by Mimi Melles of the Time is Now Campaign and member of COP18 Youth Gender Working Group. Originally posted on Amplify.
Doha, Qatar (December 1, 2012)– Yesterday, we, the youth gender working group organized an action to push for the passage of a draft decision that would make monumental steps forward in ensuring gender-sensitive climate change policies and increased participation of women in United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations.
In our action, we created a circle of alternating men and women, balancing cups of water symbolizing healthy globes. The slogan for the action was: “GENDER BALANCE: The world is in ALL of our hands.”
During the session, Member States shared positive remarks towards pushing forward this draft for submission to the Subsidiary Body of Implementation by closing time (in 24 hours). Unfortunately, because Member States were looking at the document for the first time (and needed to further discuss with fellow delegates), no amendments were made and the co-chairs proposed to finalize the text the next day. Soon after the session closed, our working group held an action in the halls of the Convention Center.
The action was targeted to Member States to essentially approve a draft decision titled, « Promoting gender equality and improving the particiaption of women in UNFCCC negotiations and in the representation of Parties in bodies established pursuant to the Convention or the Kyoto Protocol. »
The draft would also commit Member States to increasing women’s participation in UNFCCC official constituted bodies and to adopting climate policies which are gender-sensitive and gender-responsive. More importantly, issues of gender and climate change would be added to the agenda of the COP—a monumental step forward in the history of climate change and human rights.
Throughout the week, we, members of the YOUNGO gender working group, have been urging negotiators and key stakeholders to adopt the draft decision. The youth action was strategized was our final push to raise awareness and urgency about the draft decision before the SBI closes. As a result of our action, we were covered on the UNFCCC website, Peninsula and the Gulf times (both major local newspapers).
Andreas, one of the action co-organizers from Sweden, said gender equality within UNFCCC processes and policies is an important issue, because “women are, and are likely to continue to be, disproportionately impacted by climate changes. Females voices must be represented equally during negotiations and policies must address the gender-based inequalities of our society.”
On my last day at the COP meeting, I’m happy to say that the draft was approved and submitted to the SBI for implementation. This draft is a significant step forward in Advocates’ vision to ensure that reproductive health and rights is prioritized in the negotiations. Once we can establish gender as an agenda item in future COP meetings, we can make room for issues that affect the livelihoods of communities most affected, such as access to youth-friendly, comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information and services.
