On 18-20 February, 2013 WOCAN hosted a Global Meeting of the Women’s Leadership Circles (WLCs) in Nairobi, Kenya. Women’s Leadership Circles, organized by WOCAN at the national level, provide a space where women farmers and policy makers meet regularly, as an activity of the Network of Women Leaders in Agriculture. In addition, the WOCAN-hosted breakfast meeting for the Network of Women Ministers and Leaders for Environment (NWMLE) provided a unique opportunity for the women farmers and decision makers attending this meeting from Nepal, South Africa, the Maldives and Kenya to share their issues with the NWMLE members and to discuss points that may be raised in the UNEP Governing Council meetings. The added value in these discussions was to cross the environment-agriculture divide. As the Network of Women Leaders in Agriculture was initially inspired by the NWMLE, it has long been our desire to bring about a space where members of the two networks could meet.
The meeting dovetailed with a meeting on 17 February of the High Level Forum on Gender and the Network of Women Ministers and Leaders for Environment (NWMLE), sponsored by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). All WLC participants were invited to and attended this forum. Furthermore, WOCAN organized a breakfast meeting for the members of the NWMLE and other high level officials attending the UNEP Governing Council meeting, on 19 February.
The report includes the following events:
1. The High Level Forum on Gender and the Network of Women Ministers and Leaders for Environment and UNEP (17 February)
2. The WLC Meeting (18-20 February)
3. The breakfast meeting with the Network of Women Ministers and Leaders for Environment (19 February).
