Novelist Susie Boyt, Girls' education in Afghanistan, Era Shah on STEM, Pakistani disability rights activist, Abia Akram

Many will have had empty chairs at the Christmas dinner table this year, for lots of different reasons. In Susie Boyt's novel Loved And Missed there is a particularly memorable Christmas dinner scene. In order to see her daughter on Christmas Day Ruth has to improvise. Susie joins Andrea to describe how people try to help and love others in the most difficult of circumstances. The House of Commons Science and Technology Committee recently launched an inquiry, Diversity in STEM, which will investigate the extent of underrepresentation amongst those working in STEM, and ask what policies the Government, industry and academia could use to address it. Era Shah, Chartered Civil Engineer and former Arkwright Engineering Scholar talks about how girls and young women can be supported and encouraged to study and pursue careers in STEM, the importance of scholarships and mentorship, and what employers can do to improve diversity and inspire more people from diverse backgrounds to work in STEM careers. We've been talking to women about their scars. Today Laura, a burns survivor, tells her story Abia Akram is a Pakistani disability rights activist. She is the founder of the National Forum of Women with Disabilities in Pakistan, and a leading figure within the disability rights movement in the country as well as in Asia and the Pacific. She has been named as one of the BBC's 100 Women in 2021. She joins Andrea to discuss how she became involved in this work and what more there is to do. Presented by Andrea Catherwood Producer: Louise Corley