“It is important to make visible the role of women in all areas so that other women may understand that social and cultural barriers are fictional,” said Dr. Omaira González Martín, researcher at the Radioastronomy and Astrophysics Institute (IRyA) at UNAM Campus Morelia, upon receiving today March 8, 2023, the Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz Recognition.
Within the commemorations of International Women's Day, UNAM annually grants this Recognition to women academics that for their endeavors, having “excelled in their work on teaching, research and dissemination of culture,” according to the call of proposals for this award issued by the University.
“The role of women is still very biased in some areas. This recognition is a way that UNAM has to make visible that women have a role in society in all areas, including academia. Thus, more girls can choose academia if they are interested,” said Dr. Goinzález Martín.
The women academics of the Institute of Radioastronomy and Astrophysics have stood out since the origins of our Institute, receiving both national and international awards for their research, teaching and outreach works. Dr. González Martín herself received the Marcos Moshinsky Professorship of Research at the end of 2022, granted by the Institute of Physics at UNAM and the Marcos Moshinsky Foundation.
Upon receiving the Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz Recognition, Dr. González Martín encouraged girls and young women interested in studying science or in following an academic career: “I ask them to think what they would like to devote their life to. There is nothing they can't achieve. The girls of this century have in their hands the opportunity to make the final push towards a truly egalitarian society.”
Dr. González Martín said that closing gender gaps has benefits for the whole society, not just for women. “This is good for the girls and boys of the future. Thus we can all dedicate our efforts to help society in what we are best.”
Dr. Omaira González-Martín’s career
Dr. Omaira González-Martín obtained her degree in physics from the University of La Laguna, Spain, and her PhD in astrophysics from the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA-CSIC) and the University of Granada. She did postdoctoral research at the University of Leicester, the University of Crete and the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. She has been a researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) since 2014.
She studies active galactic nuclei, principally in the Local Universe. In particular, she researches the properties of dust associated with these galaxies using advanced statistical techniques applied to large collections of observational data at mid-infrared and X-ray wavelengths.
Dr. González-Martín founded and consolidated the AGN research group at IRyA, and was the head of postgraduate studies at IRyA until early 2023. In 2021 she was awarded the Reconocimiento Distinción Universidad Nacional para Jóvenes Académicas (RDUNJA) in the area of research in the exact sciences, and in 2022 she received the Marcos Moshinsky Professorship of Research.
About IRyA, UNAM
The Instituto de Radioastronomía y Astrofísica (IRyA), or Institute for Radioastronomy and Astrophysics is an academic unit at UNAM, Campus Morelia, Mexico. We perform high-level and high-impact research in the areas of interstellar medium, star formation, evolved stars, high energy astrophysics, Galactic dynamics and structure, extragalactic astronomy and cosmology. We contribute to the education of high-level human resources through a postgraduate program, and we have close contact with society through diverse outreach programs.
If you are interested in our Institute, visit the English version of our webpage, www.irya.unam.mx/web/en
Media contact:
Dr. René A. Ortega Minakata
Outreach and Science Communication
IRyA UNAM Campus Morelia
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Text: IRyA UNAM
UNAM media Bulletin (in Spanish): https://www.dgcs.unam.mx/boletin/bdboletin/2023_168.html