‘Women Who Can Do Anything’ Event Explores the Challenge of Bringing More Women into STEM

More than 350 people gathered on Thursday for the Women Who Can Do Anything: A Real Commitment to Chile’s Development seminar, which brought together opinion leaders and female role models to reflect on women’s participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and its impact on the country’s development.

Standing before an image of Earth from space, Matilde Gaete, an engineering student who began training to become an astronaut at the age of 18, encouraged attendees to recognize their own potential, drawing on what astronauts describe as the “overview effect”—the shift in perspective that comes from seeing Earth from space.

“It is important to recognize our own contribution with the same sense of significance as we would see the Earth from space. Small in the vastness of the universe, yet irreplaceable and powerful when connected with others,” she said.

“Chile needs more women creating, researching, programming, designing technology, working in laboratories, in mining, in artificial intelligence, and in so many other fields where they remain underrepresented,” said Isabella Luksic, Vice Chair of Fundación Luksic. “When women’s perspectives are missing, the solutions are incomplete. Our challenge is not to convince every woman to pursue a STEM career, but to ensure that those who choose that path do not have to abandon it because of the obstacles they face. We need them helping create the solutions of the future.”

During the panel discussion “Beyond Good Intentions: Women and Chile’s Development,” Rosario Navarro, President of SOFOFA; María Olivia Recart, corporate board member; and Lucas Palacios, President of INACAP, discussed why increasing women’s participation is not only a matter of equity, but also an opportunity to drive economic growth and innovation.

“When women are excluded from markets, science, and decision-making, economic growth is not the only thing that suffers—entire nations fall behind,” said Rosario Navarro. She added, “When a society fails to make use of half of its talent, it ends up creating solutions that do not meet the needs of half of its population.”

Lucas Palacios highlighted research showing that more diverse teams are 30% more innovative than less diverse ones. “In Chile, we too often say ‘no’ to people. Culturally, we need to learn to say ‘yes.’ That is how we will multiply opportunities, because collaboration is transformative,” he said.

“Sometimes people dismiss these commitments as simply ‘good intentions.’ But this is about creating a level playing field. Talent is evenly distributed, yet women still do not have the same opportunities to enter and thrive in the labor market. As a result, we are losing valuable talent,” said María Olivia Recart.

The conversation continued with the experiences of more than 18 women leading in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, who shared their career journeys and the challenges they have faced while building careers in fields that have historically been male dominated.

“The next generation of leaders already exists. They are probably sitting in a classroom today or growing up in a rural community. Our challenge as a country is to ensure that no girl or woman gives up on that path before discovering how far she can go. Because when a girl is given an opportunity, she does not only change her own story—she changes everyone’s,” said Macarena Cea, CEO of Fundación Luksic, in her closing remarks.

What Comes Next?

For the participants, closing this gap requires action on multiple fronts: strengthening female role models from an early age, promoting a more equal distribution of caregiving responsibilities, and creating more opportunities for women to grow and lead in STEM fields.

Carla Hermann, professor at the Department of Physics at the University of Chile, warned that gender disparities begin at a very early age. “The first major gap appears between the ages of zero and seven,” she said, explaining that during this stage girls begin to perceive themselves as less capable than boys in mathematics. She also highlighted caregiving responsibilities as a continuing barrier to many women’s academic and professional careers. “Until we build a society that promotes shared caregiving responsibilities and greater workplace flexibility, it will be very difficult to make meaningful progress,” she said.

Ana Salazar, Past President of Women in Mining, stressed that increasing women’s participation in STEM should be viewed as a national priority. “To move forward, we need public-private partnerships that create more opportunities and allow us to harness the full potential of the talent that already exists,” she said.

Teresita Morán, Country Manager for Chile at BUK, highlighted the importance of increasing women’s representation in leadership positions. “Bringing different perspectives into leadership and decision-making is not only beneficial—it also drives productivity and economic growth,” she said.

The full seminar is available to watch at Emol TV.