Gender and Climate Change Activities @ COP 16 - Cancún 2010
Gender in Cancún: about Ixchel and other women shaping COP 16
“Women Can, Men Can't?” GenderCC asked in its final press statement on December 11, 2010, highlighting the guidance provided by the two leading women in the process, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christina Figueres and COP 16 President Patricia Espinosa. The headline also honoured the efforts undertaken by women and women’s groups, activists and gender advocates from civil society at Cancún.
In many respects, women and gender organizations and activists could be happy about the outcome of COP 16. Not only that the total number of references in the final text of the Ad Hoc Working Group on long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA) increased, there are also qualitative differences compared to previous draft texts. Nonetheless, ‘women and gender’ are sorely missing in key topics.
Read the full press statement here: ‘Women Can, Men Can’t?' GenderCC-Women for Climate Justice at the end of COP 16, Dec. 11, 2010
Have a look at the women and gender references in the COP 16 outcomes here.
GenderCC at the COP
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GenderCC was on site to advocate for women’s and gender perspectives and provided information on gender justice and climate policy at its booth, side events, meetings and a press conference.
In particular, GenderCC’s toolkit for climate experts and decision-makers covering the major issues of gender and climate change proved to be a successful and comprehensible instrument. The toolkit is available in English, Spanish, French and German and can be downloaded on this website.
GenderCC - Press conference on financing
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Financing and especially the new climate fund were at the centre of COP 16. In our press conference and lobby work, GenderCC directed delegates’ attention to remaining gender gaps, and put forward concrete requirements for the funds to enhance women’s rights and gender justice. Particularly, funding criteria must ensure gender-sensitive spending and a direct access modality for organised women’s groups and communities should be installed. Also, all governing bodies like the Board need to be based on gender balance. In both the operations of the fund and its projects, gender budgeting must be applied.
Read GenderCC’s press release: 'Gender in the Climate Money Grail', Cancún Dec 3, 2010 or watch the entire press conference here.
You can download our position on financing here.
Gender in Cancún: News on the web
Gender has become an issue that is not only addressed at side-events of the Women and Gender Constituency, but is also finding increasing coverage on the web.
Watch Gotelind Alber, Focal Point of the Women and Gender Constituency, Nina Somera (GenderCC) and Claudia Gimena Roa (FUNDAEXPRESSION) talk about gender and climate change at COP 16.
Or have a look at the interesting article devoted to the topic of 'Gender, Equitable Representation, Transparency' (ECO newsletter. Media Coverage).
For more news please check the Links & News box on the right
Women and gender side events
GenderCC, Huairou Commission, LIFE e.V, WECF, WEDO and many other women's and gender organisations participated actively in the COP and organised events to discuss and lobby for women’s rights and positions.
All in all, there were more side and parallel events than ever before discussing major topics and concerns linked to women's rights and gender justice, e.g. women’s leadership, financing, health, REDD, research, and the integration of gender into national and international climate policies.
GenderCC and its partners were involved in activities in the COP as well as in different civil society’s forums.
Gender into international climate policy - climate and gender capacity building for women scholars
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On 1st of December GenderCC and Colorado State University made an assessment of the progress made in the negotiations towards gender and climate justice. The event also focused on strategies to boost capacity building among women delegates and scholars, thereby engaging women and girls in climate science as researchers and educators and contributing to gender sensitive implementation.
Gotelind Alber's presentation can be downloaded from the download box on the right. Read the ENB coverage
Capacity building for women. A global research network of women focused on women, sustainability & climate change
As a follow up of the capacity building for women scholars side event, Colorado State University, GenderCC, George Washington University and Climatewise Women organised a workshop on 4th December, which aimed at defining emerging research areas for action and major stakeholders, as well as developing a global research network of women.
Read the report and the article on the official COP 16 website.
Integration of gender into national cc policies
In this workshop at Klimaforum10 on 2nd December, experiences in the field of gender and climate change from Bangladesh, South Africa, the Pacific Region, and other countries were shared. Participants discussed the state of public and political recognition of the topic and how to further influence policy processes and raise awareness on the importance of gender and women concerns / perspectives.
Gender, climate change and false solutions
Women are not only the most affected by climate change but also by false solutions proposed. Together with RECOMA, the Latin American Network against Monoculture Tree Plantations, GenderCC focused in this workshop at Diálogo Climático on 6 December on the impacts of monoculture tree plantations.
Climate change induced disasters in South Asia: Gender perspectives
New evidence shows that climate change has already affected many sectors in South Asia. Future climate change is likely to affect agriculture, risk of hunger and water resource scarcity as well as forest expansion and migration, and exacerbate threats to biodiversity resulting from land use/cover change and population pressure in most of South Asia. This workshop at Diálogo Climático on 8 December pointed out the general cc vulnerability of the region and presented case studies to highlight country specific gender disaggregated impacts.
Interventions
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Ana Agostino, ICAE, representing the women & gender NGOs constituency, addressed women's rights in her intervention in the high level segment. More disasters result in an increase of violence against women. She called for transformation of our current development paradigms that are driven by markets and profits and for agreeing collectively on a comprehensive approach to combat climate change and save ecosystem integrity and humanity’s future.
Watch the intervention here.
Sabine Bock, WECF held the first intervention on behalf of the Women and Gender Constituency at the AWG-KP plenary, stressing the importance for Member States to commit to take serious action in order to prevent a looming climate disaster.
Rachel Harris, WEDO addressed the delegates at the AWG-LCA plenary on the first day of the conference, and urged them to advance gender mainstreaming and equality in adaptation and mitigation processes.
The intervention on the "Nairobi work program on impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to climate change" was delivered to the SBSTA by Maira Zahur, GenderCC. While endorsing the efforts of the UNFCCC, she recommended a stronger inclusion of gender considerations at various stages of the program.
All interventions are available in the interventions box.
Women and REDD
After intense discussions women and gender organisations at COP16 agreed in a position on 'Women and REDD', expressing their joint concerns regarding proposed policies and incentives to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and enhance carbon stocks (REDD+). Download the position paper in English and Spanish.
The position is now open for signatures by individuals and organisations. Please send your name (and organsiation), country, email to Ana Filippini, World Rainforest Movement.
For more information about REDD, please have a look here.
