Women at Vale

Women at Vale

Image of a Vale’s employee. She’s wearing a green uniform and has loose hair with black and blue braids.  

WOMEN WHO TRANSFORM THE FUTURE

Progress in gender equality at Vale leverage diversity and sustainable development

At Vale, we believe that the female presence is essential to build more egalitarian and sustainable future. The company's initiatives focused on inclusion and diversity have contributed to increasingly more collaborative, innovative and attractive environment for new talents.

As a result, studies, research and actions with the leadership or the participation of women progress in all countries where Vale works and launch new perspectives for adaptation, mitigation and response to the climate change.

In this space, we share what we have been doing to achieve the target to double the number of women at Vale by 2025, and we also recognize the contribution of the female employees and partners in the activities which connect development and preservation of the environment

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Did you know?

According to the United Nations, women are more vulnerable than men to the impacts of climate change, as they are the majority in the poorest countries and are dependent on natural resources. On the other hand, they are great agents of change in this context, leading sustainability initiatives around the world.

Also according to the Organization, women's participation in decision-making related to climate change and sustainability is essential for sustainable development. Gender equity is seen as a prerequisite for a sustainable and equitable future.

Balancing icon with a woman and a man.  

Vale's commitments
to gender equity

Infographic about Vale’s initiatives and advances on the women inclusion. Infographic about Vale’s initiatives and advances on the women inclusion.  
Grapich about the representativeness of women by hierarchy.  

Follow the growth of women at Vale

% Representativeness of women by hierarchy

Grapich about the representativeness of women by hierarchy. Grapich about the representativeness of women by hierarchy.  
Check out the article by the Executive Vice President of People at Vale, Marina Quental, on the subject.

Women gain more and more space in mining

Operate equipment, plan mines, carry out field inspections and lead teams. There is no activity that we cannot perform. Women have been gaining more and more space in mining, a sector that for years was predominantly male. Gradually and with competence, we overcame prejudices and started to occupy the most diverse positions, reinforcing the maxim that a woman's place is wherever she wants.

However, the sector still needs to move forward to become more inclusive and attractive to take in women. Currently, female participation in Brazilian mining is 13%, compared to 44% in other segments. Improving this scenario is imperative for the mining industry to become more competitive and sustainable, having different perspectives to enrich decision-making. Discussions about diversity have intensified in companies and, at Vale, a lot of work is being done.

We have been going through an intense process of cultural transformation since 2019, reflecting on our role in society. In this journey, we signed a commitment to value diversity and promote equity and inclusion. We are developing a number of strategic initiatives to achieve the goals we have set.

Among them is the goal of doubling the representation of women by 2025, from 13% to 26%. We are working on several fronts to eliminate barriers that make it difficult to hire and retain women, expanding gender diversity in an intersectional way. The numbers show that we are on the right track: between December 2019 and November 2021, the percentage of female employees at Vale worldwide increased from 13.5% to 18.7%. There are about 4,500 more women in the company. We also increased the number of women in senior leadership positions by 80%.

Between 2020 and 2021, we hired a thousand women through the Professional Training Program to work in our operational units in Brazil. Last year, we launched an exclusive selection process for engineers, analysts and managers. We also prioritize hiring women in our trainee programs. In the 2020 edition, we had 61% women, a percentage that increased to 68% in the 2021 edition. These professionals are prepared to assume leadership positions in the company in the future.

We believe that these initiatives focused on inclusion and diversity contribute to promoting an increasingly collaborative, innovative and attractive environment for new talents.

In order to reinforce that there is indeed space for women in mining and that they are everywhere at Vale, we created the webseries “Mining by Women”. The second season was released last year and had diversity as a guideline in a broad way, highlighting other identities and characteristics besides gender, and the episodes are on our website and social networks. The project was conceived and produced by women and, in addition to valuing our talents, it seeks to inspire even more professionals to build a career in the mine industry. After all, we are sure that mining for them and for them will increase the generation of value for the whole of society.

Marina Quental

Executive Vice President of People

Access the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Report here and learn more.

Access here

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What is the role of Vale's women in the sustainable development of the planet?

Vale has invested in several initiatives to promote a more sustainable tomorrow. In this scenario, the focus on diversity and inclusion for recruiting new talent contributes to the creation and development of innovative actions.

In all Brazilian states and countries where Vale operates, women with inspiring stories lead major projects focused on sustainability. The actions have major impacts on communities and contribute to Vale's environmental goals.

Among the commitments made by Vale is to become a zero carbon company by 2050, protect 500,000 hectares of forests, achieve 100% self-production of renewable electricity in Brazil by 2025 and achieve 100% consumption of clean energy sources globally.

Learn more about Vale's sustainable initiatives

Stories of Vale's women and partners who are working for a better tomorrow:
Image of Tereza. She wears a green shirt, has black hair until her shoulders and wears glasses.
Tereza
Giannini
Image of Patricia. She wears a white shirt, is carrying a black backpack on her shoulders and has long red hair.
Patricia
Daros
Image of Miaad. She wears a Vale’s uniform and has a handkerchief covering her hair.
Miaad
Alshidi
Image of Joana. She wears beige clothes, she is with her arms crossed and smiling.
Joanna
Martins
Image of Virginia. She wears a yellow shirt, is with her arms crossed and wears a turban on her hair.
Virginia
Natalia
Image of Tereza. She wears a green shirt, has black hair until her shoulders and wears glasses.  

Tereza Giannini

At Vale since 2014, the São Paulo native woman moved to Belém, where she works at the Vale Sustainable Development Technological Institute (ITVDS). Currently, Tereza is vice coordinator and advisor in the Professional Master's program at ITV.

With her scientific research linked to biodiversity, especially in the Carajás National Forest, she studies the role that different animals play as seed dispersers and pest controllers.

Activities such as conservation and environmental restoration, if supported by scientific knowledge, can be more effective, bring more returns and lower costs. In this time of rapid environmental change, where nature's species face enormous challenges, I believe that science is imperative.

Tereza Giannini
Image of Patricia. She wears a white shirt, is carrying a black backpack on her shoulders and has long red hair.

Patricia Daros

Heading the Nature-Based Solutions area, Patricia Daros is directly involved in initiatives that contribute to advances in good environmental practices and forest biodiversity conservation, which result in a more sustainable future.

If I had to give a tip to women who want to work with sustainability, it's: you need to have a lot of purpose, because that's what makes us move forward and open paths. Another element is courage to propose innovative and creative things. Finally, the partnership. Never lose sight of the fact that we are not going to do this alone, we are going to do this together.

Patricia Daros
Image of Miaad. She wears a Vale’s uniform and has a handkerchief covering her hair.

Miaad Alshidi

As a Sustainability Specialist at Vale in Oman, Miaad Alshidi seeks to impact society while maintaining operational excellence. She believes that creating a sustainable tomorrow is everyone's responsibility and must necessarily involve gender equity.

We are moving in a good direction. The goal of gender equity is to have a society in which women and men enjoy the same opportunities, obligations and rights. The impact will be positive in any area of life.

Miaad Alshidi
Image of Joana. She wears beige clothes, she is with her arms crossed and smiling.

Joanna Martins

Owner of the company Manioca, a business supported by Fundo Vale, Joanna Martins believes that a world led by women is more empathetic and humane. The work carried out by Vale's partner has a direct and profound impact on society, by bringing Brazil and the world closer to the Amazon.

We offer natural products, with a lot of flavor and practicality to a market thirsty for it. Thus, we improve the nutritional quality of the food industry. We are allies for the preservation of the Amazon, showing that it is possible to develop the forest without destroying it. By placing products in national and international markets, we also show that local businesses can break through barriers.

Joanna Martins
Image of Virginia. She wears a yellow shirt, is with her arms crossed and wears a turban on her hair.

Virginia Natalia

Virginia Natália is a participant in the Vale Foundation's “Rede Mais Renda” project. An entrepreneur, she created “Coisas da Vida”, a business focused on the manufacture of accessories, many of them made from reused fabrics. The seamstress and artisan believes that, with her work, she helps women to empower themselves and discover themselves confident, secure and empowered.

We women already know our potential, which was largely hidden by a patriarchal system. We are capable of being a scientist, capable of working in mining or being and acting wherever we want. Intelligence we have, capacity we have, perseverance and determination are what shapes us the most.

Virginia Natalia

Do you want to hear other stories of women who are transforming mining?

Watch the webseries Mining by Women. In the second season, women from everywhere Vale is present shared their stories through the themes “Pioneering, Ethnicity, People with Disabilities, LGBTQIA+, Young Talents and Leadership”.

Be sure to check out this project directed and conceived by women.

Click here.

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