In honour of International Women's Day, and because we are a female-led company vested in sustainability, we want to drive awareness of women currently leading the battle against climate change. Women around the world have carried a disproportionate burden of the climate crises, largely due to gender inequality.
"In many parts of the world, women hold traditional roles as the primary caregivers in families and communities, and, as the main providers of food and fuel, are more vulnerable when flooding and drought occur; the U.N. estimates 80% of those who have been displaced by climate change are women" (2021, Sharma).
Being on the front-line of climate change, women are uniquely positioned to be agents of change and provide a vital perspective on how to mitigate and adapt to climate change. This reality was formally recognized in the U.N. Paris Agreement (2015), which included the global need to empower women in climate decision-making.
Today, across the world, from local communities to corporate boardrooms, women are using their voices to take action. Here are a few of the many inspirational women that are leading the fight against climate change today:
Jordyn Burnouf, is Advisor to the Vice President of the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan, and a member of the Black Lake First Nation. She was raised in a community where there is heavy resource extraction, which influenced her desire to bring an Indigenous worldview to the energy sector. Jordyn is a 20/20 Indigenous Clean Energy Catalyst and part of "Bringing it Home", a national initiative, to address the housing and energy needs of Indigenous communities in Canada.
Christiana Figueres, co-author of "The Future We Choose: The Stubborn Optimist's Guide to Climate Crisis", is a Costa Rican diplomat who has led national, international, and multilateral policy negotiations. Figueres successfully steered world leaders to reach the Paris Agreement in 2015, and along with many other women involved in the negotiations, was successful in driving awareness for gender discrimination of climate change. She is the founder of the Global Optimism Group, a purpose driven enterprise that exists to precipitate a transformation from pessimism to optimism as a method of creating social and environmental change.
Tessa Khan is an environmental lawyer, co-founder and is co-director of the Climate Litigation Network, which supports legal cases related to climate change mitigation and climate justice. Through the organization, she has successfully helped groups sue their own governments. It handles cases around the world, including Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, and South Korea. Khan has argued that national governments have knowingly profited from raising carbon dioxide levels and caused damage to the environment.
Sunita Narain is a Delhi-based environmentalist and activist-author. She is currently the Director General of Center for Science and Environment (CSE) and edits the magazine Down To Earth. She works to influence global and national policies, through her research and believes that sustainable growth must be affordable, inclusive, and equitable.
Cristina Mittermeier, Co-Founder of SeaLegacy, is a world renowned photographer, conservationist, speaker and writer. Through her photography, Cristina tells compelling stories about nature and climate change. SeaLegacy is a fundraising platform that sponsors scientific expeditions, research and visual storytelling to engage with the public and help protect sensitive environments.
Bridge Sustainability works with companies to implement sustainable solutions to their toughest problems including inequality. One way to help combat gender inequality in the workplace is to leverage the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The SDGs are designed for business and governments to implement into their operations with the aim of making the world a better place by 2030. SDG #10 Reduced Inequalities, calls for reducing inequalities in income as well as those based on age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
Our team can help your company implement the SDGs that are of most material impact to your organization. Together, we can achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
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