International Women’s Day: let’s celebrate our female researchers! Interview with Joana Diaz-Pont

Together with our sister projects of the Water Governance 2027 Synergy Group, GOVAQUA and InnWater, we are delighted to dedicate this article to our female researchers to promote their work and careers around the development of water governance approaches.

These innovative approaches take into account the interdependencies between the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the design of coherent water governance practices and policies at different levels and in different sectors.

As part of InnWater, we interviewed Ms Joana Diaz-Pont, Senior Researcher  at EURECAT.

Career and challenges

Q.: Could you share your journey to becoming a researcher? What inspired you to pursue this path, what challenges have you faced as a woman in your field, and what is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned from these experiences?

Ms Diaz-Pont: My journey began with curiosity. As a child, I would ask my teachers endless questions about matter, water, and air. This curiosity led me to study chemistry and take my first steps as a junior researcher in environmental sciences. Over time, my interests expanded to the social sciences, as I sought to understand the human role in environmental issues. I went on to complete a PhD in sociology and have worked in the field ever since. Having navigated both natural and social sciences, I must admit that gender was never a challenge in my career. Instead, I faced obstacles related to age, particularly as a young researcher, and later, biases against my field—social sciences often dismissed as “soft”—as well as cultural prejudices from Anglophone researchers who undermined Southern European studies. Looking back, I believe transitioning between the end of second-wave feminism and the beginning of the third wave was advantageous in terms of rights and empowerment. Or perhaps I was simply fortunate to work with colleagues and friends who never made me feel that my gender was an obstacle. If there’s one lesson I’ve learned, it’s this: never waste a moment with anyone who challenges your worth based on gender.

Role in the project

Q.: What do you do within the InnWater project? How have your studies and expertise enabled you to fulfil this role?

Ms Diaz-Pont: My contribution in InnWater is related to citizen engagement in water governance. My background in social sciences is very valuable to help me go beyond technical water issues that are key in water governance (scarcity, quality, management, etc.), but not enough to transit sustainability transitions.

Europe

Q.: At European level, do you think the research sector has become more open to women? What could be done to achieve greater equality between men and women in this field?

Ms Diaz-Pont: As I mentioned, I may not be the best example of someone who has faced gender challenges in the research sector. In fact, at times, being a woman felt like a discriminatory advantage. In my time, this was due to the historically low participation of young girls in STEM, which may have limited their interest in research or abstract thinking and provided some of us with more opportunities. I don’t have the numbers, but this trend is likely already changing. If not, promoting STEM among young girls could be a good strategy.

Q.: As an expert in sustainable water governance, what do you see as Europe’s greatest challenge in implementing sustainable water governance?

Ms Diaz-Pont: From my experience, I still see many difficulties when trying to engage citizens and, particularly, vulnerable groups. The methods and tools available are often inadequate when social structures and cultural contexts do not support meaningful participation.

Q.: Finally, what advice would you give to future generations of women who want to become researchers?

“The same advice I would give to future generations of men: Never waste a moment with anyone who undermines you because of your gender. Surround yourself with people who recognize your worth and support your growth.“

Joana Diaz-Pont

Read other interviews with the researchers: