Despite international acknowledgement that women are disproportionately affected by climate change, the Lima climate negotiations have been slow to deliver progress on recognising their importance, while threats of pushback loom on the horizon.
“There are references to gender in those documents, but the language is overall weak. This is why we are pushing for gender equality, instead of gender balance,” Mrinalini Rai, a Nepali gender and indigenous peoples adviser for the Global Forest Coalition, told IPS.
Rai complained that some governments, led by Saudi Arabia, are trying to eradicate the concept of gender equality – promoted by nations like Mexico – from the negotiating texts discussed at the 20th Conference of the Parties (COP20) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), running Dec. 1-12.
Tuesday Dec. 8 was devoted to “Gender Day” at COP20, held in Lima this year, to reflect on the role women should have in the climate talks, amidst a growing trend of conservative positions on the question.
Rai underscored that “the ways women adapt to and mitigate climate change differ from those of men, and that’s why when we refer to gender equality our intention is to have women’s rights guaranteed in every negotiation and every document of the UNFCCC.”
The big thing, in the view of activists like Rai, is not the documents themselves, but what they could provide for women working in the field, far from Lima’s negotiating rooms. For her, it is not only about “acknowledging the differences” but about the language being “a means for pushing policies to actually land on those who need them.”
For the complete article, please see IPS.
Ignoring cross border impacts of large infrastructure projects will spark conflict along rivers, argues Peter King. National level environmental impact assessments that ignore cross border impacts are likely to create conflict between countries.
Peat areas have played a pivotal role in conflicts globally, and have also been a point of contention during post-conflict recovery. Communities in Southeast Asia as well as in the countries of the Congo are facing challenges as finding political solutions for this problem.
On a visit at short notice to Germany, Russian President Vladimir Putin has met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss a range of bilateral and international issues, including the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine, and the future of the controversial gas pipeline project Nord Stream 2. The pair met for the second time within just three months to talk about the project.
Australia’s new prime minister will not walk away from the Paris climate agreement, although his new policies now make it unlikely the country will meet its emissions reduction goal. Ongoing trade talks with the EU could also hinge on how climate policy continues to develop.