Representing SMI-ICE-Chile, Camila Cabrera and Doug Aitken spoke at the international congress, recently held in Lima, of WIM Perú – Women in Mining Perú, on how to lead change to empower women in the mining industry.
In this meeting, titled: “Mining 2050: Promoting a sustainable future of growth, equity and competitiveness”, Doug Aitken and Camila Cabrera referred to the need to introduce radical changes in mining in the region, in order to move towards a productive, sustainable, safe and responsible industry.
How to achieve it? “Addressing the cultural biases and barriers of the organizations themselves, putting it as a priority in the organization’s strategy and focusing on increasing the leadership of women in management positions,” said Camila Cabrera. “The above will tend to generate a virtuous chain within the organization.”
“Diversity is key to achieving such an industry, and particularly in leadership,” stressed Doug Aitken.
Both also referred to the importance of training women in the mining industry in leadership and personal development skills, in order to promote their professional progress. In this sense, they showed the positive results of the Leadership Program for Women in the Mining Industry, carried out by SMI-ICE-Chile a few months ago, with the participation of mining professionals from all over Latin America.
«It is very important to form a network of leading women in the industry – said Camila Cabrera – where they can share and learn about experiences within a safe and collaborative space.»
For her part, Karina Zevallos, president of WIM Perú – Women in Mining Perú, highlighted how the existence of mixed teams in the Peruvian mining ecosystem could boost the profitability of companies; Therefore, he said, reducing the gender gap is an ongoing challenge that requires urgent attention through public policies and corporate commitment.
