The Rails community has had its share of misogynistic debacles over the last several years. Dominated by male programmers (recent statistics suggest 94% of employed Rails programmers are male), the inroads to professional Rails development for females are not exactly accessible or welcoming.

Of course, it's not just the Rails community that lacks representation from women. When only 18% of the Computer Science undergraduate degree recipients in 2010 were female (Source - NCWIT.org) it's obvious there is a lack of female participation in the entire field of programming.

Though the speculation of why this has become a problem is varied, Rails Girls is a movement that's focusing on the more important part of the equation - solving it.

No community can be considered healthy without a balanced representation in gender and race. That's why at Intridea we're excited to sponsor Rails Girls DC, taking place September 14-15th at the Living Social offices in Washington, DC. We're supporting Rails Girls because we want to foster a healthier community - one where women are building their great ideas alongside men, in equal numbers and with equal opportunity.

Women can apply now to attend the free development workshops that are taking place around the world including Germany, Estonia, Spain, Belgium, and more. Additionally, Rails Girls has open sourced their guides to organizing these events, making it easy for Rails developers to change the shocking statistics that plague our community.

We're looking forward to being a part of this great event. Additionally, we're hiring Rails developers and women are encouraged to apply!