Connecting with a network of women: Japan Webgrrls
-- Greta Poulson attributes her new job at IBM to it. Smitha Mallya learned the code for adding pictures to her website because of it, and Emi Asada got some immediate help uploading a Japanese HTML file due to its collective wisdom.
by Karen Solomon

These women, womyn, grrls, and girls -- and about 200 others like them -- are some of the success stories that have sprouted from the burgeoning membership of Japan Webgrrls, the Tokyo-based leg of an international society of computing, networking women. And this month, the group celebrates their third year of successfully serving the women in Japan interested in the Internet, technology, and broadening their technical skills.

What's a Webgrrl?
Webgrrls is social, professional, and active. They host speakers from the IT community, sponsor workshops, and maintain an active listserv. All activities are volunteer-led and member-funded, and the number of participants has been on an upswing since the group's inception in the spring of 1996. They don't sell cookies or earn official merit badges, but with all the learning and knowledge sharing that transpires, Japan Webgrrls is Girl Scouts for technical women.

Japan Webgrrls is a safe-place community for women to share information about their personal or professional goals. While many of the members are studying IT subjects or already are successful programmers and computer engineers, Webgrrls leaves its doors open for anyone -- professional women, students, or the simply tech-curious. They provide a toolbox to learn new technology and a venue to ask questions as they teach themselves. "The bulk of our group use computers for work or for school, and they don't know how to use them very efficiently. Computers are everywhere, and they definitely need the skills," says Khristine Schaffner, one of the co-leaders of Japan Webgrrls. Group founder May Leong continues, "A lot of members come to the group with computer experience, but we all want to be more technical than we are."

The diversity of the Webgrrls membership is personified in the balanced scale of its two co-leaders, Khristine Schaffner and Misa Kajiro. Schaffner is young, energetic, and currently employed in the technology field as a writer for Global Online -- a Tokyo-based ISP. Kajiro is a native Japanese woman who, though familiar with computers as a design tool from her work in architecture, wanted to learn more about networking and the Internet. Other members include students, interior designers, writers, programmers, Web designers and engineers who vary in age, economic levels, and technical expertise. "Some members can't even find the 'on' button when they join, while others are studying electronics or IT. Every member has a different background and (level of) experience," says Kajiro.

New York import
Webgrrls started in New York in a cybercafe in April of 1995. Still the hub of Webgrrls International Incorporated, the New York group links to 61 other international chapters comprising thousands of members, with several more chapters currently forming. Members can be found from Tokyo to Capetown, from Copenhagen to Ottawa, and fill every metropolitan nook across the US.

The Start
May Leong was looking for a project to supplement her daily teaching schedule at the International University of Japan. "I liked the mission of Webgrrls: to provide a forum for women in new media. Japan needed this because the Internet was so new. I knew that women could make a difference in this field if they got involved early," remembers Leong. Leong visited the offices of New York Webgrrls, and she realized that she had a lot to contribute to a satellite group in this country. She worked on the group's website (then hosted by the university) and called her first meeting. About 15 curious women attended that evening in September, most of them students and faculty wondering what a "Webgrrl" was. The following month, under Leong's leadership, Webgrrls arranged its first workshop. Six women gathered after hours in a campus classroom to learn the basics of HTML. Today, the group is still powered by volunteer time and vision, and by the drive and needs of its members.

Deepening Roots in Japan
May Leong led the group solo until she left Japan in December of 1998, and asked Khristine Schaffner and Misa Kajiro to share the leadership role. Dual, bilingual leadership has worked to the group's advantage in recent months. The ratio of Japanese women to non-Japanese has increased, from about a 30/70 split when the group started to more than half Japanese membership at present.

Until recently, language issues had been a stumbling block for the group, as non-English speakers or women uncomfortable using English were reluctant to join. The list now posts both in English and Japanese, and there are enough bilingual members to translate conversation when necessary. Workshops and events used to be English-only, but now bilingual or Japanese-only events are frequent and well attended. "Women who don't speak English wouldn't become members if the group didn't care about language problems," says Kajiro. "We can share the benefit of this organization by helping each other."

Japan needs groups like Webgrrls to support the handful of women who have attained executive positions, and to cultivate women for leadership in the young tech industry. According to a July 15, 1999, Associated Press report on the findings from Teikoku Data Bank, the total number of female company presidents recently reached a record 60,593, but was still only 5.3 percent of Japan's 1.14 million companies. While this is an accomplishment for Japanese woman in the workplace, there is still a wide margin between the sexes in the corporate world. Clearly, there is room for encouragement for professional women in Japan, and Webgrrls is here to help.

Webgrrls is a US import that bridges the expatriate community and native Japanese women. "Compared to other countries, women don't have as much power here (in Japan). Learning to use the equipment and networking with other women is extremely important," says co-leader Schaffner. And, she adds, "It's all about the power."

Why you should join
Gaining power and control over new technology takes many shapes. The members-only list is an open question and answer forum, where members exchange reviews of hardware, software, and tech-related services. Designers, engineers, and programmers get quick answers to technical questions, and newbies get advice on which computer to buy. Business resources and local professional development events are posted alongside opportunities from the New York office. Other tangential topics pop up, including the best local travel agents, job hunting advice, and the best place to buy underwear.

Tangible benefits offered by the organization make this a vital resource for women of all levels of computer expertise, and membership means they are plugging into an outlet that will help elevate them to leadership and management roles. Webgrrls spins the web of an "old girls' network," and it is rippling through Japan's fast-maturing Internet and technology industries.

Continued aspirations
Webgrrls will likely turn the page of the new millennium with the same success they've seen in the last three years. Co-leader Schaffner wants to see expanded membership, including more chapters in Japan outside of Tokyo, and more corporate sponsorship involvement. Member Leslie Tkach (pronounced "Tack") would like to see more workshops and community service, including "more involvement by Webgrrls on the local government and community level; not just teaching other adult women about computers, but also senior citizens, children, and disadvantaged people." Most members agree that larger numbers and a continued devotion to women in the information technology field in Japan are a must, and the group continues to move in this direction. Webgrrls has a lot to offer for the future of Japan's technology. The woman crunching code in your office today may owe her start to the group or, combining her will to learn with Webgrrls' networking power, she may be your Senior Engineer, your CTO, or your boss tomorrow.

Karen Solomon is a freelance Web writer based in San Franscico. Contact her at ksolomon@wenet.net.

A conversation with May Leong
Interviews with Japan Webgrrls

Several hurdles inhibit Webgrrls' continued expansion. Here's what you can do to help:

• Though GOL generously offers meeting space, accommodations are getting tight as membership expands. Webgrrls is seeking office and meeting space.
• Many members and volunteers point out that hands-on computer workshops are the group's most valuable resource. However, women who attend must beg, borrow, or steal their own laptop machine or share with another workshop attendee. The organization would love to receive donations of old hardware to be used as teaching aids.
• Cash is always appreciated and needed to help subsidize events, pay for meeting space, offer speaker and teacher honorariums, and to pay for special functions. -- People wishing to become personal or corporate sponsors should e-mail: webgrrls@gol.com.

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