The social and technological transformation in work and lifelong learning offered new and expanded opportunities for empowerment, training and employment to women, even in the most remote areas of the country. There remains, however, the question of reducing the gap between the participation of these women and those from urban centers, both in the labor market and in training programs by organizations such as Women On Top.
Prompted by this finding, the WoT team launched in 2023 a large field study of women from small towns and rural areas of Greece, with the aim of exploring the particular needs, challenges, obstacles and opportunities they have to manage during of their educational and professional course. Our goal is to build on the findings that will emerge, to propose & design policies and tools that will strengthen the participation of women from every corner of Greece in work and lifelong learning.
The research focuses on 10 regions and locations defined on the basis of a) their special characteristics and their connection to current challenges (natural disasters, socio-economic crises of a local nature, etc.) and b) ensuring the geographical and socio-economic diversity (and possibly representation) of the areas under consideration.
The results of the study are published gradually, starting with the Municipality of Aristotelis Halkidiki, where the field investigation was based on the tools of qualitative social research methods. 6 two-hour interactive and experiential exploratory workshops were carefully planned and implemented, in which a total of 50 women of all ages and backgrounds participated, from the communities of Stratoni, Paleochori, Varvara and Megali Panayia. During the workshops, the participants were asked to share the challenges they face in their daily lives and how they see their future, and then to identify possible solutions to these challenges, obstacles that might hinder solutions, and helpers that can act as a support for the planning and implementation of their proposals.
We hope that the results of this research will contribute to the design and implementation of substantial and far-reaching initiatives that will strengthen the active participation of women from every corner of the country, in the professional, economic and social life, and will promote the values of gender equality and inclusion in every aspect of the public and private activity.
