Five Spanish scientists have been awarded the L’Oréal-UNESCO Research Bags “For women in science” . Selected by a committee of experts from more than 100 applications, the winners have received a scholarship of 15,000 euros, which they can use both to promote their projects and to reconcile their work and personal life. In short, it is a stimulus for their studies in the field of materials sciences and an incentive to the recognition of the role of women in science .
María Teresa Fernández de la Vega, former vice president of the Government, was awarded the prize for the Promotion of Equality in Science, Technology, Culture and Society that the Association of Women Researchers and Technologists (AMIT) grants with reason for its tenth anniversary. Upon receiving it, De la Vega defended that “a science and technology system without true equality is unfair and inefficient. Spain cannot afford to waste the talent of so many women any longer.” For his part, the President of L’Oréal Spain, François-Xavier Fenart, has shown that ” the world needs science and science needs women “.
The award ceremony took place at the Royal Academy of Exact, Physical and Natural Sciences of Madrid. It was chaired by the Secretary of State for Research, Felipe Pétriz, François Xavier-Fenart, the General Secretary of the Spanish Commission for UNESCO, Consuelo Vázquez, the president of AMIT, Pilar López Sancho, and the CSIC doctor at the Center for Biology Molecular Severo Ochoa, Margarita Salas.
For Women in Science
Part of the L’Oréal-UNESCO International Program “For Women in Science”, the national call for Research Exchanges aims to support and recognize the excellence of female researchers, promote their talent and foster a scientific vocation . In Spain, 28 women have been awarded this way since 2006.
Of course, the data from the White Paper, which the Ministry of Science and Innovation has just presented on the situation of women in Spanish science, paints an unflattering picture when it comes to equality in our academic system. Despite the fact that 60% of graduates in Spain are women, and that they finish their careers with better records than men, they represent only 23% of CSIC teaching staff and occupy only 15% of university chairs. In the last 20 years, the percentage of women at the highest levels of the academic hierarchy has increased by only 6%.
The five winners
– Cristina Carnal Barnils is carrying out a project at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia that consists of designing useful biomaterials in regenerative medicine. By applying low-temperature plasma technology, he tries to obtain compounds capable of releasing drugs in a controlled manner. In the future, this technique could replace injections.
– Arantxa Fraile Rodríguez , researcher at the Faculty of Physics of the University of Barcelona, studies the magnetic properties of some nanoparticles. These could be applied in fields as diverse as computer science or medicine, especially in the development of compounds capable of identifying and destroying cancer cells.
– Rebeca Hernández Velasco works at the Institute of Polymer Science and Technology dependent on the CSIC with nanostructured polymer gels. These nanogels could one day be used to regenerate tissues, which would avoid many surgical interventions. The researcher hopes “that they can become a real alternative to transplant surgery.”
– Mª Ángeles Laguna Marco , from the Materials Science Institute of the CSIC, studies how to increase the information storage capacity in magnetic recording systems. Its results will help to increase the efficiency of computers, reducing consumption and the space required to accumulate huge amounts of data.
– Isabel Pastoriza Santos develops her scientific career in the Department of Chemistry-Physics of the University of Vigo. His work focuses on the metallic nanoparticles of gold, silver and copper, which he seeks to assemble in a controlled manner. The process will allow the development of intelligent materials capable of detecting molecules dangerous to the environment or health.
Joana Branco
