Deadline: 21-Jul-24

Together with the Women and Gender Constituency (WGC), WECF International is pleased to announce that the call for entries for the annual Gender Just Climate Solutions award is now open!

In 2015, the WGC launched its first "Gender Fair Climate Solutions Award". These awards aim to showcase real solutions for a fairer, more equal and healthier planet. Previously recognised initiatives include energy cooperatives owned and operated by women, work to defend women's land ownership rights, reforestation led by ethnic women based on strengthening the honey value chain, or gender-sensitive water technologies.

The Gender Just Climate Solutions Awards are given each year to community groups and non-governmental organisations that combat the climate emergency while promoting gender equality. These solutions are leading community solutions and climate actions that change the system and bring multiple social and environmental improvements. They contribute to increasing the ambition of reaching the 1.5 degrees target by 2030.

Three winners are selected by a diverse group of WGC jury members, following an open and transparent process, and are announced during an official high-level ceremony at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP).

Categories

• The winning solutions are presented in three different project categories:
  • Technical - gender-sensitive climate solutions centred on technologies, i.e. water, RE, food production or processing, digitalisation, waste reduction, etc.
  • Non-technical - gender-sensitive climate solutions centred on behavioural change, mutual learning, skills sharing, capacity building, etc.
  • Transformational - gender-sensitive climate solutions, centred on the approach to governance, institutional/social change, etc.

Information on financing

• Each winner receives a cash prize of €5,000, an opportunity to attend COP29, which will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan, with travel fully covered, and to take part in the WECF's long-term mentoring programme that supports them in strengthening and expanding their leading solutions. Up to 20 nominated projects are presented in the Awards publication, on online platforms and at the Awards Ceremony during the COP.

Election criteria

• All types of grassroots, women-led and gender equality organisations and activist groups working on climate change issues from around the world are encouraged to apply. Only non-governmental initiatives are eligible (local or national government initiatives cannot be considered). The project/initiative must have been completed or operational for at least one year. The initiative must fall into one of the 3 categories of award-winning projects.
• They strongly encourage grassroots, women-led and LGBTQI+ organisations from the Global South and the Global East to apply.

Criteria

• The initiatives will be judged against the following criteria designed to measure contributions to gender equality, resilience and sustainability. Ideally, the winning projects will work across all the main outcome areas, although the organisers note that not all projects will be in a position/stage to meet each and every one of the criteria. Due to existing inequalities and the lack of resources available globally, priority will be given to women and gender non-conforming led initiatives, recognising that programmes do not necessarily need to be led by women to be gender-just.
  • Results Area 1: Women's rights and gender equality
    • Provides equal access to benefits for women, men, gender non-conforming and young people
    • It aims to alleviate and/or not add to women's workload (e.g. through additional management of natural resources or uncompensated care responsibilities).
    • Empowers women through better mobility/accessibility, increased livelihood security, increased food security, improved health, access to clean water, etc. (as many benefits as possible)
    • It promotes democratic rights and women's participation, guaranteeing decision-making by women, men, women's groups, cooperatives and local communities.
  • Results Area 2: Climate Resilience
    • Locally led and/or locally driven (decentralised and appropriate)
    • Guarantees self-sufficiency and low consumption of resources (safe, accessible and sustainable)
    • Contributes to climate change mitigation, emissions reduction and/or climate adaptation (the project is sustainable)
  • Results Area 3: Expansion and transfer
    • The results can be shared, disseminated and amplified (replicable elsewhere, not just benefiting one individual).
    • It shows interconnections with cross-cutting issues such as (including but not limited to) peacebuilding, natural resource management, food security and/or health, water and sanitation.

For more information, visit WECF International .