“There have been many starting points in my life, and every obstacle brings a new beginning,” she says with feeling. Rebecca Golfinopoulou. For more than two decades, Rebecca, 42, has struggled with her chronic condition, suffering from generalized myasthenia gravis, and she manages to cope with it by coming face to face with it, doing what she loves: she first dropped out of her journalism studies. , then her family business, studied at the Agricultural University of Athens and is now pursuing her PhD in chronic disease diagnosis.

“There is a way for women not to show their scientific worth in universities, they show it every day. Fighting for them to face the problems that arise from the stereotypes in Greek society, as well as the difficulties of balancing family and career.” Mrs. Sofya Mavrikova watches in “K”., Associate Professor at the Agricultural University of Athens and President of the institution’s Gender Equality Committee. Ms. Mavriku, along with Dean of Agriculture Spyros Kintsios, will supervise Rebecca’s PhD thesis. The Committee organized a day called “Gender and Society” where dynamic women “lighted up” the difficulties of their path, sending a message to a society with strong but still stereotypes. Significantly, women in the university sector are a minority. According to the latest data from Eurostat, Greece has the second highest percentage of male teachers (63.36%) – after Switzerland – in Europe, well above the European average of 56.43%.

“We must believe that our dreams will come true and draw strength from this. Disability is a daily struggle. Not many times, but fight. For acceptance, for equality, for survival. A struggle that often starts at an early age, often from family members who want to protect you from prying eyes, from difficult situations. But it can also work the other way around, leading to introversion, to social self-isolation. Personally, I believe that we should respect disability, protect it and, above all, emphasize and promote it. Disabled people, and especially women with disabilities, know within themselves that they have fewer opportunities for acceptance and recognition. There will be fewer times in our lives when an employer agrees to hire us, that we will be given the opportunity to showcase our skills,” says Rebecca.

“We live in a professional arena dominated exclusively by men,” notes Ms. Kristina Legaki for her part. She herself has almost 40 years of experience in the agricultural sector – she has reached the position of managing director of one of the largest seed companies in Greece – and, as she emphasizes, “there are far fewer women than women in the corporate part of the agricultural sector.” men compared to other areas. I wonder why. Don’t women know how to negotiate? Do they not have knowledge? Is it because they can’t drink with the producers, that is, have fun with them, to make a deal? No. Hidden behind these rhetorical questions is the persistence of stereotypes.”

“I started working in the pharmaceutical industry and started my own company in October 1999 with my own capital and one employee. At the beginning, I focused on clients from Europe, today the company has about 80 employees, all with advanced degrees and high academic qualifications. watching from the side in “K” Mrs. Joanna Kouki, who is the President of Hellenic BioCluster (HBio), the first center in Greece from the life sciences sector, which brings together knowledge-intensive companies and leading research institutes with related topics. “I confess that I did not face difficulties because of the sex. I know, yes, there are stereotypes in Greek society and, accordingly, in business. It’s about how much you attach importance to them, how much you interact with them. If a woman wants to make a career, she can succeed as long as she believes in herself,” she emphasizes.

“Source of power”

As Rebecca Golfinopoulou says, “Everyone must find a source of strength. All women and all people with disabilities or chronic diseases need to understand that there is incredible power within us and just keep going.”