CaixaBank and Microsoft Ibérica presented the WONNOW Awards at the University of Navarra, an initiative that promotes talent and recognizes female excellence in technical university degrees. After the success of the first edition, in which 260 female students from 59 Spanish universities participated, both entities will award this year the 11 best female students enrolled in STEM degrees -Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics- from 79 Spanish universities.

The presentation ceremony, which took place in the Rector's Hall, was attended by Ana Díez Fontana, regional director of CaixaBank in Navarra; Alfonso Sánchez-Tabernero, rector of the University of Navarra; and Pilar Lostao, vice-rector of International Relations and professor of Physiology. Also participating were David Luquin, head of the Innovation Factory, the University's Entrepreneurship and Innovation Unit, as well as a representation of female students from the academic center.

The WONNOW Awards recognize, on the one hand, the student with the best academic record, who will receive a cash prize of 10,000 euros, and on the other hand, 10 students who will have access to a paid scholarship to work at CaixaBank and will participate in a mentoring program of Microsoft Ibérica.

Students can submit their candidacy until June 16 through the website www.wonnowawards.com. To choose the winners, in addition to their academic record, their personal experience will be taken into account. Those interested must complete a form, which includes some questions to examine their merits and know their profile, as well as attach their curriculum vitae and the average grade of the first 180 credits passed. 

The territorial director of CaixaBank, Ana Díez Fontana, highlighted the importance of these awards, "which contribute to the development of a fairer society, promoting the presence of women in technical degrees, studies that have an increasingly essential role in the development of our society. The values of social commitment, equality and excellence that characterize CaixaBank are reflected in these awards".

For his part, the rector of the University of Navarra expressed his gratitude for the impetus provided by this initiative to increase the percentage of women in STEAM careers and achieve true equality. "It is a matter of justice but it is also good for organizations. Organizations grow when there is diversity in their teams," he said.

Pilar Lostao, Vice Rector for International Relations of the academic center, highlighted the work of the University of Navarra to promote the presence of women in these areas of work "with the aim of achieving a better society, a world of equity in which the contribution of women is valued". In this sense, he mentioned the Women for Science and Technology initiative, a platform for the support and visibility of women in the fields of science and technology.

Entities committed to diversity

The WONNOW Awards aim to promote diversity in a key sector and reward the excellence of women students in STEM degrees. It is a transversal project that aims to value the effort and commitment of women who are committed to this type of university careers. Through them, CaixaBank and Microsoft Ibérica are committed to talent and diversity.

According to the UNESCO report "Cracking the Code: Girls' and Women's Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)", currently only 28% of all researchers worldwide are women. The gender gap in participation in STEM studies to the detriment of girls is already apparent in early childhood education and becomes more visible at higher educational levels. In higher education, women represent only 35% of students enrolled in STEM-related fields.

Although the European Commission says that achieving parity between men and women in the digital industry would raise the European Union's GDP by about 9 billion euros per year, its latest study on women in the digital sector shows that 24 women out of every 1,000 graduate in ICT studies, and of these, only 6 work in the technology sector.