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Reigning reggaeton queen, Colombian Karol G, is one of the most influential Latin music artists today. The award-winning singer has received Grammy Awards and Billboard Music Awards, and she has five Guinness World Records. She has used her fame for good and launched the nonprofit organization Con Cora Foundation in 2022.
The Con Cora Foundation supports projects aimed at women’s empowerment by supporting the equity and equality of female beneficiaries who participate in the foundation’s programs and projects. Some of these include financially supporting soccer teams for children whose mothers are heads of households in underprivileged neighborhoods in Latin America; higher education programs for teenage mothers in Colombia in alliance with the Juanfe Foundation; and the Becas Con Cora program, which provides legal, psychological, social, and educational support to formerly incarcerated women in Colombia in alliance with Fundación Acción Interna.
The foundation is led by none other than fellow Colombian Valentina Bueno, who is dedicated to fulfilling Karol G’s mission of supporting women in vulnerable situations. Since the foundation’s inception, Bueno has been a key figure in its development and growth. As executive director, she focuses on forming new strategic alliances and developing projects that align with the foundation’s objectives.
“We seek to create real and meaningful change that improves the lives of the people in the communities we serve.”
Valentina Bueno
“We choose our alliances based on our objectives, their experience with the target population, and their capacity to expand their impact,” explains Bueno, who oversees projects to ensure they meet objectives and generate a positive and lasting impact on the communities served. “We form strategic alliances with local organizations and experts to maximize our impact. With this comprehensive approach, we seek to create real and meaningful change that improves the lives of the people in the communities we serve.”
Empowering Latina women is personal for Bueno. “A year and a half ago, around the time the album Mañana Será Bonito was released, I was assaulted by my ex-partner, who had abused me during our relationship,” she shares. “It helped me understand the reality of many of the women we work with and empathize with them.”
The Con Cora Foundation’s initiatives empower women in vulnerable conditions. “We take this message everywhere we go, especially in LatAm, where gender-based violence [GBV] has alarming rates due to the normalization of abusive and sexist behavior,” Bueno says.
This reality sparked the Mujer Segura (Safe Woman) initiative at Karol G’s concerts. To empower at-risk women, the Mujer Segura activation raises awareness about GBV at musical events in Latin America by creating a safe space for fans with a primary focus of offering viable solutions. These vignettes were available at Karol G’s concerts in Santiago de Chile, Lima, Bogotá, Santo Domingo, Guadalajara, and Medellin.
“Working with [Karol G] is inspiring and motivates the entire team to do their best to achieve the goals set.”
Valentina Bueno
In tandem, there’s the Con Cora Tour, in which Karol G visits organizations in the cities where her concerts are held. In Madrid, she visited a migrant program that benefits Colombian women who are survivors of human trafficking and armed conflict. While in Mexico City, she visited the General Hospital of Dr. Eduardo Liceaga and the National Shelter Network.
“Karol G becomes deeply involved in each one of them,” Bueno explains. “Working with her is inspiring and motivates the entire team to do their best to achieve the goals set.”
In May, the foundation launched Rincón de la Calma (Corner of Calm), a new initiative dedicated to promoting mental health awareness in schools in Latin America. This new project is part of a partnership with Glasswing International and will establish safe and private spaces within educational institutions. The program will be introduced in Guatemala City, Guatemala; San Salvador, El Salvador; San José, Costa Rica; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Bueno believes the lack of access to education for women leads to the scarcity of job opportunities that offer a better income and thus reducing their dependence on their partners. This is why many of the foundation’s programs center on educational opportunities.
“I feel very proud of all the women we see working every day to overcome obstacles and make their dreams come true.”
Valentina Bueno
In the past year, the Con Cora Foundation has concentrated on developing programs for women in the technology sector. The “She Is Astronaut” program, in alliance with the She Is Foundation Colombia and NASA, helps girls under the age of sixteen travel to the NASA Space Center in Houston and participate in an immersive experience in STEM.
Looking to the future, Bueno is excited about opening La Casa Con Cora, a training and care center for women in Medellín. “I feel very proud of all the women we see working every day to overcome obstacles and make their dreams come true,” Bueno says.
