COP30: There Is No Climate Justice Without Gender Justice.
- Ashley Tamburello
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
By Ashley Tamburello, Head of Impact and Engagement, TreeSisters
In Belém, under the watchful eye of the Amazon, COP30 has drawn to a close. Once again, the world gathers to talk about the health of our planet, yet one in every twenty-five delegates is a fossil fuel lobbyist. It is difficult to take this process seriously when those most responsible for the crisis continue to be welcomed into the room. For many of us, COP remains a strange mix of theatre and bureaucracy, soaked in good intentions but slowed by the same power structures that created the climate emergency in the first place.
And still, women show up. They always do.
Across the pavilions are Indigenous leaders, youth organisers, land defenders, policy experts, mothers, aunties and community organisers. The Women and Gender Constituency is pushing feminist climate justice into every negotiation. Groups such as WEDO, WECAN, SheChangesClimate, Oxfam and CARE International are carrying the message that there is no climate justice without gender justice.
So we begin with gratitude. Gratitude for the women who travelled for days to be here, who left families behind to stand under fluorescent lights and repeat what they have said for decades. Women and girls feel the impacts of a warming world first and most severely, yet they carry many of the solutions that governments continue to overlook.
Climate change is not gender neutral. Around the world, women are:
more likely to lose livelihoods tied to land and natural resources
more likely to face food and water shortages
more vulnerable to climate related gender based violence
more likely to be displaced by climate related disasters
more likely to die during extreme weather events due to unequal access to warnings and safe mobility
At the same time, women are seed keepers, forest guardians, regenerative farmers, healers, water managers and community organisers. Their knowledge systems have supported families and ecosystems through instability for generations. They restore land while feeding families. They share water while protecting rivers. They defend forests while sustaining culture, language and belonging.
This is why gender equity must sit at the centre of climate action. As Diana Acconcia of the European Commission said at COP30:
“Gender equality is not a side issue. It lies at the heart of effective climate action.”
When women are excluded from decision making, the world loses the wisdom and lived experience it most needs.
There is progress at COP30 and it is important to recognise it. More than ninety countries have affirmed that women’s rights belong inside climate policy, and the Belém Gender Action Plan (GAP) seeks to turn these commitments into actionable steps, ensuring gender equity is embedded in finance, adaptation, and mitigation measures. Governments are beginning to accept that climate action is stronger and more effective when women lead.
Yet we remain clear eyed. This is still a moment of possibility rather than genuine structural change. We see attempts to narrow the definition of gender at a time when the world needs broader inclusion. We see efforts to strip gender from climate finance, adaptation, and mitigation texts, as if any of these could ever be neutral. Rhetoric continues to move faster than reality.
TreeSisters joins the global call for more. We want:
Climate finance that truly reaches women at the grassroots
Gender-inclusive definitions that honour the diversity of women’s experiences
Equal representation from village councils to COP presidencies
Policies shaped by those who live closest to the land
Protection for women and land defenders facing serious risks
Leadership from Indigenous and local women guiding restoration, adaptation and just transition efforts
The transformation we need will not come from cosmetic commitments. It will come from shifting power, resources and decision making toward the women who are already leading.
To every feminist, environmental and community led group at COP30, thank you. TreeSisters stands with you in determination and resilience. Women are holding the line once again.
