Kooperatiben Kontseilua and KONFEKOOP gave special recognition to the cooperatives Bidegintza, Ediren, and Leire Mugerza, president of the Permanent Commission of Corporación Mondragon, “for their contribution within the cooperative movement to equal opportunities and the empowerment of women in Euskadi”.
“Cooperative companies have to continue developing business policies that guarantee the professional development and leadership of women,” stated the president of the Confederation of Cooperatives of Euskadi-KONFEKOOP, Rosa Lavín, and the general secretary of the Kooperatiben Kontseilua, Belén Balerdi, in the tribute ceremony held on March 8 at the Villa Suso Palace in Vitoria-Gasteiz.
This is the third consecutive year that under the motto “More cooperatives, more equality”, Kooperatiben Kontseilua and KONFEKOOP celebrate March 8, International Women’s Day. On this occasion, the honorees were the cooperative of services for the family and the individual, Bidegintza; the health cooperative, Ediren and Leire Mugerza, president of the Permanent Commission of the Mondragon Corporation, “for her contribution within the cooperative to equal opportunities and the empowerment of women in Euskadi”.
The institutional inauguration was chaired by the Second Vicelehendakari and Minister of Labor and Employment, Idoia Mendia Cueva, then the presenter of the event, Vanessa Sánchez, gave way to the reproduction of some videos about the cooperatives and award-winning people to learn about their contributions in terms of equality.
Afterwards, the emotionally charged awards were delivered. On behalf of Bidegintza, Mónica Morante received the distinction from the Governing Council of Bidegintza. On behalf of Ediren, its president, Beatriz Fernández Corres, and Idoia Madarieta Aguirre, who was president previously, have taken the stage. Likewise, Leire Mugerza, a precursor who has opened the doors to many other women in positions of responsibility, was highlighted for her professional career. Mugerza is president of the Permanent Commission of the Mondragón Congress and has more than 25 years of professional dedication to cooperative companies.
The hosts of the event, Belén Balerdi from Kooperatiben Kontseilua and Rosa Lavín from KONFEKOOP, assured during their speech that “In cooperatives and feminism we are nurtured by the same values: equality and justice, that is why the model of cooperative companies It allows us to move towards a more egalitarian society”.
In this sense, they guaranteed that both organizations are committed to continue promoting actions that favor these principles and that contribute to a more egalitarian and fair business model with women, “because more cooperatives mean more equality,” they pointed out.
The event was attended by Bakartxo Tejeria Otermin, president of the Basque Parliament; Maider Etxebarria, First Deputy Mayor and Councilor for Economic Promotion, Employment, Commerce and Tourism; Nerea Melgosa, Minister of Equality, Justice and Social Policies, among other authorities and representatives of various institutions.
Bidegintza
In 1988, the Bidegintza Alde Zaharra association was created out of the concern of a number of people for the situation of young people in the Old Town of Bilbao.
This group, from a continuous and contrasted reading of reality, is dynamizing different initiatives that want to be a response to the intuited and expressed needs. As a result of one of these initiatives, the Community Intervention Team emerged, which began its activity in 1998.
In 2013, the BIDEGINTZA Association changed its legal form in order to provide the entity with a solid, professional, participative and agile legal structure in management; that contributes to the project solidarity, involvement and responsibility, becoming BIDEGINTZA S.COOP of social initiative.
BIDEGINTZA promotes the personal and community development of the population of District 5 and other neighborhoods of Bilbao, where its activity is located, from a community work perspective based on awareness and the participation and leadership of the individual and the community.
Ediren
Ediren is a cooperative located in Vitoria-Gasteiz that offers a health space that integrates personal help and social development.
It makes available to professionals, individuals and entities of all kinds, a wide range of proposals to improve people’s physical and mental health. They offer services designed for all ages, which include interventions, both therapeutic and preventive and formative, in individual and/or group spaces.
Ediren’s mission is to contribute to the development of people’s health and well-being through professional therapeutic, socio-educational and training interventions, providing elements that promote transformations.
To do this, they direct their activities to professionals, individuals, groups, companies and both public and private institutions.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Leire Mugerza
Leire Mugerza (Mutriku, 1976) studied Mechanical Engineering at Mondragon Unibertsitatea and in 1998 began her professional career at the Biscayan Eika cooperative, whose activity is carried out in the industrial area, where she had the opportunity to develop different functions, consolidating in the direction of Quality and Systems, a position that he combined with the presidency of the Governing Council of the cooperative.
In 2008, she continued her professional career at the Lea Artibai Ikastetxea cooperative, part of the Knowledge area of the Mondragon Group, a company where she currently works, combining her duties, since 2012, with the presidency of the Governing Council of the Eroski cooperative, of which she is a consumer member. .
The Permanent Commission of the Congress appointed Mugerza at the beginning of 2022 as president of the body and of the Mondragon Congress. She has been a member of the Standing Commission since 2012 and, following her appointment, she becomes the first woman to hold this position.
