Hello everyone,

Please find here the recording of the Women’s Leadership in SIDS Chemicals and Waste Management.

Thanks again for the amazing discussion and questions and looking forward to keep in touch here on the Community!

To all the new members: welcome to the ISLANDS Gender Equality community!!

Thanks for participating to the webinar yesterday, I was very touched by the inspiring experiences that were shared.

The recording will be available soon but in the meantime, I would like to invite you all to present yourself to the community so that we can build and maintain collaboration and momentum on this important topic together.

If you want, you can use this simple format:

      Name ?:
      Country ?:
      Organization ?:
      Your experience on gender equality ?:

If you feel like it, you can also share a picture of you!

I'll start:

?: Hi Everyone! I am Clara ? and I come from Italy! I am honoured to be working at ? ISLANDS / GGKP. ? I have a long lasting interest in gender equality: I graduated from my master with a dissertation on why gender equality is key for effective climate change adaptation policies and, at GGKP, I coordinated the Gender Expert Group where we worked on gender just transition, especially in the energy sector. On a personal level, although I come from a "developed" country and subsequently I enjoy many privileges, I experience gender inequality every single day. If it is not made it clear by the political and economic system I am in, it lures into my mind with thoughts such as "you are not enough" "you should stay silent" etc.

This must end. Women are 50% of the world population and we deserve space and recognition. It is not easy - as we all know - but that's why we need to work together, support and inspire each other, as we did yesterday, and never stop.

The tide has to turn on gender equality as well and I hope you'll join me and ISLANDS on this journey.

P.s. Attached a picture of my graduation with my two best friends. One works as social anthropologist and one as gender expert at the EBRD. We would have never made it without each other support :)

Promoting women participation in the Pacific energy sector

As of today, the Pacific region heavily relies on petroleum as main energy resource. This is in contradiction with Pacific countries climate pledges and plans and poses serious environmental and health consequences. Hence, shifting toward a more sustainable energy provision is key.

Also, the energy transition brings many opportunity for gender equality. In fact, ensuring women’s contributions in traditionally male-dominated sectors is a matter of equality, but it also brings positive economic and social outcomes.

Glad to see this kind of initiatives happening!

Informal waste pickers play a fundamental parts in the waste management of many countries across the globe, including SIDS.

However, with hazardous materials such as mercury, led, plastics or e-waste ending up in landfills, dumps may pose a serious health threat to those working on it or living nearby.

The video and article below tell the story of the Dandora rubbish dump in Nairobi, an informal workplace to about 10,000 women, children and a few men who scavenge through the piles of rubbish daily - putting their health at risk.

What stories from your countries? How could recycling be improved?

"Trini woman elected as UN’s Stockholm Convention President:
she's the first Caribbean national to receive the honour"

Huge congrats Keima Gardiner and good luck!

"I know that Pacific women have a key role to play in your recovery, and in your economic development.
Societies work better, economies work better, communities work better, when we remove barriers to the participation of women and girls, when all have an equal place in national life.
As the countries of the Pacific continue to chart a course to recovery from the challenges of COVID, we know that women and girls – their status, their participation, their education, their safety – will be a vital part of that recovery.
We will always seek to work in partnership with our Pacific Family."

-Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Government of Australia
Penny Wong - Senator for SA