13 Outstanding Women Receive “Women’s Leadership 2025” Award

To help commemorate Women’s Month, 13 women from the Tarapacá Region were honored with the “Women’s Leadership 2025” award, an initiative promoted by SQM Iodine Plant Nutrition that aims to highlight the outstanding role of women in various areas of society and their significant contribution to the development of their communities.

The winners come from towns like Pisagua, Bajo Soga, Huara, Pozo Almonte, La Tirana, Caramucho, Cañamo and Iquique. They were recognized for their leadership in areas as diverse as sports, entrepreneurship, agriculture, social leadership, heritage, inclusion, lifetime achievement, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), academia and women in mining, a category incorporated this year to highlight the work of SQM Iodine Plant Nutrition’s female employees.

Rodrigo Vera, VP Planning and Projects for SQM Iodine Plant Nutrition commented: “We believe that women play a very important role, not only in mining, but in all areas, and this activity seeks to reinforce that, the importance of women, and attract that excellence, that desire, those talents, so they can contribute to SQM Iodine Plant Nutrition and to their communities.”

The awards ceremony included a red carpet, where the awardees were welcomed by Eli and Krishna de Caso, celebrated television entertainers, who also gave an inspirational talk entitled “I Choose.”

Noemí Salinas, the Tarapacá regional representative for the Ministry of Women and Gender Equity, highlighted the company’s commitment, adding: “We value the work we have promoted through the Women and Mining Roundtable and various other initiatives with SQM, but above all we recognize the work we are involved in on a daily basis, which seeks to make visible and recognize the work of women, transforming our communities.”

Some of the awardees shared their excitement for this recognition. Karen Bello, from Pozo Almonte, was recognized in the “Social Leader” category. She delivered a heartfelt message to all the women in the region: “I want them to be empowered, to be independent women, to love each other and to do things independently. We women are worth a lot and opportunities are everywhere.”

Mercedes Silva, regional coordinator of Technical Professional Education and winner in the “STEM Woman” category, expressed her joy, adding that “I have been collaborating in some way with SQM for many years, since we are charged with supervising the training of our young people and resolving the regional labor deficit. I am very grateful for this recognition and for the company’s work with the communities and efforts to incorporate women in mining.”

Camila Valdivia, blasting supervisor at the Nueva Victoria mine, expressed her gratitude for the recognition in the “Women in Mining” category, stressing the importance of continuing to work for equal opportunities and the inclusion of women in the industry. “We have to put aside prejudices. Women have always been equally capable. The barrier we often have to break is with ourselves.”