Center Staging Women’s Leadership in Climate Resilient/Sustainable Development

This 6-hour session built upon the reality that the women’s movement has been a driving force in the environmental and sustainable development movement since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. The opening dialogue featured a range of feminist activists who critically examined current frameworks of sustainability and climate change adaptation, reviewing Rio Plus 20, the environment, green economy and also sharing a gendered view of adaptation, mitigation and food sovereignty issues. Designed to stimulate new partnerships among women’s groups, the session then turned to a key, often missing element — why and how to incorporate grassroots community based women’s groups – who are first responders and strategic innovators – as a central constituency in framing priorities and solutions moving forward. After the case was made in sessions 1 & 2 for how the women’s movement can build on its strengths and address inclusive, representational challenges, the 3rd and & 4th sessions concentrated on how we can inclusively frame issues, alternative policies and programs and build multi-stakeholder coalitions from the bottom up to advance them.

Facilitated in an interactive format by a team of professional and grassroots sustainable development activists, the different modules covered emerging global policy trends along with women’s local and national initiatives through which grassroots women are negotiating their leadership as well as the survival and well being of their families and communities. Session participants heard from and joined a dialogue with diverse activists affiliated with GROOTS International, DAWN, the Indigenous People’s Forum, Huairou Commission, GCAP Feminist Task Force in a session discussion.

Audio files, videos as well as power point presentations illustrating the issues raised in the in-depth session “Center Staging Women’s Leadership in Climate Resilient/Sustainable Development” at the 2012 AWID Forum are included below.

Audio Files

Green Economy by Anita Nayar and Indigenous Women Issues by Vicki Tauli-Corpuz

Grassroots Women Organizations by Rosa Lizarde

Videos

Power Point Presentations

• Women’s Tribunals on Gender and Climate Justice: Women Mobilizing by Rosa Lizarde (FEMINIST TASK FORCE)
• Women’s Groups Lead Food Security & Build Resilience by Godavari Dange, Sakhi Federation, Swayam Shikshan Prayog – India and Groots International & Huairou Commission
• Climate Change Challenge by Joyce Nangobi, Director – Slum Women’s Initiative for Development, Uganda
• Women’s Networks drive the demand for Pro-Poor Disaster Resilience by the Community Practitioners Platform for Resilience