We acknowledge that “gender” has gained recognition and that gender language has been included in the official documents and appears in many projects or side events at the COP17. However, we are concerned that the term, “gender” has been poorly conceptualised in official documents and lacks the critical edge that we have been advocating for. It is used just like the word “green” to greenwash the “brown”. To achieve gender and climate justice, a fundamental transformation in the current global economic system and climate change negotiations has to occur. Central to this is ending the marginalisation of women’s concerns and integrating women fully into these negotiations as key agents in making this transformation happen.
The structure of the current global economic system is based in a combination of an international gendered division of labor, exploitation and domination that excludes women from being represented on an equal basis and in equal numbers as men. However, we want socio-economic development not to be driven by market mechanisms, but to ensure people’s right to define how they understand and envision development, based on their own rights, local experiences, needs and responses, in ways that are sustainable for our planet.
Women cannot accept the mere inclusion of gender in market mechanisms that recognise “differences” of gender roles without changing the exploitative and oppressive power relations in it, nor can we accept the use these “differences” to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of these mechanisms to make more and more profit for big corporations and the very few in power. Our feminist approach to climate, gender and environmental justice confirms our understandings that market mechanisms do not transform the current economic paradigm nor construction of equality and justice between men and women and our relationship to nature.
We also stress the importance of human rights based approach and remind the governments of their obligations under the international human rights framework. In order to ensure women’s human rights, including economic and social rights, the major source of funding should be public. Women’s rights to information, resources and technologies must be ensured. We demand that all adaptation finance is provided as grants to avoid burdening indebted developing countries and poor people with debts. Moreover, our experiences of large-scale projects funded by international financial institutions, lead us to reject the proposals that the World Bank takes a central role in administering the climate change financing mechanisms.
We propose that all stakeholders work together towards a new paradigm that is based on realisation of human rights of all, men and women, particularly poor, marginalisd women and indigenous peoples to promote a sustainable partnership with – not domination of – nature and a people-centred economic system.
This was stated at:
Climate Justice Now! Press Conference, Kosi Palm room, Tuesday 6 December, 13:30-14:00
The dominance of “the 1%” corporate elite over “the 99%” of the people is being challenged around the world. These same tensions and dynamics are at play here at the UNFCCC COP-17, which has been taken over by the interests of corporations. The UNFCCC process is betraying the interests of people globally while providing industry with new opportunities to profit from climate chaos.
Meanwhile, there is great debate in the halls of the ICC about the future of the Clean Development Mechanism, Carbon Markets, REDD+ and the Kyoto Protocol itself. Should these industry-friendly schemes continue or is the process so corrupt and bankrupt that it needs to be eliminated and replaced by truly just and effective climate mitigation strategies? Climate Justice Now! speakers will address these issues from the perspective of the global climate justice movement and present real, community-based solutions.