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The lack of gender equality forces women to bear the consequences and negative impacts of global warming in a greater extent. Due to their traditional roles as caregivers and main providers of food and fuel in communities and families, women are more vulnerable than men in situations of draught or flooding. The Paris Agreement emphasized the global need of further empowerment of women, which become a major enabler for women to use their essential roles and voices in local communities. Furthermore, female policy makers have taken to the international stage to advocate this cause as well. The TIME magazine put together a list of 15 profiles of women, who are fighting in the frontline against climate change.

Rachel Kyte, Chief Executive Officer of Sustainable Energy for All, and Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, is working on possible ways to transition away from fossil fuels. Her role was essential in the U.N. Climate Change Summit to push countries and companies to strengthen their commitments to accelerate energy transition. Until 2015, she worked as the head of the World Bank’s climate program and led the negotiations that resulted in the Paris Agreement. Ms. Kyte developed strategies to allocate financial resources to developing countries that are willing to address climate change, but have shortage of resources.

Christiana Figueres was appointed to be the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC in 2010, after being the head of a climate-change nonprofit for eight years, the body, which led the international climate-change negotiations. After the UNFCCC failed to reach an agreement at the 2009 Copenhagen summit, Ms. Figueres successfully intermediated between world leaders to reach the Paris Agreement in 2015 as well successfully shedding light on the gender dimension of climate change.

Greta Thunberg urged action against climate change by organizing a school climate strike movement in front of the Swedish Parliament, while sacrificing her own school-time and inspiring young people all around the globe to become a force for change. In addition to the weekly school strikes that were named “Fridays for Future”, she advocates for immediate action, such as the reduction of carbon footprint, including giving up air travel and eating meat. One of her latest acts was to take on a 15-day zero-carbon emission boat trip in late August 2019 across the Atlantic to New York.

You can read more inspiring stories under the following link:  https://time.com/5669038/women-climate-change-leaders/#rachel-kyte