Emblazoned in deep jewel-tone colors on the side of the coffee shop near my office in Westfield, New York, the newest mural reads: “Empowered Women Empower Women.” It went up around August 2025, and now, on my weekly “treat trip,” I find myself mulling over those words. Sweeping colors and images stretch across the wall as a bright moment in my week that also has me pondering how I should implement such powerful words.
What does it mean to empower other women?
I’ll spare you the trope of quoting the Oxford Dictionary. Empowering is a verb, so it’s not about the definition but the action behind it. How are you empowering the women in your workforce?
In all fairness, I hadn’t done much of it for many years and I am worse for it. I still need to figure out how to do it right. But as I sipped my pistachio-flavored latte, I thought about Women in Ag Tech (WIAT). We are here to empower our fellow women in our workplaces. How can you empower the women here in WIAT and in our lives?
In Agriculture, historically a male-dominated industry, we must make empowerment a deliberate act. Empowerment is not favoritism or nepotism, despite what online discourse might suggest. It’s about helping the people in your life build their credentials and workplace success stories before the opportunity arises, giving them the best chance for success. You don’t build an amazing career overnight. It’s the people around you who help shape a career that can stand up to scrutiny on its own merit, and that happens through early-career empowerment.
Why It Matters in Ag Tech
Agriculture is improving in its embrace of women. That is a fact. I stand on the shoulders of women before me, both those that have been acknowledged and unacknowledged, who made it possible for women like me to lead the career that I have so far. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t real barriers: credibility, visibility, being the only woman in the room. Add in the gender pay gap and lingering distrust of our abilities. Things are better, but we still need to work hard to empower those around us.
So, how do we empower our coworkers who are underrepresented?
What Does Empowerment Look Like, Day to Day?
Empowerment doesn’t mean after-work drinks or even liking the person you’re empowering. In fact, we need to remember that we won’t like everyone we mentor. Hear me again: empowerment needs to be given to people you don’t like as well as those you do. It’s about providing resources in the hope that the person will self-realize a better version of themselves.
Share Knowledge and Tools. Show shortcuts, resources, or methods that make work easier. Give them the toolbox you earned. When someone starts in your circle, consider giving them that binder of cheat sheets we all have. It may feel overwhelming—especially for a younger employee—but offer to sit down in smaller chunks if that makes them more comfortable.
Encourage Team Skill-Sharing. Even the person you dislike most has skills you can’t deny. Maybe she builds the best research or field trial plan you’ve ever seen. Maybe she has the greatest eye for editing. Don’t doubt those skills. Help her be known for them.
Invite and Amplify Voices. Just because she’s starting her career doesn’t mean she lacks insight. Encourage her to voice her opinion and help her build her first executive summary. Ensure she sends group work emails as much as you do. Amplify the work she created in conjunction with you. Redirect credit when possible. If she did the work, she gets the credit.
Encourage Autonomy and Be a Safety Net, not a Rescuer. One week into my second job, I was worried about missteps. I had come from a more challenging workplace, and as I timidly asked about an idea, my manager replied, “Go do it. Don’t spend more than 250 bucks.” That autonomy was a power I’d never had before. It gave me the chance to prove to my harshest critic—myself—what I could do.
Offer support without taking over. Don’t assume they need help. Keep check-in requests light and friendly. Ask guiding questions instead of giving directions. If you offer an opinion, remind yourself and the other person that it’s how you would do something. They may know that an industry standard is shifting, and you weren’t aware. Someone trusted you to figure something out. Respect different approaches. That built confidence. Now return the favor.
Make Empowerment a Habit, not a Buzzword
Empowerment sticks when it’s modeled daily—in meetings, mentorship, and how we speak about others. It happens in your 4-H Club meeting, your book club, and your workplace. The goal isn’t to make others dependent but to make them confident and capable.
Envision what Ag Tech could look like if empowerment became standard practice. It’s creating a colorful mural of beautiful moments that lead a woman to feel more empowered. It’s creating a mural of different people, with different backgrounds and skills, coming together to form an industry that grows as we grow our food and fiber.
