Women in Science Celebration: Interview with Dr Alicia Perez Porro

Please tell us a little bit about yourself:

I am a marine biologist connecting the environment, gender equality and science diplomacy for a more sustainable and just future for all. By day, I am the Scientific Coordinator of CREAF, a multidisciplinary Spanish research center focused on global change and biodiversity research. By night, I am the President of the Association for Spanish Scientists in USA (www.ecusa.es), and President of the Network of Spanish Researchers Abroad (RAICEX, representing ECUSA). To be more proficient at connecting science and society, currently I am also pursuing a master’s degree in International Affairs by Fletcher School (Tufts University – GMAP’21). In 2018, I was awarded the Spanish Red Cross Gold Medal for advocating for gender equality as a key component of climate action. The following year, me and my teammates founded the Spanish non-profit ‘Ellas Lideran’ to continue our advocacy work. I was a 2019 Aspen Ideas Festival Scholar, and a 2018 92Y Women inPower fellow. Recently, I co-authored the children’s book ‘The Secret Life of Viruses’, translated to 14 different languages and with more than 30.000 copies already sold. I love lemon pie, miss dancing, and have two kids.

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"Key part of the solution: men allies."

What do you think the roadblocks are to representation of women in science? How can we improve women’s visibility in science?

Not everyone is aware of the magnitude of the problem and its consequences, or despite being aware of it they are not taking the necessary steps to implement real change. It is essential to continue and increase the efforts of advocating making visible women in STEM and the reasons why despite some improvement we are still seeing a lack of diversity and inclusion, especially in leadership roles.
Key part of the solution: men allies. We need men to step down from manels, from all-men selection committees, etc, and to fight with us for equal salaries, equal career opportunities, to take an active role for diversity and inclusion in STEM. A lot of them are, but we need all of them.

"My big picture is one month. When I tried to have a 50/50 work-life balance daily I was failing dramatically and feeling guilty every day."

In your opinion, what is the best way to maintain work-life balance?

Don’t think about work-life balance as a daily thing. Establish a big picture and evaluate your work-life balance from there. My big picture is one month. When I tried to have a 50/50 work-life balance daily I was failing dramatically and feeling guilty every day. Now I assume that some days I work a lot, and some others I am able to work less and enjoy other things without feeling guilty. If by the end of the month I don’t have a 50/50 aftermath, then I think about what I can change and try again.

"I prefer to encourage women to do what is best for them, and sometimes that means to explore other career paths where they can be happier."

What advice would you give yourself if you were starting your career today? What would you say to encourage other women to persevere in their career path?

I don’t like to encourage other women to persevere in their career path, I prefer to encourage women to do what is best for them, and sometimes that means to explore other career paths where they can be happier. It is exhausting to be constantly trying to fit in a system that was not designed by women or having women in mind, and persevere under those circumstances is not for everyone. Asking women constantly to raise our voices, claim for our space, lean in… only perpetuates the narrative that WE need to do more and fix a problem that we didn’t create. Let’s remember that not everyone is a warrior, and that’s ok. And choosing not to fight doesn’t make you a failure. It would be refreshing to put the focus on men from time to time and ask THEM to step aside and give us a hand so we can, together, change the system.