From IRTA, in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food (DARPA), we have brought together a group of women and girls at the Plant Health Hub in Lleida to discuss agro-science and assess the role of women in the scientific and technological community, particularly in the agri-food sector.
The participating scientists are Elena Costa and Íngrid Aguiló, researchers from the Postharvest program, and Georgina Alins, from IRTA's Fruit Growing program. The students, aged between six and ten, are Rim and Gal·la from the Pompeu Fabra School in Mollerussa (Pla d’Urgell) and Alba, Edna, and Cèlia from the Manuel Ortiz i Castelló School in Juneda (Garrigues).
The moderator of this meeting was Cristina Massot, a woman of science and Secretary General of DARPA, who emphasized "the importance of launching initiatives like this to inspire today's girls to pursue vocations for the future."
The data in Europe is still not encouraging: only 36% of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) graduates are women—23 percentage points lower than the total percentage of women graduating from higher education (Zacharia, Z. C., 2020).
In the field of agri-food sciences, 67% of men hold leadership positions, whereas only 33% of women do. Despite the fact that 100% of universities and research centers in Catalonia have a gender equality plan, research institutions and universities still have male-dominated professional structures. This means that most women occupy lower-ranking positions, leading to a lack of female presence in leadership and decision-making roles, as well as in professional recognition within the sector. These and other reflections were discussed by Cristina, Elena, Íngrid, Georgina, Rim, Gal·la, Alba, Edna, and Cèlia in this IRTA event.
In this regard, IRTA’s General Director, Josep Usall, states: “At IRTA, we emphasize the need to break barriers and eliminate gender biases that still limit researchers' professional opportunities. Women scientists have been, are, and will continue to be key in transforming the agri-food sector with their talent, innovation, and commitment. Gender equity is not just a matter of social justice; it is also essential for fostering richer, more diverse, and inclusive research that can respond to the major scientific challenges of the future. At IRTA, we work towards making this a reality, and already, more than 50% of our research groups are led by women.”
The teaser for #AgroCientífiques premiered on February 11 on social media and the websites of DARPA and IRTA. In the coming weeks, the full conversations from this experience will be made public.
Massot, DARPA’s Secretary General, expressed her gratitude to the participating scientists, girls, schools, and families who joined the initiative: “Because it is through schools and public administrations that we must help give visibility to the role models we didn’t have at the time. This is the key to ensuring that these girls see science as an opportunity to grow personally and professionally while also contributing to a better world.”
