Attending the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, was an immense privilege and learning opportunity. My experience began when I boarded the plane and sat next to two farmers representing La Via Campesina at COP27. As Dilora, Xavier, and I settled into the 12-hour flight, we discussed the challenges of farming with limited government support and market access. We continued these discussions in Sharm El Sheikh, where I asked Dilora about her hopes and concerns for the conference. She said, “I come as a woman, mother, and farmer to bring our message of food sovereignty, agroecology, and profound and substantial change. Women are constantly misrepresented, and this is an enormous challenge that we are battling. Our biggest challenge is that our voices are not heard and we want to demonstrate the path towards real change.” Dilora was one of many people who felt the absence of women’s issues from the negotiations.
The Research and Independent Non-Governmental Organizations (RINGO) constituency distributed an article on Gender Day outlining the parties’ inability to produce a comprehensive midterm review of the Gender Action Plan. RINGO deemed the proposals for revised language as “weak, vague, and lacking substance” for real change. The negotiations thus failed to meet the needs of indigenous and rural women facing rising levels of environmental violence and discrimination. Gender equality should not be relegated to a single day at COP27 or limited to side events. The spatial disconnect between pavilions, Green Zone exhibits, and negotiations lead me to question whether COP27 is the best platform to further gender equality and climate action. Future climate work must integrate both Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and women’s perspectives throughout the decision-making processes without tokenizing them.
However, I still found hope in the diversity of attendees dedicated to gender justice. Many of them gathered daily at the Women and Gender Constituency meetings to discuss conference proceedings. These meetings created a platform for attendees to receive conference updates and build community across spatial boundaries. I also found hope in the efforts to place young women at the forefront of climate activism and entrepreneurship. I was greatly inspired by Tara Chklovski, the Founder and CEO of Technovation. Technovation has empowered 150,000 young women to pursue entrepreneurship and innovation for the last fifteen years. During a workshop at the Climate Justice Pavilion, Chklovski guided participants through the Technovation Girls Curriculum. Participants gained the skills to address climate justice challenges in their community through the mobile app-building process. Learning from leaders such as Chklovski was a powerful reminder that solutions for the climate crisis require an intergenerational approach combining local knowledge and technical innovation.