Women in International Climate Negotiations

ONLINE TEA TIME 

10th March, 5 – 6.30 pm

In climate policy negotiations, important decisions are made about everyone’s climate future. Yet, there is still a lack of balanced representation and of gender-sensitivity. It is essential that this dimension is taken into account in political decision.making in order to find sustainable solutions that serve the needs of the world population as a whole, in line with a feminist agency approach. A feminist reorientation of climate policy structures, such as the COP, can initiate this change.

In this panel discussion, we seek for answers to the following questions: 

1. Why is representation of women and marginalized groups important in dialogue and negotiation formats on climate issues?
2. What structural barriers do women and marginalized groups face in accessing these formats?
3. Which consequences does this underrepresentation of women have for the development of instruments to combat climate change?

In this event, we are pleased to welcome our guests Marie Christina Kolo coordinator and spokesperson of the Gender and Climate Justice National Coalition of Madagascar and Irene and Vivas Lalinde – Feminist Climate Ambassador at COP26 in Glasgow.

Marie Christina Kolo is the eco-feminist founder of Grenn’N’Kool NGO and co-founder of the Indian Ocean Climate Ntework. She was one of the first Malagasy Youth delegates included in international climate negotiations within the national delegation of Madagascar at COP21. In 2021, she became the coordinator and spokesperson of the Gender and Climate Justice national coalition of Madagascar. Marie Christina was part of the WEDO delegation at COP26 as part of the Women and Gender Constituency to raise demands and voices of folks in their regions and communities.

Irene Vivas Lalinde is a feminist and climate activist who has been involved in the Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) and Juventud Verde (the youth wing of the Spanish Green Party) since 2016. She is a former GEF Feminist Climate Ambassador. As a COP26 observer, she will share the frustrations and structural barriers that activists confront.

If you would like to join our online Tea Time via Zoom, please sign up below. We will send you the Zoom link shortly before the start of the event. We are looking forward to an engaging and interesting discussion and hope to see many of you there!

The event is organised by the Polis180 programs Gender and International Politics and Climate and Energy. Together, they want to combine their two focal points in this event to highlight the importance of promoting the role of women in international climate negotiations. If you have any questions, please write to Giulia Kalt.