When it comes to the current state of Black women in tech, the vibes are ominous. There's the current war on DEI, with companies like Google and Meta killing their diversity programs. Then there's the desire of Meta's Mark Zuckerberg for more "masculine energy" in corporate America, which only added to the feeling that Silicon Valley was growing ever more hostile to women and People of Color. Aside from the anecdotal evidence, the numbers don't lie: Only 19 percent of computer science bachelor degrees are earned by women, approximately 3 percent are earned by Black women, and only 2 percent of tech roles are held by Black women, according to data from the organization Black Girls Code.

BGC's mission is to increase those numbers by partnering with schools, companies, organizations, and volunteers to offer Black girls in-person and virtual learning opportunities. Cristina Mancini, a former executive at Salesforce and 20th Century Fox, took the helm of BGC in late 2023, announcing at the time her push for workforce development and a goal of seeing one million girls of color in tech by 2040.

With Black History Month upon us, and a very different industry environment than a year ago, Mashable caught up with Mancini to discuss the latest with her organization and how she stays optimistic during this strange time.

Mashable: Tell us the latest about Black Girls Code and your goals for the year.

Mancini: For those who aren’t familiar, Black Girls Code is an organization that works to inspire, educate, and launch the next generation of technologists by equipping them with the skills and confidence to lead in a field where they’ve historically been underrepresented. We have a lot of exciting initiatives and programming coming up this year – including a new season of our free video-based coding academy, Code Along, which will be released and available on YouTube later this month.

One thing we are really focused on this year is expanding our impact to reach more people and continuing to enhance our curriculum. As AI and other emerging technologies reshape our world, we are constantly evolving and expanding our curriculum to position our girls to be not just participants, but leaders in this technological revolution. This includes: expanding to more cities to reach more girls; evolving our curriculum and deepening our career acceleration programs; creating more pathways to apprenticeships that will define the future of tech.

We have a bold vision to launch one million Black girls in tech by 2040. To some this may seem ambitious, but considering that currently only 2 percent of tech roles are held by Black women, I don’t think it’s ambitious enough. Our work is about creating ecosystems of support to equip girls from grade school through college, as well as those pursuing alternative career paths, with the skills necessary to accelerate their professional growth in tech. By focusing on personal and professional development alongside tech education, BGC ensures its graduates are well-rounded and ready for the workforce.

With little government support for fostering STEM and tech opportunities for Black girls, how can parents, family members, and teachers make up the difference?

Statistics are stark: Women still account for only 18 percent of new computer science degrees, and that number gets significantly lower when you account for intersecting identities. This highlights not just a tech industry issue but a broader societal challenge.

One question that I’ve been asking myself a lot lately is what is the cost of inaction? What happens when entire demographics are missing from rooms where these technologies are being funded, legislated, and created. When diverse voices are absent from the tech industry, innovation suffers, and systemic biases are perpetuated. The lack of representation leads to technologies that fail to address the needs of underrepresented communities. Without intentional efforts to include underrepresented groups, tech risks becoming a field that reinforces existing inequalities. This exclusion stifles progress and leaves critical societal issues unaddressed.

This is why, at Black Girls Code, we remain more focused than ever on our mission, our learners, and our community. As always, we need to stay connected, share resources, and think critically about what we put our energy and our money towards. We also need to create the spaces and instill a sense of belonging, helping young women of color see themselves in spaces they might have thought were out of reach. We need to demystify technology and remind people that technology is for everyone.

Tech isn’t this scary thing; it’s for everyone and it impacts all aspects of our lives from healthcare, entertainment, and education to finance and sustainability.

I also encourage teachers, parents, and family members to check out our Code Along series! This video-based coding academy teaches coding skills in a fun, accessible, and engaging format on YouTube and other social media platforms (for free!). We have two programs – one designed for an elementary school learner, called Code Along Jr., and one designed for middle schoolers, which is Code Along. Last year, across our two Code Along programs, we reached over 2 million viewers. These kinds of opportunities are such easy, fun, and impactful ways to get involved, where students learn real, tangible skills that will pave the way for their career preparation. For example, our ‘How to Code an AI Chatbot from Scratch’ video is one of our best performing episodes in the Code Along series, as it’s both useful and fun. Perhaps most importantly, these programs serve as a source of inspiration for what the next generation of tech innovators is capable of, and looks like.

Having diverse voices creates ethical experiences that reflect the values of all consumers. Diverse teams are better equipped to create inclusive products and services that serve a broader audience. By empowering Black girls to enter the field of tech, BGC ensures that their unique perspectives contribute to a more equitable and innovative industry. We need to invest in girls of all backgrounds and position them to not just be participants, but leaders in this technological revolution that we’re experiencing.

It's a precarious time for women and POC in the tech sector. How can Black girls interested in the industry, and Black women already in it, stay optimistic?

The first thing I’d like to say is that I am confident we can build a technological industry and future that is created by us, for everyone. One that is safe, inclusive, and joyful. That being said, addressing the gaps in representation isn’t a technology problem, it’s a human problem. We need to ensure our technology represents people from all walks of life. As members of the Black community, we’re super users of this technology and we have the opportunity to become architects. As technology continues to develop at such a rapid pace, we need to ensure we are in these rooms shaping the future we want. We need to be engaged, active, and intentional, and focused on having conversations that are centered on solutions rather than obstacles.

I’d like to encourage us to think about the narrative we’re telling ourselves and exhibiting to the younger members of our community. At BGC I am working on redefining the narrative for Black women in tech – focusing on Black joy in technology rather than marketing trauma as a success story. I want to spotlight the examples of brilliance in action, to talk about and learn from our technologists in the making, who are using technology on their own terms. When we look around, and choose to see joy and success, we see that the opportunities are boundless.

Finally, I just want to remind everyone that we have to remember to breathe. To take care of ourselves. It is impossible to be optimistic otherwise. Talking to our loved ones and connecting with our communities should be the cornerstone of the day, not an after-thought.

You have extensive experience working in tech at Salesforce and entertainment at 20th Century Fox. How did each industry differ when it came to fostering and supporting Black talent?

I could speak about my career at length, but I believe talking about the pressing challenges facing the tech industry and how we're looking to address them is a better use of our time. We are in the midst of a technological revolution and AI is quickly infiltrating all aspects of our lives – hiring practices, financial services, healthcare, entertainment, and more. Too often, the people creating these technologies don't look like the communities they're supposed to serve. When entire demographics are absent from the critical spaces where technologies are conceived, we leave room for bias and harm. The question isn’t just ‘when will we acknowledge this truth’, but ‘when will we act on it?’ Time is not on our side and we do not want to know what the cost of inaction means for our communities.

This is why at Black Girls Code we are reminding people that underrepresented does not mean underprepared or underqualified. At Black Girls Code we are creating an ecosystem where under-recognized talent thrives as developers, innovators, and leaders across all technology sectors, and we are doing this through four main goals, which are to: launch one million Black girls in tech by 2040; inspire a passion for tech. Show Black girls and gender-expansive youth of color that they belong in tech, they can express themselves with tech skills, and can build thriving tech careers; educate with relevant skills. Equip our community with the tech and leadership skills they need to thrive in the tech world, while providing supportive in-person and virtual learning environments; launch fulfilling careers. Connect our community of learners with the career opportunities they deserve, and provide them with the workplace skills and support to help them be successful.

By empowering Black girls to enter tech, BGC ensures that their unique perspectives contribute to a more inclusive and innovative industry because I believe we can create technology by us, for everyone.

When you think of Black History Month, who stands out as inspirations and what have you learned from these people?

I’m lucky to say that I am inspired and learn from my colleagues and the girls in our community every single day. To name one in particular, Ife Joseph has been part of the BGC community since she was 7, and in 5th grade created an app called “Mental Health for Social Justice.” The app is a digital journey for young kids dealing with racism. She was nominated for TIME magazine’s “Kid of the year” award in 2021 and later spoke at the UN about the importance of BGC. One of the many professionals I admire is Dr. Joy Buolamwini. Her work, featured in the film Coded Bias, shines a light on algorithmic discrimination and inspires others to prioritize fairness in AI development. There’s also Dr. Avriel Epps, an AI ethicist who is educating young minds about AI through her upcoming book, A Kids Book About AI Bias. We actually have a number of events with her this spring, including a breakout at the HumanX conference in Vegas and learning workshops with students. I could list countless lessons that these women have taught me, but above all, the stories they’re telling are challenging the narrative about who belongs in tech, and who’s creating it.

Vicky