Chicas Poderosas’ Ambassadors Empower Women in Media Throughout Latin America
These exemplary stories from Chicas Poderosas in Argentina, Columbia, Mexico, and Chile illustrate how women in media are creating substantial change in their communities and in the world with the support and mentorship from Chicas ambassadors.
MAYRA BÁEZ | BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA
Mayra Baéz attended the first Chicas Poderosas event in Bogotá, Colombia, in September 2013. At that time she was working with data visualizations at a national scientific institute. The following year, Mayra and Chicas Poderosas founder, Mariana Santos, began a mentor relationship that encouraged Mayra to realize her potential and expand her horizons. Soon after, Mayra applied for and was recruited for AJ+’s first Al Jazeera digital media outlet for Latin America where she helped lead a women’s team responsible for founding AJ+ Español. She has since then been an event speaker, digital media trainer and Chicas Poderosas ambassador in Argentina, México and Colombia. She has gained international journalism recognition from Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle, International Women’s Media Foundation, and The 19 Million Project.
JOSEFINA HAGELSTROM | BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
Josefina is a young journalist working in Buenos Aires for a local digital media outlet. After attending “Media Chicas” in September 2015, the first Chicas Poderosas event in Argentina, Josefina established a mentor relationship with Mayra Báez, an ambassadors located in Colombia. The mentorship focused on improving Josefina’s video editing skills and in social media engagement, which is one of Mayra’s specialties. As a result, Josefina is now producing high quality video news for social media.
TERESITA GOYNECHE | LA GUAJIRA, COLOMBIA
Cartagena based ambassador, Teresita Goyeneche, has organized the Chicas Poderosas “Stories of Water” program, which will take place in La Guajira, North of Colombia. It’s one of the first events to take place out of a large metropolitan city. It is intended to bring the Chicas Poderosas spirit to the most needed regions in Latin America where digital storytelling is key to improving the living conditions of local communities. With digital expertise from Vice for HBO and Cadena Ser sixteen women journalists, including 5 indigenous women from the region, will be trained in digital media storytelling over the course of a week . The training will improve their digital, video and radio skills for telling the stories of this region, which has been severely affected by a drought over the last few years. This event will also increase the impact of Chicas Poderosas by recruiting new ambassadors in northern Colombia.
This program is supported by Columbian ambassadors, María Paula Martínez, Ginna Morelo, Mayra Báez, and Mexican ambassador Sandra Barrón. Special thanks to partners, who without their support, this would not have been possible: the Gabriel García Marquez Foundation for New Journalism (FNPI), Oxfam, and the Development Bank of Latin America CAF.
MARÍA PAULA GARCÍA & LÍA VALERO | QUIBDÓ, COLOMBIA
María Paula García and Lía Valero, two ambassadors based in Bogotá, Colombia, are architects for the Chicas Poderosas Quibdó, “The Pacific Counts”. With support from Bogotá based Chica Poderosa Elena Vaca, the event will take place in Quibdó, in western Colombia. National experts, including ambassador Mayra Báez, will provide visual narrative training to a group of women and youths displaced by the internal conflict in the region. The goal of this two-day training is to improve the storytelling skills of this group dedicated to defending the rights of the young population affected by the conflict. The program will also increase the impact of Chicas Poderosas by adding new ambassadors in this remote region. This event is possible thanks to partnerships with Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Media Latin America, Los Andes University and the Displaced Youth Association Ajodeniu.
CAROLINA ASTUYA | CHILE
Chicas Poderosas ambassador Carolina Astuya has created an “innovation lab” hosted at MQLTV in Chile, which will offer sessions on storytelling, mobile, data visualization and digital content. She is also one of eighteen selected to receive the prestigious CUNY 2016 Tow Knight Center for Entrepreneurial Journalism Fellowship.
LUISA ORTIZ | MEXICO
Chicas Poderosas helped me make sense of who I am as a woman technologist in Latin America and to take the next step in my career. Today, I am launching a global non profit initiative dedicated to advance digital empowerment for social change: Real Tech, Real People.
The skills and abilities I have acquired as a part of Chicas Poderosas are invaluable. As a technologist and a civic entrepreneur, I feel strong, determined and confident, with enough energy to participate in the creation of spaces where other women feel empowered as well. The challenges we face as women in tech are surmountable when we have a community that supports us and supports the weight of racial, gender, age, intellectual and cultural discrimination or tokenism. Inclusion and openness is the main drive of our activities.
Argentinean ambassador, Gabriela Brenes, recently accepted an award on behalf of Chicas Poderosas for the organization’s social and labor commitment. UNICEF of Argentina and the Secretary of Youth of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires have created a collaborative workspace of 20 organizations aimed at tackling the social issues facing the young population of that city. “Young Leaders”, of which Chicas Poderosas is recognized as a major contributor, will continue to work towards social improvement and keeping young people involved in their communities, developing new ventures and bringing forth new ideas to Buenos Aires.
