Technologies
Web Technologies (Security, Privacy, Payments, and Identity)
My Biography
Lola Odelola is a Software Engineer and Professional Rubber Duck, her role in the technology industry is to help others and build tools that make work and life a little easier. Lola is a writer, Web Developer Advocate at Samsung Internet, chair of the W3C Developer Committee, and Steering Committee member for the Open Web Docs. Her desire to help also extends past her paid work as she was the founder of blackgirl.tech, a non-profit aimed at helping to diversifying the tech industry with free workshops, social events, and scholarships. As someone without a technical background, with a degree in Creative Writing and English Literature, Lola understood the difficulty in trying to understand and navigate the tech industry and the importance of a safe community. This was the goal of blackgirl.tech, to provide a safe space for Black girls, women and non-binary people to learn and explore technology. Between 2014 and 2018, blackgirl.tech helped over 200 Black girls, women and non-binary people on their coding journey and teamed up with 8th Light to offer a scholarship program for two Black women to learn how to code. Many also went on to start their careers in tech or advance their skillset. In addition to this, Lola also offers open office hours for anyone with a coding issue, an opportunity for people to book 30min slots with Lola to debug code or talk about career progression and advise. She has mentored others in the tech space with mentees going on to start their own careers as software engineers, as well as Black women who want to grow their own non-profits. Lost in the Source is Lola’s blog and podcast where she explains technical concepts and shares her experiences in tech as well as tips and advice of how to grow as an engineer and navigate the industry.