The Atacama Desert Natural Laboratory (LanData), led by the UCN, brought together prominent researchers and women from the territory to learn about various visions and perspectives in pursuit of the development of the communities that inhabit it.
A holistic conception of the Atacama Desert was presented by the Landata Node – Atacama Desert Natural Laboratory, led by the Universidad Católica del Norte (UCN) – in the webinar “Women of the Desert: Science, Culture and Territory” in an unprecedented activity that addressed no not only scientific issues, but also gender, sustainability, circular economy in mining industries, scientific dissemination and ancestral cultures. The objective of the activity was to highlight the role and contribution of women, from various perspectives, around the territory of this natural laboratory.
Part of the topics analyzed and knowledge provided were related to the microorganisms that inhabit the Atacama Desert, called Extremophiles, and how their characteristic of adaptation and resistance to extreme environments has allowed them to survive for thousands of years in the desert, despite the high altitudes. radiation indices, extreme temperatures and water scarcity, conditions that are studied for their application in various biotechnological processes. The topic was addressed by Dr. Jenny Blammey, PhD in space microbiology, an academic at the USACH Faculty of Chemistry.
Another of the particularities analyzed from the perspective of science was the existence of aquatic communities of microorganisms in the desert as an adaptive response to extreme environments, and the importance of these in research in the territory for the development of CTCI (Science, Technology , Knowledge and Innovation), exhibition that was led by the academic from the University of Tarapacá, Adriana Aránguiz Acuña, PhD in Ecology.
Added to this was the presentation on the sustainable vision that mining industries must include in their production and development processes, presented by the Sustainability Manager of the Volta company, Visnja Music; and the current situation regarding gender equality in this industry, and the gaps to be achieved, by Jenny Rojas, president of the Chilean Mining Chamber; and the reality of the dissemination and scientific dissemination of research carried out in the Atacama Desert, and its relationship with the social appropriation of science and knowledge for the comprehensive development of communities, by the journalist and master in Political Science, Ximena Retamal.
TRANSDISCIPLINARITY
Women who live with the Atacama Desert in cultural, heritage and social spheres also participated during this meeting, such as the representative of the Aymara culture of the community of Quillagua, in the Antofagasta region, Margarita Cortés, who recounted her experience after the crisis. environmental caused by the drought and the mining activity that their community had to face. This, in addition to highlighting the importance of protecting the heritage and customs of ancestral cultures. Also, environmentalist Francisca Oliva, from the “Cuidemos el Loa” organization, raised awareness in terms of conservation and care of the environment, exposing the social and collaborative work model of this entity to generate cleaning and protection actions for the environment. banks of the Loa river in Calama.
“As LanData we are proud to be able to make visible the work of great researchers and women from different areas of knowledge who work in a multidisciplinary manner in the Atacama Desert Natural Laboratory, showing that all disciplines have a place to develop in this unique space, the oldest desert on the planet. Recognizing the work of women in these areas is essential to advance the construction of a sustainable vision for the development of CTCI”commented Dr. Cecilia Demergasso, director of Nodo Landata and the UCN Biotechnology Center, as well as a member of the National Council of Science and Technology for Development, who spoke in this webinar about the importance of strengthening CTCI in the Atacama Desert, for the development of the country.
The activity not only allowed us to comment on the singularities of this vast territory, but also to carry out a common analysis from a transdisciplinary and collaborative work perspective, highlighting the role of women from the North and research around the driest desert in the world. This was carried out virtually, which had a high turnout given the diversity of topics to be analyzed. Given the success of the initiative, it is expected to develop it annually to update content and integrate more women in this space of recognition of female work in these development spaces.
