This week 200 world leaders will meet in Glasgow for COP26, a United Nations summit on tackling climate change. The past decade was the warmest on record. It’s clear that urgent action is needed.
Often women are primary carers and providers of food and fuel for their families. Global warming increases extreme weather like flooding or drought. On top of this, land is being cleared to make way for oil pipelines and large agribusiness. This puts a strain on women and their dependents.
UN figures indicate that 80% of people displaced by climate change are women. Reports of physical and sexual violence against women and girls in displacement camps are commonplace also.
Successive climate change-fueled disasters reveal that women and children are 14 times more likely to die in a disaster than men.
The world’s reliance on fossil fuel is causing destruction and misery in Uganda. Powerful corporations are buying up land to lay oil pipelines and roads. They’re clearing forests for mining and the production of cash crops. These big businesses are often backed by local governments motivated by foreign investment, rather than protecting local communities or natural resources.
Three-quarters of women rely on agriculture for their livelihoods in Uganda. By farming their own land or working someone else's, women earn an income and feed their families. As land is taken, women are violently evicted and left without a home or a livelihood. Land deeds are typically in men’s names, leaving thousands of women displaced.
Over the last three years, Womankind has been supporting ecofeminist organisations National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE) and National Association for Women's Action in Development (NAWAD). Ecofeminism draws links between violence against nature and violence against women, seeing the health and wellbeing of both as intertwined.
Across a three-year project, NAPE and NAWAD have supported a growing movement of eco-feminists in Uganda. They've supported women to claim their rightful compensation, strengthen their understanding of their land rights, rebuild their livelihoods through new skills and have a stronger voice in local decision-making. 7,000 local women have accessed justice after evictions in four districts of rural Uganda.
Ahead of COP26, we're calling on world leaders to set aside greed and put our planet first before it is too late!
Let them know the world is watching by joining a local climate group or protest in your area. Search the COP26 interactive map here.
With solidarity,
Hannah Little
Supporter Care Team Womankind Worldwide
Image caption: Members of Lacan Kwite Women’s Group in Nwoya, Uganda which was brought together as part of Womankind's project with NAPE and NAWAD. A group of 40 women have bonded and developed friendships that have supported them in their struggle with forced evictions from their land. They also farm, keep bees, and save together.
