Mr. Speaker, February 11 marks the United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in Science. It is past time to celebrate the amazing women and girls who have chosen to pursue science, technology, engineering, mathematics and innovation, to end the discrimination they often face, to recognize their remarkable accomplishments and to ensure they receive equal pay for work of equal value.
Canada has innumerable women explorers, leaders, pioneers and scientists, from astronaut Dr. Roberta Bondar to Canada's most recent Nobel Prize winner, Professor Donna Strickland, only the third woman in history to win the prize in physics. Today and always let us ensure we live up to Canada's new dimensions charter and that we measure progress.
I hope my sisters in science know they have a champion and an ally. Let us inspire the next generation to discover, because more than ever, the world needs science and science needs women.