7 November 2014: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) convened a conference aimed to ensure that: weather and climate services consider the special needs and strengths of women in order to reduce their vulnerability to disasters and climate change; and realize their potential as champions of community resilience.
The ‘Conference on Gender Dimensions of Weather and Climate Services’ also addressed how to attract more female scientists to the fields of meteorology and hydrology. The Conference, which took place in Geneva, Switzerland, from 5-7 November 2014, included: representatives from national meteorological and hydrological services, UN agencies, academic institutions and civil society; national authorities and country-level practitioners; and national and international women’s rights advocates.
Speaking at the event, WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud stated that more must be done to increase gender-sensitive services to help communities cope with long-term climate change and hazards, such as floods and heat waves. UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres urged bringing women’s voices to the “fore of climate change solutions in international delegations, national decision-making and community-level mitigation and adaptation strategies.” She said women are a valuable, but under-utilized, resource.
According to WMO, women in developing countries are often more exposed and vulnerable than men to the risks of extreme weather. It cites the example of the 1991 cyclone disasters that killed 140,000 people in Bangladesh, noting that 90% of the victims were women, and 2008’s Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar, which killed 130,000 people, 61% of which were female. WMO also underlines that following disasters, women are usually the ones behind recovery efforts.
The Conference aimed to raise awareness and showcase good practices and actions to empower both women and men to produce, acquire and use climate and weather-related services. Specific sessions were held on: agriculture and food security; water resources management; public health; disaster risk reduction (DRR); and careers in weather, climate and water, which examined how to attract and promote more female scientists. Speaking on the latter issue, Agnes Kijazi, National Meteorological Service, Tanzania, said women are discouraged from choosing scientific studies in Africa, and said young girls must be encouraged to pursue the sciences.
Conference outcomes include: a better understanding of gender-specific needs related to weather and climate services for resilience, including through the collection of gender-disaggregated data; commitments in the provision and use of such services; and enhancing investments to address gender-specific needs in weather and climate services.
Outcomes also included a conference statement and recommendations to: facilitate the incorporation of gender aspects into WMO work, as well as national meteorological and hydrological services; contribute to the Beijing+20 review, the post-2015 DRR framework and the post-2015 development agenda; help national meteorological and hydrological services develop more gender-sensitive services and forecasts; and inform the implementation of the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS). [Conference Website] [WMO Press Release] [UN Press Release] [UN Blog] [UNESCO Press Release] [WMO Press Release, 17 November 2014]