GenderCC Newsletter

COP21 Special Edition, December 2015

Dear readers, As many of you are no doubt aware, at the weekend an historical agreement was reached in Paris – after two weeks of negotiations, 195 nations decided to adopt the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Many are celebrating the deal as a diplomatic success, as states managed to agree to keep warming under 2°C and to endeavour to limit it to 1.5°C – a more ambitious goal than expected before the summit. Yet, can the deal in Paris really be considered a victory? Many of us are left feeling uncertain, particularly given that the Agreement spectacularly fails to outline how this goal is to be achieved. Even if they stick to their word, states have currently offered emissions reductions targets which will set us on the path towards a 3 °C world, meaning widespread devastation and loss of life. As advocates of gender equality and human rights, COP21 has also left us with little reason to celebrate. Much work has been done in recent years to highlight the necessity of enshrining these fundamental principles at the core of a fair and ambitious climate agreement. Yet in Paris, a small number of states refused to accept more than a tokenistic reference to the importance of human rights, gender equality, indigenous rights, intergenerational equity, just transitions and decent work, food security and the need to protect the integrity of ecosystems. Together with other members of the Women & Gender Constituency, GenderCC issued a statement on the final day of COP21, declaring that lofty goals and empty promises will not deliver the change we need urgently to avoid disastrous climate and human impacts. Despite these setbacks, this edition will highlight our activities at COP21 and the incredible amount of work that was done on the ground to ensure that women’s voices were heard in Paris.
Our work will continue and we look forward to your contributions in the coming year. The outcome of Paris has arguably highlighted the need for stronger action where it counts – in our different local and national contexts, in our communities and in networks. We hope you enjoy this issue! If you would like to contribute to the next newsletter, please get in touch at secretariat@gendercc.net. Best regards,
from the GenderCC Secretariat team.

Content

News from GenderCC

• GenderCC @ COP21
• GenderNETCLIM Conference in Germany
• Gender into Urban Climate Initiative: official launch at COP21

Gender @ UNFCCC

• Women at the Frontline of Climate Change Fighting for System Change
• Gender Day, December 8

Actions at COP21

• "Another world is possible"
• Photo action for a 100% renewable future
  
  

   Media highlights
Network activities

• Information, networking, actions in Berlin
• Photo Campaign: Global Call for Climate Justice

Who is Who at GenderCC

• Interviews with GenderCC members at COP21

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GenderCC @ COP21

GenderCC was extremely well represented in Paris, despite having faced the usual challenges relating to limited funding and registrations in the months prior. Our booth in the observer hall of COP21 gave us the opportunity to share information about our network and talk to many individuals who stopped by to find out more about our work and members. We hope that many of those who signed up for the newsletter might consider joining our network. It’s easy to become a member – just fill in a form and send us an email telling us about your work and your interest in gender and climate-related issues. Furthermore, at the GenderCC 2015 Annual General Meeting held in Paris, it was decided that our fee structure and membership rules will be revised. All members are now invited to make pay membership fees on a voluntary basis, which we hope will allow our network to grow in the coming months. As a result, we have decided to offer new members the opportunity to be featured on the start page of our brand new website (if you haven’t already seen it, be sure to take a look) and our Facebook page.  If you recommend a new member, we will be sure to feature you too!

"Another world is possible"

Civil society groups showed great dedication and solidarity during COP21 and joined forces to push for a fair and ambitious agreement. Together with human and indigenous people’s rights organisations and youth representatives, the Women and Gender Constituency conducted several actions within the “Blue Zone” where the negotiations took place in order to raise awareness for their shared demands.
On December 7 an action was used to highlight the substantial pillars for a fair and ambitious Paris agreement: human rights, indigenous people's rights, inter-generational equity, food security ecosystems, a fair transition, and gender equality. Participant demonstrated that the Paris Agreement runs the risk of crumbling and becoming ineffective if one of these core principles is removed.
For Gender Day, December 8, women’s and gender advocates came together for a powerful action, in which women from around the world shared their stories, danced and sang together and raised their voices to demand the integration of gender equality in the new climate agreement. See photos and a short video.

Shortly after a new draft version of the agreement had been released on December 9, several hundred civil society observers came together for a massive, spontaneous sit-in in the heart of the conference centre. Chanting “We are unstoppable, another world is possible!” they demanded climate justice and urged the negotiating Parties to come up with an ambitious and fair agreement. See photos and a short video.
On Friday, December 11 women’s activists came together for two final actions at COP21. The first was to protest against nuclear power and the massive lobbying of the nuclear industry at the conference. Activists spoke out against this false and harmful “solution” to climate change and called for environmentally and socially sound technologies.  The second called for attention to the danger climate change poses for peace. If the states fail to mitigate climate change, conflicts are expected to arise and worsen all over the world. At the same time, emissions from military activities are still not counted into nations’ total GHG emissions.

Information, networking, actions in Berlin

In recent weeks, the GenderCC Secretariat in Berlin has organised a number of events to highlight our involvement in COP21 and broaden our networks within Germany. An information evening, held on November 19 in the context of the Women’s Global Call for Climate Justice, resulted in a number of interesting discussions between members of the press and civil society, highlighting some of the key issues surrounding gender and the new climate agreement. For the “Women’s run for climate justice”, held on November 22 2015, a team of volunteers together ran 42.195 kilometers in the wind and snow to raise awareness of gender and climate change issues. A summary – with photos and a short video – can be found here.