Hi all! Zuza Bohley from United Nations Assoc of Boulder County sent this to share with Business and Professional Woman of Colorado and beyong! THINK ABOUT IT FOLKS:

Women are often dis-proportionatetly affected by climate change – and are the keys to climate action.  We want to recognize and empower women as impactful change makers for the environment and health of our planet.

Women bear severe gender impacts of climate change but systematically lack equal representation in decision making. That is a problem.^[1]

The Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security ^[2] recently released a new study that examines climate change as a human rights imperative, global security threat and a pervasive strain on economic stability. The report highlights how women bear severe gendered impacts of climate change – including adverse health, economic, social and physical consequences – but systematically lack equal representation in decision-making.

Structural and cultural disparities make women disproportionately vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Women are more likely than men to die during and in the aftermath of natural disasters and climate change-related events. For the women who survive, many often lack legal assets and rights to property, which leaves them few resources with which to rebuild their lives. As women travel greater distances to collect essential resources like water, firewood and food to support their families, they are often threatened and abused.

Climate change has also contributed to high levels of displacement and forced migration due to environmental degradation and natural disasters. While migration can be a lifesaving tool for adaptation to climate change, forced migration often perpetuates and worsens the inequalities that women face. When male family members migrate, female members are often left to perform traditional roles as caregivers, in addition to becoming the sole breadwinner. When women must migrate, their economic and physical security is compromised, often leaving them to become targets for human traffickers and smugglers.

Women are more likely to believe in the science of global warming and are more concerned with health and safety issues. They are also more likely to recycle and be more environmentally conscious.

In the industrial world, women are making everyday decisions for their household: what to buy and what to replace. Women have a central role in decision making when it comes to consumption and waste. They decide which brand of detergent, cereal what grocery store and which staples are consumed by their families. Beyond that they are the guardians of what get’s replaced or tossed out. Therefore, women are big stake holders in the opportunity to take impactful action on Climate Change.

Ecocycle in Boulder, Colorado says, "Zero Waste practice is one of the quickest and easiest ways to fight climate change and build healthy communities."

90% of all our trash is recyclable or compostable. Currently, Boulder only recycles and reuses 39% of its waste.

Rethinking consumption and waste, we can save up to 42% of all greenhouse gases (from landfills) focusing on One single action. Thus, we propose that all BoCoWoCo partners agree to become leaders by example: pledging to advance Zero Waste.

This can manifest in having Zero waste events and educating the greater public (as well as our constituencies) about how to become a more conscious consumer, choosing waste minimizing options (sharing resources with others, reusable dishes and silver wear, recycled products, buying in bulk, Meatless Mondays, etc).

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^[1] The Guardian, Dec. 1, 2015: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/dec/01/women-victims-climate-change keys-climate-action

^[2] https://giwps.georgetown.edu/sites/giwps/files/Women%20and%20Climate%20Change.pdf