UPM Pulp Matters 1/2023

the different processes, but they also provided us with the tools to be able to handle different scenarios that could arise – always keeping in mind the importance and significance for UPM of safety and quality in each operating process. We also participated in academic courses taught by the Faculty of Agronomy,” Cardozo says. After 10 months of training, Cardozo and her two supervisors arrived at the new nursery where the first job was to plant the mother plants for all future seedlings. Work with the mother plants began the following year, at the end of March. Throughout the year different activities were incorporated, such as classification and loosening, and a year after installing the mother plants in greenhouses called “mini gardens”, the first dispatch was ready. O riginally, after Cardozo graduated as an agronomist, she realised that many positions she wanted to apply for were designated specifically for male candidates. In her experience, as a woman, everything was always slightly more difficult. For example, if she gave someone instructions in the field, people would doubt her and call her co-workers to verify her comments. “I wasn’t taken seriously and had to work doubly hard compared to my male colleagues to prove my professionalism and earn respect. These gender-related issues can become quite exhausting,” she says.

Now, as head of the nursery, Cardozo doesn’t have to deal with discrimination. She is responsible for 120 employees, of whom around 75% are women. All UPM’s tree nurseries are located in rural regions and generate job opportunities for women. “I value the fact that UPM understands the importance of employing local women because having an income allows them to be independent and make the most of all areas of their lives,” Cardozo says. T oday the Sarandí del Yí nursery has a socio-economic impact on the city, on local stores, housing and the quality of life of inhabitants. New services have also been established in the town. Cardozo recognises the positive impact the nursery has brought to her hometown, not only for the people working at UPM but also for local companies. For example, all the services required by UPM are commissioned from local businesses, which must meet company standards. “In Sarandí del Yí, as in many places in this area of the country, there is another work culture where it is very common to work seasonally for short periods. For small businesses operating locally, working for UPM allows them to expand and create new opportunities. At the beginning all changes take time, but I think it will be a positive transformation for everyone in the town,” Cardozo says.

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