In 2024, The Foundation made significant strides through two long-term partnerships aimed at expanding STEM opportunities for women and girls worldwide.
FREE STEM Fund
In collaboration with Women Win, the FREE STEM fund continued to support female change-makers in the Global South, delivering pioneering grass-roots STEM projects in over 40 countries.
Women Win is a global organisation working to dismantle structural barriers that prevent women from fully participating in their societies and economies. The FREE STEM fund was set up in 2022, with a three-year investment from the Optiver Foundation, to build opportunities for girls and women in underserved regions of the Global South.
The Foundation’s continued partnership in 2024 saw a year of growth and ongoing review. Thirty-four new grantees were selected, bringing the total to over 60 grassroots organisations leading transformative projects on the ground. Projects funded ranged from robotics in Papua New Guinea, astronomy workshops in Mexico, to climate action bootcamps in Colombia, reflecting diverse approaches to promoting gender equality in STEM.
Oxford University Scholarship Programme
The Foundation’s five-year collaboration with Oxford University continued to create opportunities for under-represented women pursuing STEM postgraduate degrees.
The programme supports Oxford’s efforts to broaden access to world-class education and address the global gender gap in science and technology. Courses on offer include Theoretical & Computational Chemistry, Advanced Computer Science, Energy Systems, Mathematical Modelling and Statistical Science.
All six members of the inaugural 2023 cohort successfully completed their Master of Science studies in 2024, with several scholars pursuing PhDs or entering careers that build on their Oxford Masters degrees. Alongside their studies, scholars also participated in tailored networking events, mentoring and career development sessions.
The second cohort began their studies in October 2024. Selected from 567 eligible applicants—a 47% increase from the previous year—this diverse group includes six scholars from China and Ukraine.
A Vision for the Future
Looking ahead, the Optiver Foundation is excited to build on the momentum of this year’s successes.
At the end of 2024, the Foundation laid the groundwork for a new partnership with the University of New South Wales in Australia and has since awarded an AUD 2.7 million grant to expand the university’s Future You programme—boosting diversity in STEM by providing free educational resources for children aged 8 to 12 years old from under–represented backgrounds.
The Foundation is also actively evaluating potential environmental partnerships aligned with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14: Life Below Water, with a view to launching a new three-year initiative in 2025.
