Day 4 of COP25
Today was Youth Day at COP5! There were some amazing events focused on youth, education and climate action, which will be reported on today's daily recap. However, for EmpoderaClima, the biggest highlight of the day was definitely our very own official UN side event at COP!
Youth Constituency (YOUNGO) Spokescouncil and Youth DayEvery year, different days of the two weeks of COP have a theme, and today (always the Thursday of the first week of the annual UNFCCC conference) was Youth Day! Therefore, EmpoderaClima attended the daily Youth Constituency meeting, also known as YOUNGO, to see what the schedule was for this very important day at COP. Adriana Valenzuela, Focal Point for Education and Youth at the UN Climate Change Secretariat, talked about the important of youth in the beginning of the spokescouncil, which was very inspiring and reassuring. Among many of the daily events, was the Global Youth Video Competition Awards, detailed below.
—> 2019 Global Youth Video Competition
Kiane Assis and Rafael Forsetto were the winners for Category 2 of the competition
This Youth Day, there was a beautiful celebration for the winners of the 2019 Global Youth Video Competition, some amazing young people from Portugal, Brazil and the United States, who did a great job in telling their inspiring stories of climate action in their local communities, and got the opportunity to attend COP25 and receive their prizes hand-in-hand.
For this year's competition, there was one winner for each of the three categories: 1. cities and local action to combat climate change; 2. Nature-based solutions for food and human health; 3. Balancing use of land for people and ecosystem.
Women and Gender Constituency Caucus Meeting
We also attended the WGC daily meeting at COP. The morning began with a beautiful and emotional ceremony to share the experiences of indigenous women in their climate action. The ceremony centered around honoring indigenous women who have been murdered and threatened at the hands of the patriarchal, white supremacist and extractive system. We stand in solidarity with our Indigenous sisters and the other marginalized groups who are suffering the most from the climate crisis.
Official Side Event by EmpoderaClima
“Translating Policy into Action: The Role of Young Women from the Global South in Climate Justice”
Another powerful and moving event, our very own EmpoderaClima hosted its first event. Not bad for our very first year at COP! The event acted as a feminist safe-space where young women shared their victories in climate activism. The official flyer for the event is to the left, along with some photos of the event speakers below. We will have an official UN video of the side event available soon!!
An extremely diverse panel, the discussion really embodied a climate story-telling narrative, something that is often lost in these high-level negotiations. The climate crisis is a social issue, and those who are affected most must be at the centre. Therefore, it is integral that we listen to their voices. At the panel, we learned that indigenous women in the US are 2.5 more likely to be killed than non-indigenous women. This figure is shocking and highlights the violence that indigenous women face every day, and nobody knows about it.
The intersections between rape culture, patriarchy, capitalism and climate change were also explored as a way to fully understand the social consequences of the climate crisis. The language within NDCs were also addressed by the panelists. The majority of countries’ intended NDCs included gender within the context of ‘vulnerability’, and the speakers stated that it is time that we change this narrative. Women, indigenous peoples, trans peoples and gender non-conforming individuals from the Global South have particularly vital knowledge relevant to their lived experience that others do not have. This knowledge-sharing is important, so that when we move forward it can be with inclusivity and diversified knowledge. Leilani, our indigenous speaker from Guam, shared a beautiful quote; “The way we must consider looking forward is as if the past is in front of us”. If we want to truly achieve climate and gender justice, our actions from here on out are vital.
Renata, our Founder, presenting EmpoderaClima to a full house!
Marie Christina Kolo - Madagascar
Leilani Rania Gaiser - Guam
Renata Koch Alvarenga - Brazil
Nouhad Awwad - Lebanon
Isadora Cardoso - Brazil
#ActOnTheGAP
The SBI 51 agenda item 17 - Gender and Climate Change - released its latest draft text today at 10:35 am on the Gender Action Plan (GAP).
The Enhanced Lima work programme on gender and its gender action plan for 2020 is still under discussion, and two very critical paragraphs for the GAP are still inside brackets (meaning that they have not been agreed yet by the Parties, and could be removed at any point). They are:
[Recalling that Parties should, when taking action to address climate change, respect, promote and consider their respective obligations on human rights as well as gender equality]
[Taking into account the imperative of a just transition of the workforce when implementing the gender action plan,]
It is interesting that these paragraphs, currently located in the preamble of the GAP and proposed by the delegation of Mexico, are still a big part of the discussion, considering that language on human rights and gender equality when addressing climate change is already in the Paris Agreement, signed by 196 countries four years ago. This proposal has been under close discussions for the last few days, and the so-called informal informal sessions of the UN System have been in full force between the countries - even as late as 8 pm of tonight, to decide, among other things, if this part of the text stays in brackets or even if it should remain in the text at all!
Visión de Acción Climática de Mujeres Jóvenes: Dos PerspectivasThis thematic Youth Day at COP, EmpoderaClima wasn't the only one to discuss the relation between young women and climate action (thankfully!). This brief talk, co-organized by UNICEF included two young female activists (Catalina Silva, from Chile, and Daphne Cronin, from France) with different perspectives, discussing the same issue: the climate crisis. The event where these young women activists spoke was entirely in Spanish, which was very refreshing to see in the blue zone (the negotiations area) of COP.
Side event – Grassroots Community Solutions - Amplifying the voices of front line communities
This was a side event organized by USCAN (United States Climate Action Network). Andreia Fanzeres, of the Brazilian organization Amazônia Nativa presented about the Juruema basin in Brazil, and we heard from indigenous voices such as Jacob Maurice Johns, of the Backbone Campaign in the US, who made a powerful statement about the privilege all participants of COP25, that have been able to change flight tickets from Chile to Spain to be in Madrid, while many Latin Americans, including indigenous peoples from the Amazon, were not able to be a part of this because of the change.
This is a topic that has not been addressed as much as it should up until now, and EmpoderaClima highlights the importance of considering the Latin American youth that had to give up their golden ticket of going to COP25 because of the venue change.
Day 4 was yet another busy day for the climate negotiations on human rights - still stuck with HR language in Article 6 of the Paris Agreement; we presented more about Art. 6 and its importance on Daily Recap 3. The side events, as always this week, were very interesting and crucial to the discussion of climate justice - and we got to host our own, showcasing amazing female young leaders from all over the Global South, and what their experiences have been like as women and climate advocates. Tomorrow is one of the last full days with EmpoderaClima coverage, and we are excited to continue reporting to you on the overwhelming world of COP25!