The United Nations will finalize in September its Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to eliminate poverty while reducing humanity's environmental discussion, including lessening the harmful effects of climate change. And some advocates are working to spread the message that climate change impacts men and women differently — and the UN goals need to reflect this sometimes grim reality.
"In the climate change process specifically, we want the normative framework to embed gender equality," said Verona Collantes, a climate change specialist with UN Women, the international agency's gender empowerment organization.
The proposed goals include a mission to achieve broad gender equality, including eliminating sexual violence and childhood marriage, and increasing women's political and economic leadership.
But some advocates are concerned that the goals' reliance on private sector investments will undermine efforts to improve the lives of women.
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On Tuesday, 4 June, seven foreign ministers, 19 ambassadors, several ministers and more than 200 experts met in Berlin to act on climate security risks at the Berlin Climate and Security Conference. "Achieving the international climate targets is the new imperative of our foreign policy”, the German Foreign Minister, Heiko Maas, said in his opening speech. This is the aim of the Berlin Call for Action which was presented at the conference.
Governments must invest new effort and money to prevent climate change from driving new conflicts, according to a diplomatic statement drafted by the German foreign office.
A multi-sectoral and multilateral approach to South Asia's rivers could provide sustainable development, but it needs to include those already marginalised by a narrow development path.
Women are vital for effective climate policy making and implementation. In South Asia, more needs to be done on systematically integrating women into policy processes - as active stakeholders and not merely as victims of climate risks.