International Women’s Day (IWD) is observed on March 8th each year. It is a day dedicated to celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women across the globe.
“Water in our region – where 98% consists of desert – means much more than anywhere else. It is an interesting subject, with an interesting expert community – and it is also the subject of interest to various players. My female ancestors lived under very hard pressure, but they were leaders, and they passed this gen on to me”, says Guljamal Nurmuhamedova, Regional Coordinator for GWP Central Asia and Caucasus (CACENA). In celebration of International Women's Day (IWD2020) she shares the story of the females in her family, which shaped her own destiny: “I am part of my family”.
In the lead-up to International Women’s Day 2020 (8 March), the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency Sida has kicked off what they refer to as a super-year for gender equality. This was announced at a seminar on 5 March at the Sida headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, under the theme “Generation Equality: Adolescents, Gender Equality and SRHR”.
Michèle Okala coordinates the work of RECOJAC – the Network of Water and Climate Organisations of Central African Youth. She is one of the founding members and she is also in charge of youth issues for GWP Central Africa. Michèle has been volunteering for over 8 years, and she shares some insights to what she has learned – and what she hopes to leave as her legacy: “I created RECOJAC for the generation that will come after me. I am only laying the foundation.”
Africa Climate Week 2020 was set to place on 20-24 April in Kampala, Uganda, however, in light of the Coronavirus crisis, the event has been postponed - a new date is yet to be announced. The theme remains “Partnering for transformation towards a low-carbon climate resilient and prosperous Africa: managing risks, seizing opportunities.”
“Connection leads to protection because when you feel connected to something, you feel a responsibility to care for and protect it,” says Stephanie Woodworth as she reflects on her experiences over the past few years – from winning the 2016-2017 edition of the Great Waters Challenge, to working on a number of water-related youth projects and finding her motivation to reach her goal of connecting people to water, especially the younger generation.
The National Water Partnerships of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkmenistan, under the sponsorship of the Embassy of Canada to Turkey and the support of GWP CACENA, are implementing a project (“Strengthening the capacity of women representatives of Turkmen and Azerbaijani non-governmental organizations in the fields of natural resource management & climate change adaptation through training activities and knowledge sharing with Georgian civil society”) aiming to increase women activity in environmental protection.
The International Symposium on “Water and Culture: Learning from Water Heritage to Innovate Regional Development” was held on 3 February in Tokyo, Japan. The aim was to achieve a deeper understanding of relations between people and water by visiting water heritage around the world. About 260 people from 43 countries participated, among those GWP Chair Howard Bamsey and GWP Technical Committee Chair Jerome Delli Priscoli. Dr. Delli Priscoli shared reflections from the U.S. experience on water resources.
