Recent studies show that in Europe we are losing women's talent in some key disciplines for the future, particularly those directly related to astronomy. In order to get more girls and young women interested in the so-called STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields, it is necessary to change the highly entrenched stereotypes in society about these studies and professions, including gender stereotypes, which appear in early childhood defining the interests of boys and girls and whose effects become significantly more pronounced with age. It is also important to dismantle the idea that STEM disciplines are extremely difficult and are associated with unattractive careers. Such efforts must be accompanied by a reduction of the barriers that make it more difficult for women and other groups to develop successful careers in these areas.

At the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) we are developing three lines of action that attempt to respond to some of these challenges: 1. To highlight the work of women in astronomy and related fields, contributing to create new professional role models and to break down gender stereotypes. 2. To develop educational projects that allow students to experience science in a practical way and awaken their interest in STEM. 3. To promote and apply measures to reduce inequalities in scientific and technological careers.

In this communication, we will present some of our initiatives framed in the first line of action. In particular, we will focus on the project "Habla con Ellas: Mujeres en Astronomía" (Talk to Them: Women in Astronomy), which was launched in 2019 and is currently in its sixth consecutive edition. It consists of videoconferences with schools throughout Spain in which the speakers (women astronomers, astrophysicists, physicists and engineers) explain their work, talk about their field of research and answer the students' questions about the scientific and technological careers, the Universe or the methods and tools used to learn more about it. We chose the videoconference format to offer a close and up-to-date view of women working in astronomy and, at the same time, to reach schools far from our headquarters, especially those that do not have a research centre nearby, in a fast, sustainable and very low-cost way.

In the six editions carried out so far, 56 speakers from the IAC and 12 other collaborating institutions have participated, carrying out some 240 activities and reaching more than 9,500 students in pre-school, primary, secondary, vocational and adult education throughout Spain.

An important part of the project is the evaluation of its impact and effectiveness. After carrying out the videoconferences, we sent assessment surveys to the participating teachers and students from Compulsory Secondary Education onwards. The results of these surveys show very positive evaluations of the activities and a high degree of achievement of the objectives pursued. The project is also evaluated from the point of view of the collaborators, through discussion meetings and sharing of experiences at the beginning and end of each edition, which has allowed us to identify the lessons learned and propose improvements that we have implemented in subsequent editions.