Jeannette Gurung and WOCAN Core Associates, Maria Lee, Annabelle Waititu,Wangu Muthia and Sunitha Bisan attended the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11) in Paris. WOCAN organized a side event to discuss Gender and Climate Finance on Dec 7to share perspectives of investors on the benefits of investing in gender equality and women’s empowermentand their approaches to do so, highlight gender policies and mechanisms of the Green Climate Fund and to share a tool to measure outcomes of investments that benefit women (W+ Standard). The session was moderated by Jeannette and the speakers wereJacob Waslander, Green Climate Fund Board Member representing the Climate and Energy Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Netherlands, Bernard Giraud from the Livelihoods Fund, Maria Lee, WOCAN Core Associate, Lorena Aquilar from International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Liane Schalatek from the Heinrich Boll Stiftung North America.
Jeannette was also one of the speakers for the high-level COP21 gender side event hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency of the Government of Liberia in collaboration with IUCN, the Governments of Finland and Peru, ETC/ ENERGIA, and WOCAN on Dec 8. The objectives of this side event are to discuss strategies, results, outcomes and challenges of country-, context- and sector-specific examples; to provide opportunity for governments and stakeholders to discuss the continued implementation of gender-responsive mandates for action on climate change at the UNFCCC and at all levels; and to spotlight government action to implement gender-responsive climate change mitigation, motivating others to follow suit.
WOCAN representatives also actively engaging with the Women’s Major Group to advocate for gender responsive climate negotiation process and agreement.
