Advocate for women's rights
Earth Points60 
EaseMedium
Summary
Population growth is straining our planet's resources. To help, support women's rights by advocating for education, family planning, and women in leadership roles. Plus it is the right and fair thing to do.
Description
What do women's rights have to do with climate change and sustainability? Naturally, as part of a free and fair society, it should be an essential right that everyone has access to high-quality education and voluntary family planning. They produce a wide range of immediate advantages for things like prosperity, health, well-being, and equality. Plus, it is the right thing to do. A bonus knock-on effect is reduced pollution because of slower population growth.
We share this planet with 8 billion or so other people. In the last 100 years, the population has quintupled, yet the planet and its resources are the same. Yes, we can use our limited resources in smarter, more efficient ways to cope with that, but having fewer people consuming stuff makes it easier to manage.
The negative impacts of climate change will also fall harder on women because of gender imbalances in many parts of the world. Advocating for women's rights is crucial in fighting for climate justice. Highlighting gender inequalities and improving access to education, healthcare, and family planning has a positive impact on reducing emissions and environmental degradation.
We share this planet with 8 billion or so other people. In the last 100 years, the population has quintupled, yet the planet and its resources are the same. Yes, we can use our limited resources in smarter, more efficient ways to cope with that, but having fewer people consuming stuff makes it easier to manage.
The negative impacts of climate change will also fall harder on women because of gender imbalances in many parts of the world. Advocating for women's rights is crucial in fighting for climate justice. Highlighting gender inequalities and improving access to education, healthcare, and family planning has a positive impact on reducing emissions and environmental degradation.
Tips
Here are three key ways to advocate for women's rights in relation to the climate emergency:
• Support the education of girls and women. Educating girls and women provides them with more opportunities for upward mobility and more power over their lives. Education also increases women's resilience to the impacts of climate change. You can support the education of girls and women by donating to charities such as CAMFED and by talking to others about why this issue is so important.
• Fight for improved access to family planning. Women should have the freedom and knowledge to decide how they want to live their lives. Some charities you could donate to or volunteer with are Pathfinder, Chase Africa, and Plan International.
• Advocate that women are included in positions of local and national leadership. The meaningful participation of women in leadership ensures their needs are reflected in the policy-making process. Sadly, that is often still not the case around the world.
It has also been shown that countries with a higher proportion of women in government are more likely to ratify international environmental treaties, to create protected areas, and to have better climate change policies.
• Support the education of girls and women. Educating girls and women provides them with more opportunities for upward mobility and more power over their lives. Education also increases women's resilience to the impacts of climate change. You can support the education of girls and women by donating to charities such as CAMFED and by talking to others about why this issue is so important.
• Fight for improved access to family planning. Women should have the freedom and knowledge to decide how they want to live their lives. Some charities you could donate to or volunteer with are Pathfinder, Chase Africa, and Plan International.
• Advocate that women are included in positions of local and national leadership. The meaningful participation of women in leadership ensures their needs are reflected in the policy-making process. Sadly, that is often still not the case around the world.
It has also been shown that countries with a higher proportion of women in government are more likely to ratify international environmental treaties, to create protected areas, and to have better climate change policies.
Additional Resources
Track actions
Want to keep track of the actions you are trying and have already completed? Want to sort by the different actions? Download the free mobile app for easier browsing and a personalized experience.
Photo Credit
Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash