People are the heart of transition. Our current global climate urgently calls for transforming how we consume and produce in order to better steward our natural resources. There is an immediate need to move forward on a trajectory that actually delivers a low-carbon and just transition. In celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD) 2025 and recognition and honor of women who are steering global movements towards this sustainable vision, MedWaves presents a new series: Women We Admire. Join us in conversations as we reflect on how regional activities potentiate global goals and consider how balancing gender can further amplify efforts. This month, we are speaking with Laura Bordera Iniesta to learn about the MedWaves Gender Task Force as a way to further achieve gender equality in the Mediterranean Region.

What if it was possible to make a difference in the world? What if your work opened doors for the inclusion of all people to participate in a movement towards a sustainable future? What if you knew your contribution mattered, was valued and reached towards a collective effort to become more sustainable?

Women We Admire live these ideals. Through their actions, these women demonstrate that it is possible to fulfill the potential to accelerate action for a just and sustainable future. They embody the belief that the cornerstone of justice is gender balance. In honor of International Women’s Day (IWD) 2025, MedWaves is pleased to launch our new series to explore in depth what we can learn from the women leading sustainable development. 

In our first post, we sit with Laura Bordera Iniesta who is supporting the MedWaves Gender Task Force. Laura provides support to the Coordination as well as the Networking and Communication Facility. She studied Sociology and later earned a master’s degree in Social Research. Over the last decade, she worked in the field of social consulting, with a particular focus on feminism and gender-based violence, collaborating with various administrations in staff training and in the development of protocols and strategies to address gender-based violence and gender mainstreaming. Laura is active in local feminism and a mother to a 5-year-old girl, who she considers her main driving force to continue fighting for a more just world.

MedWaves: This year is a pivotal moment in the global pursuit of gender equality and women’s empowerment, marking the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action which is considered by many as the blueprint for the rights of women and girls globally. From your perspective, how important is addressing gender to achieving Sustainable Development Goals and the targets of the Barcelona and Stockholm Conventions?

Laura Bordera Iniesta: Gender inequality is a phenomenon present worldwide and across all areas of our lives. Proposing sustainable development goals without considering this element constitutes a half-hearted approach. Until recently, in the realm of public policy, gender was treated as a separate section or department distinct from others. This approach has allowed us to raise awareness of certain inequalities and empower women; however, we must now move beyond this. Consequently, it has been recognized that mainstreaming a gender perspective in all public policies is the most effective way to address these inequalities. Environmental protection and climate change mitigation must also incorporate this perspective, as women are among the most vulnerable and affected groups, as are other communities living under oppressive conditions.

If you take into consideration, for example, SDG 12, which aims to ensure the sustainable consumption and production patterns and underpins the MedWaves mandate for the Barcelona Convention, we are also talking about business models. These models tend to be centered around the classic capitalist model, which favors economic profit regardless of the impact. These impacts can range from pollution to labour exploitation and tend to bear more significantly on women and and children.

MedWaves: Thank you. This brings me to ask about the MedWaves Gender Task Force (GTF), which is an initiative to build capacity and empower women. Can you share more about the project and how you see the ripple of the impact?  

Laura Bordera Iniesta: The mission of the GTF is to ensure that the gender perspective is integrated into all of our tasks, both internally and externally. First, we must ensure that the entire team embraces this perspective and that it becomes a core part of the center’s strategy. Simultaneously, we need to incorporate it into the projects we carry out and participate in. For instance, within the policy team, we have a significant opportunity to influence policymakers with this perspective. Similarly, in green entrepreneurship, we can create impacts on business models at the local level. The way we communicate our work is also crucial and must take these elements into account.

The GTF is placing gender as a cross-cutting variable in everything that we’re doing, from hiring someone new to analyzing objectives of projects to account for the gender variable. At GTF, the aim is to ensure representation from all areas of the center. In its previous iteration, it was composed of six individuals. We are currently finalizing its composition, which will consist of four to five people holding positions across different areas of the center and/or in strategic roles.

MedWaves: What are some ways that MedWaves supports gender equality and the empowerment of youth and women in the region? The Mediterranean region has been documented as particularly vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change, threatening natural ecosystems and even the economic health of the region. What are some of the messages the region can transmit to the world in the way these challenges have been addressed? 

Laura Bordera Iniesta: Yes, the Mediterranean region seems to be vulnerable to climate change, in the context of Europe. From my point of view, the message should be that we are running out of time, but it’s not too late for everything to be lost. In this sense, collaboration between countries is essential, setting aside individual interests, and understanding our planet as a single ecosystem that needs to be cared for and healed. But we cannot do this if we do not respect human rights, and the rights of women and girls in particular. The Mediterranean region is a very small area, but it’s a very diverse area with a lot of cultures and traditions and ways of thinking. This is why the GTF is an important commitment for MedWaves.

MedWaves: From a personal perspective, what do you consider to be proud moments in your career? How have you witnessed changing social norms around women in leadership? 

Laura Bordera Iniesta: Probably, the first professional achievement I should mention is that I have managed to survive working in the field of social sciences. What may seem like a joke is actually closely related to the topic at hand, as the capitalist system values certain jobs over others based on the money they generate, rather than the social impact they have. Clearly, sociology itself does not generate money, and even less so the fight for human rights. Just like many other jobs, such as those related to caregiving, which are clearly precarious and feminised sectors. Although as a professional, I have been able to intervene in contexts with a very large positive impact.

This connects to the second part of the question, where my answer would be yes, certain social norms surrounding female leadership are changing. Twenty years ago, you could see certain female political leaders, but they operated under the mechanisms of patriarchal leadership, which are associated with a lack of empathy, the use of violence as a means to impose desired norms, competition, impulsivity, etc. Nowadays, we are starting to see women who lead countries that are considered feminist and are promoting different values such as cooperation and solidarity between communities, as well as rejecting violence. 

MedWaves: Who are the women you admire?

Laura Bordera Iniesta: Vandana Shiva, Berta Cáceres, Yayo Herrero, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Virginie Despentes, Angela Davis. The list is long… There are a lot of women that I admire.  In the environmental field, there are activists on the street fighting everyday to make this world better. They may not be in the newspapers, but these are also people that I admire. In Spain, we have Yayo Herrero, who has explained a lot to the world about the relationship between capitalism and how it destroys the environment and at the same time destroys women. There is also Berta Cáceres who was killed in Honduras because of her activism and her work with Indigenous Peoples. And we have very young people fighting like Greta Thunberg. I think now is the time for women to change the world!

In light of International Women’s Day, here are some interesting resources to check out:

• Publication: Explore here key findings on gender equality across all SDGs with data and visuals on the most pressing issues affecting women and girls globally. Access here the report issued by UN Women.
• GenderTerm: Are you eager to learn how to improve your use of gender-inclusive language? Check the UN Women GenderTerm here.

At MedWaves, we are committed to strengthening capacities and promoting knowledge exchange across the region, recognizing that integrating a gender perspective is essential in all our actions. However, the realities of each country differ greatly—not only due to the diverse regional actors involved but also because of the distinct characteristics of each stakeholder. By remaining actively aware of our responsibility, we can enhance our impact and drive meaningful, lasting change.

Only through collective effort and shared commitment can we create a more inclusive and equitable future for all.

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