NGOs call for gender and racial parity at COP30 – 03/08/2024 – Environment

Dozens of organizations linked to environmental and social issues launched a manifesto this Friday (8), Women’s Day, calling for COP30, the UN climate conference that should take place in Belém in 2025, to have gender, race and class.

The document was organized by the Climate Observatory, a network that brings together more than one hundred non-governmental entities, and had more than 50 signatory NGOs.

The text asks that the diversity of participants be respected both during the organization of the event in Pará and during negotiations. The document will be delivered by the NGOs to the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Environment and Climate Change and Racial Equality.

“We demand that government delegations to COP30 be assembled in an equitable manner and adopt concrete measures to ensure representation of women at all levels of participation, considering the criteria of race, ethnicity, generation, gender identity and sexual orientation in spaces decision”, he says.

The organizations’ demonstration echoes a historical criticism regarding gender and racial disparity in climate negotiation spaces.

In January, Azerbaijan, host of this year’s COP, announced an organizing committee for the summit composed only of men. After criticism, the team was expanded and some women were included.

“After three COPs hosted by countries where being a woman is already challenging — Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan —, the Brazilian government will have the opportunity to build history in a genuinely democratic way. Starting with the Brazilian delegation and extending to the negotiations , increasingly urgent for comprehensive and effective responses”, says Isvilaine Silva, member of the gender and climate justice working group at the Climate Observatory, in a statement.

The NGO document also calls for the inclusion of gender perspectives in climate policies, investments in training programs, and equal opportunities, with the elimination of barriers that prevent women from accessing resources.

In addition to these points, it places transparency in government actions in relation to promoting parity and combating climate-related gender-based violence as essential conditions.

Climate change disproportionately impacts women, who are more exposed to migration, violence, school dropout and loss of income as a result of extreme events.

“We believe that full inclusion and equal participation of women, men and other gender identities is essential for building a resilient and sustainable future for our planet,” states the manifesto.