Latin American women in chemical engineering: Challenges and opportunities on process intensification in academia/research
Nelly Ramírez‐Corona, Ana Cristina Aguirre Calleja, Juan Gabriel Segovia‐Hernández, Valentina Aristizábal‐Marulanda
Abstract
In the last years, different entities have developed programs to incentivize and involve women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. In Europe, Asia, and Africa, only 30% of all professionals working on engineering research are women. In Latin American and the Caribbean countries, the panorama is more encouraging, nearly 50%. In this sense, this paper aims to analyze and highlight the woman's role in chemical and process engineering, especially in the process intensification area in the Latin American context. Initially, the document presents some historical data about relevant women. Then, statistic information is discussed on female researchers in the world, as well as in Latin American countries. The current work areas are also analyzed where there is a particular emphasis on intensified distillation configurations, biofuels and sustainable processes. Finally, some researchers that participated in the special issue solved a survey about their academic experiences. As noticed from the recovered answers, it is possible to claim that successful scientific women stimulate and inspire other women to exemplify transcendence. All academic family trees start with male mentors, but women have gained a relevant place in STEM fields; therefore, the structure will change and be more equitable in the future.