The Foundation for Agricultural Innovation (FIA), the innovation agency of the Ministry of Agriculture, is launching a new edition of the National Agro-Innovative Woman Award. The award, through its categories “Woman Farmer” and “Agricultural Professional”, seeks to highlight the contribution that women make to the development and strengthening of a culture of innovation in the country’s agricultural activity.
The award is given annually at national and regional levels to recognize the female farmer who best represents the role of the innovative woman, willing to take risks to produce new products or incorporate new technologies in production and marketing processes. It can also recognize those who have stood out for their ability to manage, transfer, transmit and lead innovation processes.
FIA Executive Director Francine Brossard mentioned that “We are very pleased with the call for applications for this event in 2022, with more than 130 applications, through which we contribute to making the role of women visible in a sector in which recognition is traditionally masculinized. For this reason, we have once again promoted this award to continue supporting them and motivate others to join, since there are thousands of women who are anonymously generating innovative productive alternatives, both from a productive and professional point of view. In addition, together with all of them we are forming the first Network of Agro-innovative Women, whose purpose is to create instances of connection, strengthening of ties, association and promotion of new alternatives in pursuit of greater and better equality of opportunities between women and men in the rural world.”
We remind you that the Award is part of the Agroinnovative Woman program, created in 2022, whose purpose is to promote a greater presence and participation of women in the innovation ecosystem of the forestry and agricultural sector and the agri-food chain, encouraging more women to innovate through the development and recognition of their talent, promoting and making their initiatives visible and providing a space for them to connect.
Applications are open until September 27, so please review the contest rules on the website www.fia.clAs for the results, the winners will be informed personally and they will be published on the FIA website.
Inspiring from experience
The award was established in 2006 and in its last edition, 2022, it received 130 applications from all over the country. The award went to two national leaders in the Innovative Agriculture and Agricultural Professional categories, and to fifteen regional awards participating in the Innovative Women Award.
At the national level, the award in the Agricultural Professional category went to Paola Durán, a Master in Organic Agriculture and a PhD in Plant Biology, whose research is based primarily on the search for biotechnological strategies to reduce dependence on chemical products.
In the Innovative Farmer category, Yasna Molina was recognized for making gourmet cheeses using local raw materials from the Coquimbo region.
It is worth mentioning that female participation in FIA competitions has increased steadily, from 83% men and 17% women in 1996 to 58% men versus 42% women in 2022.
Link https://www.fia.cl/convocatorias/premio-nacional-mujer-agroinnovadora-categoria-agricultora/
Closing: 27 September 2023 at 3:00 p.m.
