Gender Equality is Essential
to Addressing the World's Climate Crisis;
Global Institutions and Governments to Bring
Message to UN Global Climate Change Conference
in Bali
New York, 10 December 2007- Generating solutions
to the world's escalating climate change crisis
hinges on women's leadership on all aspects
of sustainable development and natural resource
management. Four global institutions - Women's
Environment and Development Organization (WEDO),
United Nations Development Program (UNDP),
World Conservation Union (IUCN), and United
Nations Environment Program (UNEP) - plan
to bring that message to the United Nations
Climate Change Conference in Bali, 3 -14 December
2007.
Women throughout the world have an important
role to play in taking action on climate change?as
leaders in community natural resource management,
catalysts of change, innovators, farmers and
caretakers of families. "As women have
specialized skills, they can offer invaluable
contributions to improve our current climate
mitigation and adaptation strategies. To harness
this largely untapped knowledge and expertise,
we must develop national capacity to include
women in decision-making stages of policy
development on climate change response,"
said Winnie Byanyima, Director of UNDP's Gender
Team Women comprise the majority of the world's
poor. A fact that amplifies the destructive
impact climate change has on women. From New
Orleans to Bangladesh, more women die and
suffer from disasters.
"Disasters, like poverty, have a woman's
face," said June Zeitlin, Executive Director
of WEDO. "The Asian Tsunami, hurricanes
in Central America, cyclones in Bangladesh,
droughts in many arts of Africa, Hurricane
Katrina?in all of these examples, women and
children made up the majority of the fatalities
and displaced persons."
IUCN Director General Julia Marton-Lefevre
said, "If we are to be successful in
addressing one of the most challenging environmental
and social issues of our time ? climate change
? we must incorporate a gender perspective
in this work."
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General
and Executive Director, UN Environment Programme
(UNEP), said: "Women, especially in developing
countries are on the front-line in respect
to climate change as they are in respect to
so many pressing sustainability issues."
It is high time that the international community
met its responsibilities - responsibilities
to women, to gender equality and ultimately
to meeting the Millennium Development Goals
by 2015, "said Mr. Steiner.
At the Bali conference, WEDO, UNDP, IUCN,
and UNEP, in partnership with the South African
Ministry of Environment and the Council of
Women World Leaders, will organize a meeting
of the Network of Women Ministers for the
Environment, calling for gender equality and
women's empowerment to be central to climate
change solutions. The outcomes of the Network
meeting will be shared with the media and
high-level government and civil society representatives
at a reception on Tuesday, December 11 from
6-7:30pm in the Grand Hyatt. This event will
also introduce the Global Gender and Climate
Change Alliance that is working to integrate
a gender perspective in climate change strategies
at all levels.
Women's Environment & Development Organization
(WEDO)
Founded in 1991, WEDO is an international
organization that advocates for gender equality
in global policy. In September 2007, WEDO
organized a high-level roundtable on gender
and climate change on the occasion of the
UN Secretary-General's High Level Climate
Change Event. At the Bali conference, WEDO,
UNDP, Heinrich Boell Foundation, and ActionAid
will present the side event Adaptation and
Gender Equality: Experiences from the South,
on Monday, December 10th 8-9:30pm. Find more
information about WEDO's work on climate change
and gender equality at www.wedo.org
World Conservation Union (IUCN)
Created in 1948, the World Conservation Union
brings together 84 States, 108 government
agencies, 800 plus NGOs, and some 10,000 scientists
and experts from 147 countries in a unique
worldwide partnership. The Union's mission
is to influence, encourage and assist societies
throughout the world to conserve the integrity
and diversity of nature and to ensure that
any use of natural resources is equitable
and ecologically sustainable. Since 1998,
IUCN has been supporting the mainstreaming
of gender in the environmental sector. IUCN
in collaboration with UNDP, WEDO and UNEP,
will be supporting the Network of Women Ministers
of Environment during COP-13 in Bali as well
as the launching of a new Global Gender and
Climate Change Alliance. More information
can be found at www.genderandenvironment.org
United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
UNDP is the UN's global development network,
an organization advocating for change and
connecting countries to knowledge, experience
and resources to help people build a better
life. UNDP is on the ground in 166 countries,
working with them on their own solutions to
global and national development challenges.
As part of its commitment to gender equality
and women's empowerment, UNDP supports developing
the capacity of its national partners to adopt
approaches that advance women's rights and
take account of the full range of their contributions
to development.
During the COP-13 in Bali, UNDP will be supporting
the meeting of the Network of Women Ministers
of Environment, co-hosting several events
on gender and climate change and launching
the new Global Gender and Climate Alliance
(GGCA) together with its partners: UNEP, IUCN
and WEDO.
More information can be found on www.undp.org/gender
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP)
UNEP's mission is to provide leadership and
encourage partnerships in caring for the environment
by inspiring, informing and enabling nations
and peoples to improve their quality of life
without compromising that of future generations.
For over 20 years, UNEP has played a pioneering
role in linking women and the environment
and taking a leadership role in ensuring that
gender issues are placed on the international
environment agenda
UNEP has placed climate change as one of its
priority areas and is particularly committed
to ensuring that climate change interventions
are gender responsive. Accordingly, in line
with commitments under the Bali Strategic
Plan UNEP will undertake to enhance its capacity
and that of its collaborating partners in
this endeavor. For further information, please
visit www.unep.org/gender
Nick Nuttal, UNEP
