ASAJA Mujeres held the workshop “New Roots: Women transforming the wine sector through inclusion”, as part of the 6th Iberian Agricultural, Livestock and Forestry Congress, held in Ciudad Real. The president of ASAJA Mujeres, Blanca Corroto, opened the event, which saw broad participation from representatives of the wine sector.
The event was designed as a space for open and practical dialogue on a fundamental issue: how to ensure that women’s presence in the wine sector also translates into a voice, recognition and real decision-making power.
During the event, the future Grapes of Change Observatory was also presented, with an explanation of its purpose and its contribution to identifying and analysing the situation of women in the wine sector.
Moving beyond more presence towards effective participation
This was followed by a round-table discussion with the participation of Blanca Corroto, president of ASAJA Mujeres; Emilio Cepeda Romero, winegrower and president of ASAJA Ciudad Real; Esther Bello González, a professional with experience in team management and governing bodies; and Rocío Torres Nombela, a journalist specialising in agricultural news.
During the discussion, it was highlighted that women have historically been part of the countryside and the wine sector, although much of this work has traditionally remained unseen. The participants agreed that one of the main challenges today is to move beyond mere presence towards effective participation in representative and decision-making bodies.
Equality is as a shared responsibility
Another key focus of the debate was the need to understand equality as a shared responsibility. In this regard, particular emphasis was placed on the role of men in the sector in creating opportunities for participation, combating paternalistic or discriminatory attitudes, and promoting greater shared responsibility for family and work duties.
Communication was also prominently mentioned in the debate. The importance of portraying women as professionals, farmers, leaders and role models in the sector was raised, by including them in regular communications and ensuring that their presence is not presented as something exceptional.
Proposals for a better future
The meeting also enabled the identification of specific proposals that can be incorporated into future project activities, including the promotion of leadership and mentoring programmes for women, the creation of networks and role models, awareness-raising initiatives aimed at men, tools to improve organisational culture and prevent discrimination, work-life balance measures, and systems to measure women’s participation in decision-making forums.
The workshop concluded with a call to continue making progress through participation, normalisation and the joint efforts of women and men. Among the ideas shared, the importance of women occupying decision-making positions, expressing their opinions and actively participating in these forums stood out.
Through “Nuevas Raíces”, ASAJA Mujeres and the Grapes of Change project are thus reinforcing the need to continue creating spaces for dialogue that enable the identification of existing barriers and, above all, to turn reflection into concrete actions to move towards a more inclusive and equal wine sector that is capable of making the most of all its talent.