‘From shop floor to top floor’ and beyond – The Sky’s No Limit!

Kateryna Bandura, 
Lookout Editor

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What began as a small Aviation event in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, has since evolved into the world’s largest diversity outreach event of its kind in Aviation, Aerospace, Marine and Defence.

“Our unique, hands-on outreach events have directly touched the lives of over 121,300 participants, and 11,956 women and girls of all ages have experienced the magic of first flight in a small aircraft,” said Kirsten Brazier, B.C. pilot and President of Achieve Anything Foundation.

The Sky’s No Limit – Girls Fly Too! 2022 is a gender diversity outreach initiative founded by Brazier in 2012 and has been hosted by the Abbotsford International Airport in Abbotsford, B.C., since 2015. This year’s event will be held on Oct. 1-2, during the week of International Day of the Girl, a Canadian-driven UN observance.

The initiative is part of the Achieve Anything Foundation, which aims to improve gender and cultural diversity in high-tech STEM fields. Brazier said Sky’s No Limit – Girls Fly Too! aims to awaken new interests by providing women and girls of all ages with fun, interactive, and hands-on introductions into STEM fields.

“Our events, including the introductory flights, are always free to ensure there are no barriers to participation,” Brazier said.

The signature annual event honours past, present and future female leaders from shop floor to top floor in Aviation, Aerospace, Marine and Defence.

The Sky’s No Limit – Girls Fly Too! 2022 initiative will also include hands-on assets from the Canadian and U.S. militaries, representatives from the Coast Guard, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada Border Services Agency, various municipal police and fire, search and rescue, and representatives from Aviation, Aerospace, Marine and Defence.

The event will see ten turbine helicopters donated each day by individuals and businesses, totalling over $230,000 worth of flight time, to put women and girls in the air for the first time.

“Our events employ a unique, hands-on approach to pique the interest of our target audience, create a network of experience and raise awareness of new possibilities,” Brazier said.

The free flights are reserved for girls and women of any age who haven’t flown in a small aircraft before.

For more details, including how to earn the opportunity to fly, please visit
www.girlsfly2.ca/events.html

Volunteers age 15 and up of any gender are welcome to apply at
www.achieveanything.ca/volunteer.html

An exciting Operation:

This IS You! event is coming up soon: Day Sail on a Warship with the Royal Canadian Navy.
Visit www.achieveanything.ca/thisisyou.html for more info