
Charitie Ropati, 23, an engineer from the Kuskokwim Delta coast, has been named to the Forbes Under 30 Education list for her work with her non profit, lilnativegirlinSTEM, which she launched in 2022.
LilnativegirlinSTEM is a community that focuses on bringing more authentic and culturally informed curriculum to schools in Alaska and creating content to inspire indigenous women and girls to consider working in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).
She was nominated by a friend who also works in education and was previously on the list too. Ropati said that there aren’t as many Native people in conservation or STEM fields as there should be. She wanted to change that narrative and create awareness.
In a recent interview with KYUK, Ropati stated, “I want more people to know that we’re here, and that our people are brilliant, and that we’ve always been engineers and scientists.”
She is excited that this achievement will expand her network and bring more Alaska Natives into the field.