All women can be Épicas

Author: Épicas.

The closing ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games left us with a message that it is time to normalise. The mayors of two of the most important cities in the world appeared on stage: Anne Hidalgo (Paris) closed the Olympic cycle in her city, while Karen Bass started it in Los Angeles. The two leaders played a leading role in an image that until a few years ago was impossible to imagine and is still not common today, given that politics continues to be masculine and that leadership is still attributed with the properties of that gender and associated with it. Thus, women are still judged when they are leaders, creating prejudices and stereotypes.

Although women represent nearly 50% of the world’s population, they still do not participate in public decision-making or power structures in equal proportion. Épicas was created with the goal of contributing to changing this situation. The project aims to promote leadership among girls and adolescents aged 9 to 17. To achieve this, it focuses on three areas: researching and sharing the stories of inspiring women, strengthening leadership skills, and creating a network where girls can connect with their peers, express their opinions, and feel safe and respected. The general public will find information about the project’s activities on the platform, as well as articles on leadership stories. Meanwhile, girls and young women who subscribe will have access to an exclusive space where they can attend workshops, share their thoughts, and access additional resources. In summary, Épicas can be considered a leadership school for girls and young women.

In the words of Melissa Mora, its creator, “The only way to build leadership, to ensure that in the future we have more women in public and private decision-making, and to renew politics is by working with today’s generations, providing them with real-world tools so that from an early age, they are not afraid of these kinds of activities. Promoting this knowledge among girls not only enhances their leadership but also boosts their confidence to exercise it, which is essential for their lives. Additionally, it helps bring politics closer to young people and ensures that they know they can participate in it, thus breaking the association of politics with male exclusivity,” she adds.

Épicas (Universidad del Rosario, Colombia) is one of the 20 projects selected to receive support from Santander X Explorer in a crowdfunding campaign. “I started with the initial idea, signed up for the call, and from that moment, nothing stopped. It has been a learning process and a continuous effort,” says Melissa. She adds that through this campaign, “we not only hope to make the spaces proposed by Épicas a reality but also to raise awareness of the project and start attracting allies to support it.” You can learn how to collaborate here.

Perhaps the words of the mayor of Los Angeles are more relevant than ever when she said, “Together (referring to the mayor of Paris), we send the message to girls around the world that they can do anything: they can compete for gold, and they can run for office.” In other words, we can all be “Épicas”.

Do you also want to launch your project? Sign up for Santander X Explorer, and if your idea is selected at the end of the programme, you’ll launch your own crowdfunding campaign with our support.