Every year, since 2011, the Top 100 Women Leaders of Spain has been chosen, a classification that seeks to make female talent visible and promote a diverse society. In 2023, Colombia is represented by Érika Rodríguez Pinzón, a sociologist from Bogota who He develops his career in Spain without ever letting go of his native country.
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“I work as a Colombian, I go there several times a year and I maintain close contact with the country and with my academic colleagues there, because one of my great subjects of study is Colombia,” she explains to EL TIEMPO. In addition, her family lives in Bogotá “When I can, I also teach at Colombian universities and I frequently participate in Colombian publications,” he adds.
youop 100 Women Leaders in Spain, which reaches its tenth edition, is an initiative that seeks for women to occupy the place they deserve in the public space and for companies and organizations to participate in the exercise and promote equality and diversity. Promoted by the medium Mujeresycia.com, it has highlighted more than five thousand women, including candidates and elected.
In 2019, the Colombians Ana Sarmiento and Claudia Gómez Estefan were also part of the classification. The first is dedicated to bridging the gap between the new generations and traditional companies. In fact, on March 2 he presents his book Each generation has its own at the Modern Gymnasium in Bogotá. The second organized a care network for the elderly and disabled.
This year, among others, the chemist Margarita del Val, the doctor África González, María Vila (director of Medtronic for Spain and Portugal), the film director Cecilia Margarita Bartolomé Pina, the racing driver Belén García are also part of the classification. , the journalist Ester Paniagua and Cecilia Pilar García, president of the Manos Unidas Foundation.
Rodríguez Pinzón, who in 2019 received the Ten Colombians award from the Colombian Embassy in Spain, tells about his life and work.
How was your life in Colombia before traveling to Spain?
I am the eldest of three sisters. Despite coming from a simple family, education and reading are valued in my house, and my mother made great efforts so that she always had books at hand. Also, my parents supported us as much as they could to get the best education possible.
I went to the Colsubsidio girls’ school, which no longer exists today, but it was a great social project based on equal opportunities and academic excellence. Later I studied Sociology at the National University, my beloved alma mater. There I worked for a few years on research projects and I got closer to the subject of drug policy; I even got involved in the process of disassembling the Cartridge.
At the age of 24 I moved to Spain to do my postgraduate studies and, above all, with the intention of pursuing a doctorate. Unfortunately in Colombia there weren’t many options and I didn’t have the resources to pay for it there. In Spain it was cheaper. I came to the Autonomous University of Madrid, did a postgraduate degree in Political Theory, Theory of Democracy and Public Administration and then a PhD in International Relations.
Despite coming from a simple family, education and reading are valued in my house, and my mother made great efforts so that I always had books at hand.
Explain the work you do, please.
I am a professor at the Complutense University of Madrid and a researcher at the Complutense Institute of International Studies. I teach Sociology of International Inequality and Development and I am also a master’s professor at several Spanish universities. I do research on the link between security and international development, especially in Latin America and Colombia.
I am also a consultant for different multilateral organizations (such as the UN, the Organization of Ibero-American States and the European Union), and I am an analyst for think tanks; among them, the Atlantic Council of the United States and the Gate Center of Spain. In all of them I coordinate and prepare analyzes of the politics and economy of Latin America and its relationship with other regions of the world, especially Europe. I am also vice president of the Alianza por la Solidaridad, an NGO that develops many projects in Colombia.
Perhaps one of the most special things is that two years ago the High Commissioner and Vice President of the European Union, Josep Borrell, asked me to be one of his special advisors, who are prestigious academics or experts in an area to whom we It gives us the opportunity to contribute our knowledge at the service of the construction of the European foreign policy. In my case, to strengthen the relationship between Latin America and the European Union, which is one of Borrell’s top priorities.
A few years ago, too, I was a councilor for the Madrid City Council, a great honor for an adoptive Madrilenian like me. I was spokesman for economy and finance for the Socialist party. I learned a lot because I saw how politics is made from the inside, after having spent years analyzing it from the outside.
How does your work relate to Colombia?
Colombia is my passion and one of my areas of expertise. I have worked a lot on issues of peacebuilding, change in drug policy and international relations in Colombia, and I believe that here I am recognized as an expert on the subject.
During the time in which I was a councilor of the Madrid City Council (from 2016 to 2019) I also tried to build networks in public policies with Bogotá. In fact, in 2017 the Council of Bogotá awarded me the great honor of a medal of merit for my work on behalf of women.
I believe that my work has contributed to a better understanding of the country in Spain and Europe and to “horizontalize” the relationship.
How has the experience in the classification of the Top Hundred Women Leaders of Spain been?
First of all, they nominate you within a category and once you have been nominated (in my case for one of the Top Hundred Gold) an open vote is opened.
I am in the category of academic researchers and thinkers, in which I have shared the distinction with nine other researchers whom I deeply admire because they do incredible things, such as exoskeletons for people with paralysis or are authorities in the investigation and fight against Covid-19. 19. Some of the most recognized in the world in their areas.
In my case, as a social sciences academic, I think it has had a lot to do with the fact that I am a person who is very present in the media and in the public analysis of Latin America here in Spain and that gives me the opportunity to have influence, especially in such a period of time. relevant as this, when the Ibero-American Summit and the European Union-CELAC summit will take place this year.
The world is undergoing a process of geopolitical realignment and Europe faces great challenges such as Russia’s war against Ukraine. Within this framework, relations with Latin America are increasingly important and that gives relevance to my work.
What advice do you give to other Colombian women who are struggling outside the country?
The first thing is to value the high level of Colombian professionals. Our level of training is very competitive and our capacity for innovation characterizes us. I believe that we are professionals valued abroad and that must be believed.
Secondly, migrants are entrepreneurial people per se. It costs a lot because you don’t have ties, but you have to build a network. Do not lose those of your country of origin and create networks in the country where one arrives. I believe that people are wonderful, especially in diverse societies and you have to be open to supporting others, seeking support, building joint projects. We are not here to compete with others, and even less so with others, but to build together.
What are the biggest challenges you have faced in your professional career?
Many. Among them, the difficulties to finance a competitive academic trajectory. A doctorate, stays abroad, participation in international conferences. When one has economic limitations, academic efforts are increased because you have to find how to support yourself from a very young age. But I have been very lucky and I have also worked a lot.
On the other hand, there are those of conciliation, which, in Spain, as in the rest of the world, have not been resolved. Having children and a very active professional profile is like trying to juggle every day and at all hours. Also, being a migrant I don’t have my family support network.
Rodríguez, however, has his in-laws. “My in-laws have been one of my great supporters in recent years,” he says. So has his partner, a Spanish economist who is passionate about political economy. “He is a very inspiring person from an intellectual point of view,” she says. She has worked around the economic development of Latin America and Africa.
They have two young children. “They are from Madrid, but they feel very Colombian,” explains Rodríguez. “I am a very present mother and I am enjoying my children’s childhood a lot.”
In his spare time, he loves to spend time in the mountains. “Before the children were born, we were mountaineers; we even climbed big peaks in Colombia”, he relates. “It is a passion that I developed in my scouting years in Colombia and Spain. But since I am a mother, the great peaks and the danger have been left behind and now we live the mountain in its light version and try to bring the children closer to nature”, she says and shows that not only her professional work must be highlighted but also within your home.
JUANITA SAMPER OSPINA
Correspondent in Spain
Newspaper El Tiempo-Colombia
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