INTRODUCTION OF EKATERINA GUALOTO

I believe women are key for achieving a more sustainable food system, but they must be seen, uplifted, and supported to reach their full potential. Participating in ISA will be an excellent opportunity to bring female farmers’ contributions and needs into the spotlight.” 

 

    Ekaterina Gualoto from Ecuador is an environmentalist, feminist, adventurer, and storyteller who believes in the power of emotion to build connections and meaningful change. She is the founder of the SoyAgricultora initiative, an endeavour to empower women in agriculture and support food security in Ecuador by uncovering the inspiring stories of female farmers around the country and developing mechanisms to support them effectively.

The pilot of the SoyAgricultora project began in the Galapagos Islands, where she developed the first female-focused study on the region to explore women’s role in agriculture. The results show the importance of female farmers’ role in food security and sustainability and revealed the challenges they face. However, this remains unknown, and women’s contributions are rendered invisible. Therefore, at ISA she intends to publish these findings incorporating gender-sensitive alternatives and share them with local authorities and practitioners through an awareness campaign to increase understanding of the importance of including gender mainstreaming when planning sustainable development policies for the agricultural sector in the Galapagos. Additionally, she seeks to amplify Galapagos female farmers’ voices and make visible their contributions by portraying through photography and video their life stories and the grace and grit they bring to farming to empower them and to promote awareness and connection in the community.