Empowering Women & Girls in STEAM through Fab Labs and Maker Spaces
FabConnectHer: working to empower future female innovators through inspiration, skills, and networks. Using the power of FabLabs and Makerspaces to tackle the gender gap in STEAM fields.
Whether you’re a learner, an educator, or running a Fab Lab or Makerspace, FabConnectHer has resources built for you.
Girls & Women
From first steps to prototyping your own designs
- Explore STEAM through hands-on making with real Fab Lab tools
- Build confidence with digital fabrication - laser cutting, 3D printing, CNC
- Learn at your own pace with structured pathways for all skill levels
Fab Lab and Makerspaces
Become a FabConnectHer learning centre
- Implement a FabConnectHer Centre with ready-to-use toolkits
- Access structured learning pathways and session plans
- Join a European network of labs committed to inclusive STEAM
- Attract more women and girls through proven engagement models
Educators & Trainers
Deliver inclusive STEAM learning in your classroom
- Mentorship Training Course: practical strategies, actionable advice, and inspiring case studies
- Resources: 8 key areas of topic-based materials (e.g. active listening), activity packs and support tools
- Role Modelling Workshops: Bringing tools into action
FabConnect MentHer Community
Mentoring has the power to transform. A conversation, a connection, a shared experiences. These are the moments that open doors, build confidence and change the direction of a girl’s and woman’s path in STEAM.
MentHer is FabConnectHer’s dedicated mentoring connection space, bringing together the resources, tools and community that mentors need to make those moments happen. Everything in one place, from expert mentor support to hands-on activities to a growing European community of mentors lifting others higher in STEAM via FabLabs and Makerspaces.
01Mentor Resource Hub
Guides, templates, reflection questions and workshop ideas that you can adapt for your mentees. Access the full FabConnectHer mentoring toolkit and select the tools most useful for your practice.
- Mentoring guides and session plans
- Reflection questions and templates
- Workshop ideas ready to adapt
02Tools & Activities Resource
Hands-on activities designed to support mentoring in Fab Lab and maker environments. Plan activities, explore new approaches and broaden your impact with practical, tested resources.
- Hands-on Fab Lab mentoring activities
- Practical tools for planning sessions
- Approaches for all experience levels
03MentHer Community
Your community space as a FabConnectHer mentor. Connect with peers, share experience, learn from others and build confidence in your mentoring practice.
- Mentor profiles across European Fab Labs
- Topic-based forums and peer support
- Events, meetups and collaboration opportunities
Connect, share, and grow together
A living ecosystem where educators, Fab Labs, and learners exchange ideas and build collaborations across Europe.
Events
A series of virtual events bringing STEAM to life
Fab Labs Map
A growing directory of 100 Fab Labs & Makerspaces across Europe that place gender equality and education at the heart of their work. Browse the interactive map, add your own lab, and find spaces near you.
Virtual Tours
Step inside Fab Labs through video tours showing their spaces, tools, and communities in action.
Fab & Fierce Challenge
Girls and women celebrate a female STEAM heroine by creating a creative prototype or digital project inspired by her story. 16+ Projects Submitted – from GPS-inspired lamps to stop-motion tributes.
I started with no experience. Now I can design my own prototypes. The pathway gave me the structure and the Fab Lab gave me the space to experiment.
Sara M.
Learner, Pathway 2 - Portugal
The mentoring gave me confidence I didn't know I had. Having a female engineer as my mentor changed how I see my own potential in technology.
Anna K.
Mentee - Iceland
Our Fab Lab now attracts more women than ever. The FabConnectHer toolkit made it straightforward to create a welcoming, inclusive environment.
Laura V.
Fab Lab Manager - Spain
Even though our Erasmus+ project funding has come to an end, in many ways we are only beginning. Our community of mentors, educators, and Fab Labs continues to grow. Every resource on this platform remains open, free, and ready for you to use. The MentHer Community is here to stay. This is your space to connect, create, and keep building a future where girls and women thrive in STEAM via Fab Labs. We would love to her from you. Can we collaborate and build from here.
Everything you need, open and free
28 months of collaborative development across five countries — all openly licensed for educators everywhere.
Learning Pathways
Three structured pathways for primary, secondary, and adult learners — each with 10+ hands-on lessons combining STEAM skills with digital fabrication.
Hands-On Fab Lab Activities
Step-by-step guides for laser cutting, 3D printing, CNC machining, and more — designed to welcome newcomers and build real confidence.
MentHer - Mentoring Platform
Three pillars for mentoring in STEAM: a Mentor Resource Hub, a Tools & Activities bank, and the MentHer Community — where mentors from Fab Labs across Europe connect, share and grow together.
Connected Educators Ecosystem
A community of practice for Fab Lab educators across Europe — share approaches, co-create resources, and collaborate on inclusive STEAM delivery.
Fab & Fierce Challenge
Pick a female STEAM heroine, research her story, create something inspired by her, and present it in a short video. 16+ projects submitted from across Europe — open to all Fab Labs and Maker Spaces.
FabConnectHer Toolbox
The complete implementation toolkit — guides for setting up a FabConnectHer Centre, running workshops, assessing learners, and measuring impact.
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