broader society. It shares many of its flaws, as well as its virtues.”

Reif noted that the protesters “are asking us to listen, to collaborate, and to act.”

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PanelMareena RobinsonBlack Lives Matter, STEM, MIT, Panel, Protest, Nuclear Engineering, Black in STEM
Speakers at MIT’s 40th annual MLK Breakfast honor King’s legacy
Speakers at MIT’s 40th annual MLK Breakfast honor King’s legacy

“I would like to speak to you today about the necessities of greatness. In writing this speech and examining the life of Dr. King, one fact resonated loudly with me, that greatness and fallibility are not mutually exclusive aspects of the human experience. They exist together, reinforcing one another and working to constantly correct one’s perspective on life.”

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SpeechMareena RobinsonMIT, Speech, MLK, Advocacy