Month: September 2026

“There has been significant progress in terms of women’s participation in science and business, but cultural, educational and organisational barriers that hinder professional development still persist,” the participants at the Women, Science and Business Colloquium agreed

The Fundación Valenciana Premios Rei Jaume I (FPRJ) has held the tenth edition of the ‘Women, Science and Business Colloquium’, an event which, for a decade, has brought together leading female professionals to reflect on the evolution of women’s role in key areas for the development of society. Under the theme “A decade of change through a non-conformist lens”, the event served to analyse the progress made over the years and, at the same time, to identify the challenges that still remain.

Broadly speaking, all the female professionals on the panel agreed that generations have changed considerably, that there have been significant improvements and progress has been made, but that there are still major social and cultural factors to be overcome in order to achieve genuine equality. Similarly, they noted that in certain areas there is still significant scope for improvement in terms of women’s empowerment and self-confidence, and that further work is needed to support them.

The event, held at CaixaBank’s headquarters in Valencia, was attended by the winner of the 2025 Rei Jaume I Prize for Clinical Research and Public Health, Silvia de Sanjosé, businesswoman Myriam Gimeno, CEO of Nealis; technologist and economist Laura Olcina, managing director of ITI; and journalist and economist Rebeca Gimeno. The discussion was moderated by the journalist Pepa Fernández, director of the RNE programme *No es un día cualquiera*, who had previously hosted the first editions of this event.

Progress, but challenges remain

During the discussion, the speakers agreed that, over the last ten years, there have been significant advances in the representation of women in science, business and the media, although cultural, educational and organisational barriers that hinder professional development still persist.

Researcher Silvia de Sanjosé recalled how the medical profession has undergone a generational transformation in terms of the inclusion of women, although she pointed out that for many years female professionals have had to navigate predominantly male environments and, at times, face dismissive attitudes or stereotypes. In her view, one of the major challenges remains normalising motherhood within organisations, with adequate support structures to ensure that the burden of work-life balance does not fall exclusively on women, and she shared her own experience: “When it comes to motherhood, the blow suffered by a company or organisation when it loses an employee for a few months is significant, but we need to help those in management understand this. In one year, I had 12 pregnant women on my team, and management only provided me with one replacement; the rest of the workload had to be shared out. We need to provide more support if we want women to experience motherhood in a more normalised way.”

He has also put forward the idea that “why don’t we promote the three French concepts of liberty, equality and fraternity more widely, so that they encompass the whole of society and enable us to live in harmony? These humanist principles are what we must strive to pass on to our young people”.

For her part, businesswoman Myriam Gimeno has emphasised the importance of raising the profile of female role models to attract talent to certain sectors, particularly in fields traditionally dominated by men. However, she also pointed out that women themselves sometimes tend to avoid taking on greater professional responsibilities in favour of a better quality of life, which raises new debates about ambition, leadership and personal priorities.

Education and culture to break the cycle of inertia

The managing director of the Institute of Information Technology, Laura Olcina, has highlighted that the number of women in technology-related degree courses remains low — around 12 or 13 per cent in computer engineering — and has emphasised the need to encourage STEM careers from the earliest stages of education. She also warned that remote working, whilst facilitating a better work-life balance, can also be a double-edged sword if it reduces women’s professional visibility.

Speaking from the field of communications, Rebeca Gimeno pointed out that men continue to dominate economic journalism, particularly amongst sources and in management roles. In her speech, she highlighted how many women feel they have to work harder to prove their professional ability and referred to social dynamics that still assign women invisible tasks within the workplace – a phenomenon that some studies have termed the ‘coffee machine syndrome’.

New challenges in a changing landscape

The conference also addressed other emerging challenges, such as the impact of artificial intelligence on information and decision-making. The speakers warned that algorithms can reproduce existing biases in society, which means this issue must be addressed from an ethical and equality-based perspective.

The session also highlighted the generational shift in perceptions of feminism and equality, as well as the influence of social and cultural factors — including audiovisual content and social media — on the way in which younger generations interpret these issues.

Now in its tenth edition, the “Women, Science and Business Colloquium” has established itself as a forum for dialogue organised by the Fundación Valenciana Premios Rei Jaume I to raise the profile of female talent, encourage collective reflection and help build more equal professional environments

The Board of Trustees of the Fundación Premios Rei Jaume I held its regular June meeting at the Palau de la Generalitat in Valencia, during which a report was given on the progress of activities for the current financial year, with particular emphasis on the deliberations and the announcement of this year’s prize-winners, as well as on the institution’s financial and asset position.

Juan Francisco Pérez Llorca, the Foundation’s institutional president, and President Vicente Boluda, together with the executive president, Javier Quesada, presented a report detailing the institution’s activities, with particular emphasis on these deliberations and the impact they have had on the media.

A conference on ‘Agri-food paradigms’ was held at Cajamar, organised by the Foundation, which focused on innovation, sustainability and equity for the future of the sector.

At the opening ceremony, Jesús García, Cajamar’s regional director in Valencia, pointed out that “innovation is essential to keep making progress in efficiency, competitiveness and sustainability, and to continue emphasising the need to produce more with fewer inputs”. In this regard, he explained that “as strategic partners in the agri-food sector, we are aware that today, more than ever, the sector needs allies who can provide stability, a long-term vision and the ability to anticipate the challenges of an increasingly complex environment. That is why, at Cajamar, we do not focus our activities solely on financing; rather, we make our entire Agri-Food Innovation Ecosystem available to you, creating value for the entire supply chain”.

The Foundation’s Executive President, Javier Quesada, emphasised that the Foundation “has always been closely linked to the Valencian countryside, seeking new challenges to help the Comunidad Valenciana”.  And the Regional Minister for Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Livestock, Miguel Barrachina, highlighted the enormous effort being made by the Valencian countryside in the area of traceability and proudly announced that 548 young people, aged between 18 and 22, as new farmers who will devote themselves to the countryside and agriculture; through modernisation and economies of scale, they will make the agricultural sector profitable.

The event was moderated by the presenter Ángel Marhuenda, General Director for the CAP at the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, and among the speakers was Tomás G. Azcárate, who spoke of the need for change in the sector. The economist, who specialises in the CAP and agri-food markets, stated that “science and agriculture must be strategic allies”. He emphasised that adapting to and mitigating climate change is not an option, whilst also arguing that both research and innovation must play a central role in the future. Azcárate argued that “food must remain a European priority” and called for an agreement both within and outside the EU, something that has not yet been achieved with Brussels.

Vicente Faro spoke about organic farming, its prospects and the sector’s development. He outlined the certified area, the age of organic farmers, their characteristics, etc., and called for ‘management support’ to enable organic farming to continue into the future within a sustainable framework.

Noelia Garrigós, deputy director for the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy) and competitiveness at the regional ministry, spoke about sustainability in the public sector, aimed, as she stated, “at providing better services with fewer resources”, and referred to the tools for reducing the administrative burden: “the digitisation of procedures, satellite monitoring, the single application scheme, administrative simplification, etc.” Because, for Garrigós, “the sustainability of the agricultural sector does not depend solely on new production techniques or stricter environmental requirements; it also requires institutions capable of supporting this transformation with comprehensible regulations, streamlined procedures and efficient public services.” For the deputy director of the CAP, “the defining feature of 21st-century agriculture is that innovation must transform not only farms, but also the way in which public administrations design, manage and deliver their services to those responsible for ensuring the agri-food system functions properly.”

Finally, it was the turn of Maria Grafo, Head of the Social Sustainability Unit within the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture, who spoke from Brussels to outline the various types of flagship initiatives and referred to the proposals for 2028–2032, such as the national strategies for generational renewal, a more flexible definition of a young farmer, and the relationship between DABIS and pensions.

The University of Alicante, Vectalia and the Foundation are organising a conference to raise awareness of global desertification and the need to protect biodiversity

To mark Earth Day, the Vectalia Group and the Foundation, in collaboration with the University of Alicante, have organised a range of activities to highlight the need to preserve the planet and protect biodiversity.

The event was opened at the monolith opposite the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities and featured a speech by Amparo Navarro, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Alicante, who highlighted the great responsibility students bear as “guardians of a sustainable campus and a better world” during her speech, in which she emphasised the campus’s firm commitment to the environment and highlighted the figure of Ramón Martín Mateo, the University’s first Vice-Chancellor and a leading authority on environmental law, as an example of the institution’s environmental legacy. She also highlighted the role of two researchers from the University and recipients of the Rei Jaume I Prizes, Javier García and Carmen Herrero, “for their work towards making the air more breathable and for reminding us that healthcare expenditure and inequality are linked to the crises arising from climate change”.

Javier Quesada, president of the Fundación Premios Rei Jaume I, expressed his satisfaction at the event and pointed out that “at a time when science was not being discussed in Spain, our foundation began awarding prizes with highly competent and objective juries, comprising mainly Nobel Laureates.  Antonio Arias, president of the Vectalia Group, highlighted his ongoing commitment to the environment and sustainability, as demonstrated by initiatives such as the renewal of the bus fleet to reduce pollution and the reforestation projects carried out in the mountains around Alicante. Finally, the Generalitat Valenciana’s Regional Minister for the Environment, Vicente Martínez Mus, pointed out that “looking after nature is looking after ourselves” and highlighted Alicante’s environmental wealth despite facing challenges such as water scarcity and desertification. He mentioned that the Comunitat Valenciana is home to exceptional biodiversity “with more than 20,000 recorded species, 338 species of vertebrates and nearly 2,900 species of native flora”, and cited the province’s water reuse programme as an example for the whole country.

Following the opening ceremony, pupils and teachers took part in a guided tour of the Geological Time Line, an educational exhibition that helps visitors understand the Earth’s evolution. They also planted native trees and aromatic plants on the campus as part of a symbolic and educational initiative aimed at promoting sustainability and respect for the natural environment.

The event moved to the Casa Sicilia Winery in Novelda, where guided tours of the estate were held, the Mediterranean garden dedicated to Doña Julia was unveiled, and the documentary “La bodega y la tierra” (The Winery and the Land) was screened for the first time, highlighting the estate’s connection with the local area and its traditions.

In the afternoon, the Altamira Hall at the UA’s University Campus hosted the scientific debate ‘Biodiversity, Desertification and Climate Change’, moderated by the journalist María Cáceres from Cadena Ser in Alicante, which focused on the environmental challenges of the 21st century. Participants included José Luis Rubio, winner of the 1996 Rei Jaume I Prize for Environmental Protection, a doctor of agricultural engineering and a scientific researcher at the CSIC; Jordi Cortina, Professor of Ecology at the University of Alicante and holder of a PhD in Biology from the University of Barcelona; and Jorge Olcina, Professor of Regional Geographical Analysis at the University of Alicante, where he teaches courses in Spatial Planning, Climatology and Natural Hazards.

If you’d like to watch the debate at the University of Alicante: