September 23, 2021

We Can’t Solve the Climate Crisis Without Gender Equality. We’ll Prove It To You.

1 hour 6 minutes

Take a look at many of the spaces where climate-related decisions are being made — from government to business to media — and you'll notice a numbers problem. Despite being roughly half the people on the planet, women rarely have equal representation in critical climate decision-making spaces. This isn’t just bad for women — it’s bad for everyone. This week, How To Save A Planet co-host Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson teams up with A Matter Of Degrees co-host Dr. Katharine Wilkinson for a deep dive into the data to show how gender inequality in climate leadership can not only deepen the harmful impacts of climate change but can also make it harder, if not impossible, to make urgently needed policy changes. We’ll also speak with someone who has seen firsthand how, when women do lead on climate, it can transform an entire nation.

Guests: Christina Ergas, Anne Karpf, and Wanjira Mathai

Calls to Action

Elevate the work and the threats facing environmental defenders. Normally, we would caution against being a social media activist. But many of these leaders are at risk because of corporate interests and power, and the threats fly under the radar. Amplifying the risks they are facing can actually make a real difference. Global Witness is one organization you can check out to see what risks they are facing and how to draw attention to them, while the news outlet MongaBay has an ongoing series on what they call, "Endangered Environmentalists."

Vote for Women. Or if you are a woman, consider running for office yourself. Dr. Christina Ergas reminded us that support for women climate leaders should extend to the ballot box, to voting for women, especially women of color, in all sorts of races from city councils to state legislatures to Capitol Hill and the White House. If you're considering running for office, there are several groups that want to help you!

Emily's List (one of the oldest organizations focused on helping Democratic women and non-binary people fun for office)

She Should Run (which helps women regardless of political affiliation)

Higher Heights (focused on helping Black Women run for office)

Matriarch (focused on helping progressive women run for office)

She the People (focused on helping women of color run for office)

Run For Something (focused on helping young, diverse, progressive people, regardless of gender, run for office)

Dr. Anne Karpf reminded us to make sure that we’re engaging in collective action – which is far more effective than individual gestures. She recommended campaigns like EarthJustice’s Clean Air campaign, and the #PaidToPollute campaign that’s taking on the British government – the very same government who’ll be hosting COP26 in a couple of months – to get them to stop subsidizing oil and gas production.

Stay informed with the Women's Environmental Development Organization’s Gender Climate Tracker. They even have an app. So if this episode left wanting to know more about the intersection between gender and climate, it's an easy way to have easy access to the latest information on this critical topic.

Check out Christina Ergas’ book Surviving Collapse: Building Community toward Radical Sustainability.

How to Save a Planet is hosted by Alex Blumberg and Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. Our reporting and producing team includes Kendra Pierre-Louis, Rachel Waldholz and Anna Ladd. Our supervising producer is Lauren Silverman. Our editor is Caitlin Kenney. Sound design and mixing by Sam Bair and Peter Leonard with original music from Emma Munger and Peter Leonard.

A Matter of Degrees is hosted by Dr. Katharine Wilkinson and Dr. Leah Stokes. Stephen Lacey is our Executive Editor. Jaime Kaiser and Dalvin Aboagye are our producers. Sean Marquand is our composer and sound engineer.

This episode was fact checked by James Gaines.

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