Every year on 11 February, the world celebrates the International Day of Women and Girls in Science – a day dedicated to recognising the vital role women play across science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This year’s milestone, marking the 11th anniversary of its establishment, serves as a powerful reminder of both the progress made and the barriers that persist for women in scientific fields.
Science thrives on diversity. When people with different perspectives, life experiences, and problem‑solving approaches participate in scientific work, the outcomes are more robust, innovative, and fair. This is especially true in the field of safety and personal protective equipment (PPE) – an area where the right design, materials, and standards can be the difference between protection and exposure, comfort and injury, inclusion and exclusion.
On this International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we spotlight women whose contributions have reshaped how PPE is designed, understood, and regulated. Their leadership demonstrates that gender diversity isn’t just about fairness, it’s essential to building better systems.
Women Innovators in PPE
Today, we highlight two remarkable women whose leadership and scientific contributions have transformed PPE materials, design, and standards – improving safety for workers everywhere.
Giuliana Cavaglieri Tesoro
Giuliana Cavaglieri Tesoro was a trailblazing organic and polymer chemist whose work fundamentally shaped modern protective textiles. Despite facing discriminatory educational barriers under fascist rule in Italy, she went on to earn a PhD in organic chemistry from Yale University at just 21 years old.
Tesoro became one of the most creative industrial chemists of the 20th century, holding more than 125 U.S. patents related to textile performance and safety.
One of Tesoro’s most important contributions was creating flame-resistant fabrics. Before her innovations, natural fibres like cotton were highly flammable, creating serious hazards for workers in industries such as firefighting and electrical work. She developed chemical treatments that made these fibres resistant to fire, significantly reducing burn injuries. Her work has had a lasting impact. Flame-resistant materials remain essential in protective clothing like firefighter suits and industrial workwear to household items like mattresses and curtains.
In addition to her work on flame-resistant fabrics, Tesoro made significant contributions to textile chemistry, including enhancing fabric durability, creating wrinkle-resistant materials, and developing synthetic fibres with superior properties. These advancements not only improved everyday consumer products but also strengthened industrial textiles, making them safer, more durable, and more versatile.
Katy Robinson
Katy Robinson, Senior Project Manager at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, is one of the leading voices driving inclusive PPE reform in the UK. Through her work as founder of The PPE Campaign, she has brought national attention to inequalities in how PPE is designed and supplied
Robinson has worked closely with frontline workers, unions, safety specialists, and manufacturers to document how poorly fitting PPE affects real‑world safety. Her findings have shown that poorly fitting equipment can reduce mobility, increase fatigue, and even create new hazards.
She spearheaded a successful campaign calling for more inclusive PPE for women working in the construction industry. Her advocacy reached a milestone in late 2025, which resulted in the creation of a new British Standard requiring PPE to be designed and tested to fit all workers. This standard marks a major departure from one‑size‑fits‑most approaches, pushing manufacturers to create equipment that genuinely fits the people who wear it.
Why Recognising Women in Safety and PPE Matters
Highlighting women’s contributions to PPE development and safety standards matters because visibility challenges long-standing assumptions about who PPE is designed for. When women’s scientific achievements are recognised, they draw attention to overlooked issues such as appropriate sizing of protective clothing and physiological differences that could affect safety outcomes. Women in safety leadership have also identified hazards others missed, including poor PPE fit and health considerations – issues that affect millions of workers and improve the accuracy of safety science when addressed.
Recognition also drives meaningful, systemic change. Who is cited, funded, and celebrated shapes research priorities, standards, and industry practice. A safety profession that reflects the diversity of its workforce is more relatable and trustworthy. Visible role models also encourage girls and women in early-career professionals to enter and remain in STEM and safety fields – strengthening the future of the profession.
