A group of female leaders from more than 35 countries will meet at the first International Women’s Earth and Climate Summit in New York this month to draft a “Women’s Climate Action Agenda.”
On the weekend of Sept. 20, “business leaders, former heads of state, scientists, government officials, indigenous leaders, activists, teachers, community organizers and culture shapers” will participate in drafting the summit’s first agenda, according to a press release.
Participants will include Christiana Figueres, executive secretary to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; Marina Silva, former Brazilian minister of environment; Mary Robinson, former Irish president; Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jody Williams; marine biologist Sylvia Earle; May Boeve, 350.org executive director; environmental activist Vandana Shiva from India; and leaders from the Global Gender Climate Alliance, U.N. Women, Women’s Environment and Development Organization, 1 Million Women, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and other grass-roots organizations, the release stated.
“We are bringing women leaders together at this crucial time in history because we know that women are uniquely positioned to implement the critical sustainability solutions needed to address the world’s pressing climate challenges,” said Osprey Orielle Lake, co-founder of the summit.
“Nature will not wait while politicians debate,” she added. “Women around the world are facing the impacts of a changing climate every day, and we are coming together to say “enough is enough” and it is time for action that addresses the roots of this crisis and fosters just solutions.”
Summit co-founder Sally Ranney said rising temperatures will create havoc on a growing population.
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“Actions to date are simply not equivalent to the escalating urgency of the climate crisis. We are headed toward a [7.2 degrees Fahrenheit] rise in global temperature over the next decades that will create unprecedented havoc for our children, grandchildren and future generations. Women are no longer willing to stand by when so much is at stake,” she said.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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