I began/continue to code because...

I fell into coding after my first year at UBC. We were required to take a programming class as a part of the Engineering program. While staying up late, hunched over an assignment I had procrastinated on, I realized that I had been going for 5 hours straight with no bathroom breaks - an obvious sign that I was in a flow state?

My relationship with programming has seen a lot of ups and downs. The downs having me question if I really wanted to be a programmer or if there was more out there for me. Retrospection has made me realize that while essentially programming is the same everywhere, community is the thing that keeps me going.

I'm currently hacking on...

Building out my GraphQL knowledge by implementing subscriptions for real time notifications and status updates. I'm also working on implementing automated accessibility checks into my team's workflow and coming up with a technical plan of attack for our accessibility debt.

My advice for allies to support women and non-binary folks who code is....

Community is what has saved me from quitting programming several times. Find people you connect with and like working with and ask to be on their team or projects. Reach out to people online and see if anyone wants to meet up for coffee to talk about shared experiences as a woman or non-binary person who codes.