29 October, 2024The Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa has awarded the Gold Medal of Gipuzkoa to María Luisa Arriola, Managing Director of BIC Gipuzkoa Berrilan since 1998. This prestigious recognition highlights her “exemplary career in supporting entrepreneurs in Gipuzkoa,” underscoring her contributions to the development of innovative business projects and her efforts to promote gender equality in the economic and managerial fields.
The Provincial Council recognizes Arriola as “a key figure in the creation, development, and consolidation of business projects.” This highest distinction celebrates her significant impact on “competitiveness, the strengthening of entrepreneurial culture, and the generation of new opportunities in Gipuzkoa,” driven by values such as “innovation, collaboration, future vision, and social commitment.”
Irune Berasaluze, the regional spokesperson who announced the award, emphasized that Arriola’s leadership, “together with the BIC Gipuzkoa team, has been instrumental in the creation and consolidation of more than 500 companies.” Many of these businesses are distinguished by their technological components and high added value, contributing to wealth generation and quality employment in the region.
Berasaluze also highlighted Arriola’s role in strategic projects for Gipuzkoa, such as sustainable mobility, quantum technologies, and biosciences. In the latter area, her leadership in the Biosciences Foundation and the initiative to advance GANTT’s advanced therapy programs has been pivotal.
According to Berasaluze, Arriola “has been and continues to be a cornerstone of Gipuzkoa's entrepreneurial support ecosystem, providing guidance and advice to entrepreneurs as they define their ideas, create and accelerate their companies, and consolidate their presence in the market. She offers knowledge, access to financing, and connections to the R&D ecosystem, building networks and serving as a vital facilitator in the complex and lengthy process of establishing and scaling businesses. Her approach, marked by closeness, simplicity, empathy, and extraordinary commitment, has left a lasting impact.”
Berasaluze further noted that Arriola embodies “two key aspects of Gipuzkoa: entrepreneurial dynamism and a solidarity-driven commitment,” which are encapsulated in the legislature's motto: Ekin, Zaindu, Bizi (Act, Care, Live). This dual commitment is evident, for instance, in her involvement with the Gipuzkoa Association Against Cancer, where she strives to improve the quality of life for those affected by the disease and their families, while also promoting research and awareness. Whether through entrepreneurship or volunteer work, her passion for creating a better society shines through.
Additionally, Berasaluze acknowledged Arriola’s efforts to advance gender equality in the economic and business sectors—an ongoing challenge. She has consistently championed the visibility of entrepreneurial values through an egalitarian lens, which, as Berasaluze stated, “faithfully represent Gipuzkoa’s commitment to holistic well-being and its vision as a place of opportunities and a brighter future, where all individuals can pursue meaningful professional and personal projects.”
Arriola has also promoted the recognition of entrepreneurial achievements and the growth of entrepreneurial culture “with ambition,” through initiatives such as the Toribio Echevarria Awards and the Manuel Laborde Werlinden Awards. Her contributions have not gone unnoticed; in 2021, she was named Best Manager of Gipuzkoa by the Association of Businesswomen, Professionals, and Managers of Gipuzkoa (ASPEGI).
The presentation of the Gold Medal will take place on December 12 at the Provincial Palace, bringing together a broad representation of Gipuzkoa's economic and associative sectors.
Marisa Arriola Nieto holds a degree in Geography and History, specializing in Medieval History, from the University of Salamanca, a Master’s in People Management from UPV-EHU, and has completed the General Management Program (PDG) at IESE Business School. Her career spans diverse fields, including process consulting in the industrial sector, before she took on the leadership of BIC Gipuzkoa Berrilan in 1998. Additionally, she is a professor at various universities, teaching Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship in the MBA-EMBA at the University of Deusto in Bilbao, serving as a guest lecturer in the Master of Psychology and Psychosocial Intervention program at UPV-EHU, and contributing to the Chair of Entrepreneurship at the University of Navarra’s School of Engineering. Since 2022, she has also served as president of the Gipuzkoa Association Against Cancer.
The Gold Medal, the highest honor awarded by the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, was first granted in 1982. These are the persons and groups awarded to date: Jose Miguel Barandiaran (1982), Manuel Lekuona (1983), Orfeon Donostiarra (1985), Eibarko Armeria Eskola (1987), Carlos Santamaria (1991), Euskaltzaindia (1994), Jorge Oteiza, Eduardo Chillida and Juan Mari Arzak (1998), Iñaki Gabilondo, Juan Celaya eta Jose Maria Setien (2003), Menchu Gal, Xabier Arzalluz and the cooperative movement of Arrasate (2005), Pedro Luis Uriarte, Carlos Garaikoetxea and Jaime Garcia Añoveros (2005), Pedro Miguel Etxenike, Itziar Astiazaran and Andoni Egaña (2006), Mikel Laboa (2008), the andereños of the first ikastolas (2009) Angel Olaran (2010), Nestor Basterretxea, Egunkaria and Egin (2013), Benito Lertxundi (2014), the foster families of Gipuzkoa and the Gipuzkoan women sentenced by the court of Public Order (2014), the people who came from the Spanish State to Gipuzkoa during the 40s, 50s and 60s of the 20th century (2015), Juan Antonio Urbeltz (2015), Ramon Saizarbitoria (2016), victims of Francoism (2017), Jakin taldea (2018), Aspegi (2019), the Red Cross Social and Health Center of Matia Street in Donostia (2021), Elkar Taldea (2022) and Andrés Arizkorreta (2023).
