The Melbourne plant-based leather business has received the backing from Startmate, The Austin Group, Robyn Denholm’s family office Wollemi Capital Group, and LaunchVic’s Alice Anderson Fund along with strategic angel investors.

‘It’s exciting to see the appetite for climate-tech from Australian investors – the impact of climate change is the most pressing issue of our time, and our world-class tech provides a commercial opportunity for investors wanting to make a positive environmental impact,” Alt. Leather’s founder, Tina Funder tells Women’s Agenda.

Alt. Leather is Australia’s first 100 per cent bio based leather alternative that turns waste and regenerative plants into textiles for use across fashion, footwear, furniture, automotive interiors, etc.

Identifying a gap in the market, Funder first launched a vegan handbag label LOM Australia in 2022 using cactus and apple leather. Now, she’s working to step into the carbon-instensive and petroleum based synthetic leather market with Alt. Leather. 

“I tested many of the bio based alternatives on the market and coudn’t find a suitable material that was petrochemical-free,” says Funder. “Given the current climate, it felt like a significant commercial opportunity with the benefit of a positive environmental outcome.”

Chief Scientific Officer of Alt. Leather, Dr. Tuan Nguyen said Alt. Leather’s use of globally abundant regenerative plant derivatives as well as waste streams makes it a reliable and sustainable material.

“By adopting green chemistry innovation, we have developed patentable material composition technology to produce a leather alternative that is both durable and commercially stable,” said Dr. Nguyen.

During 2023, Alt. Leather’s research team grew from one to four, and made progress on achieving a base material that looks and feels like leather. The team is aiming to become the default choice to traditional leather and eliminate the need for petroleum-based synthetic leathers.

Exceeding their initial target of $750,000, Alt. Leather secured the upper limit investment of $1.1 million at the seed round running from October until around Christmas last year, with intense interest from investors.

Alt. Leather will use the funds to file its provisional patent, kick off small-scale sample production with a range of Australian brands and gain access to university-housed advanced equipment and student researchers.

The fashion industry accounts for about 8-10 per cent of global carbon emissions, and nearly 20 per cent wastewater. One of the biggest material culprits towards environmental destruction is leather. 

According to the Material Innovation Initiative, the global synthetic leather wholesale market is estimated at around US$70 billion with 3 per cent of that attributed to next-gen alternatives, and almost the entire industry still relying on petroleum-based plastics in production.

“That’s millions of tonnes of fossil-fuel derived plastic that we can eliminate from the world, the impact we can have is enormous,” says Funder.

Among the Alt. Leather’s seed round investors, Wollemi Capital Group CEO, Victoria Denholm says creative entrepreneurs like Funder help us “reimagine a world where we can enjoy beautifully crafted goods in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way.”

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The annual conference in Davos, Switzerland, where more than 60 heads of state attended, began on Monday, with the final day of the conference to begin today.

Other experts, advocates and stakeholders attended the five-day conference, including Jane Goodall, who has worked for more than 60 years preventing the extinction of chimpanzees.

As an environmental advocate, Goodall told reporters at The National UAE that people should think about the children and grandchildren in generations to come before “destroying their future” with reckless environmental policies.

“I hope to reach into a few hearts,” she said. “I think people change from within.

“The world is in a mess – politically, socially, economically… instead of making a world that will last, we’re really destroying their future.”

"We're really destroying their future"

Renowned anthropologist Jane Goodall urges people to "look into their heart" and take climate action for children and grandchildren #Davos2024 pic.twitter.com/3iWteg64HO

— The National (@TheNationalNews) January 17, 2024

Goodall, the founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and a UN Messenger of Peace, urged people to look into their hearts and their humanity to save the planet.

“Unless you reach the heart, you’re not going to make a real impact,” Goodall said.

Goodall is 89 years old and has not slowed down in her conservation efforts, particularly in her work to save chimpanzees from extinction.

She was just 26 years old when she first travelled to what is now Tanzania in 1960 to live side by side with a community of chimpanzees. Back then, the world knew very little about the species and just how similar they are to human beings.

Now, more than 60 years on, she continues to be an environmental warrior for the sake of future generations to come.

“We haven’t just compromised their future,” Goodall told Time on Monday. “We’ve been stealing it – and we’re still stealing it today.

“We need not just talking. We need action.”

World Economic Forum

More than 60 heads of state from around the world gathered in Davos, Switzerland on Monday to kick off the 54th annual WEF. 

This year’s WEF theme is “Rebuilding Trust”, and so far, several of the world’s biggest challenges have been discussed, including AI, global governance, energy transition, climate change and more.

President of the European Union Ursula von der Leyen told the Forum on Monday that the theme couldn’t be more fitting as the world embarks on 2024.

“The sobering reality is that we are once again competing more intensely across countries than we have in several decades,” she said.

“This is not a time for conflict or polarisation. This is a time to build trust. This is a time to drive global collaboration more than ever before. This requires immediate and structural responses to match the size of the global challenges

“I believe it can be done, and I believe that Europe can and must take the lead in shaping that global response.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a more reformed, inclusive and networked global governance ahead of the new year.

“We can’t build a future for our grandchildren with a system built for our grandparents,” he told the Forum.

After 2023 was announced the hottest year on record, climate change has been a big topic of discussion at the WEF.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva was one leader who spoke on working together to tackle climate change.

She urged for financial resources to be moved from places “where they hurt” to places “where they help”.

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According to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, the average temperature in 2023 was 0.17C higher than in 2016, (the previous record year) with the causes of increased global heating attributed largely to record emissions of carbon dioxide along with the natural climate phenomenon El Niño.

It was so hot in fact, that C3S director Carlo Buontempo described it yesterday as “a very exceptional year, climate-wise… in a league of its own, even when compared to other very warm years.”

But it won’t be exceptional for long. Ten days into 2024, there’s no sign of relief. While the world is yet to breach the 2015 Paris Agreement target of preventing global warming surpassing 1.5C, climate scientists warn that the figure is likely to eclipse that this year.

And we know that it’s women who will bear the brunt of climate change impacts both in Australia and across the world. It’s women who will lose job and education opportunities. It’s women who will face a myriad of adverse health affects. It’s women who will be left most vulnerable.

And it’s this knowledge of the escalation of climate change and ongoing heatwaves, coupled with the sheer injustice of society’s expectation on women to cover up, that really tips me over the edge.

Living on the Northern Rivers of NSW’s far north coast, days here in Summer regularly climb well beyond 35 degrees.

And, do you know what I see? I see women all around me suffering. I watch as they throw themselves down in coffee shops, breathing heavily and wiping sweat from their faces. Their visible bra lines digging into their shoulders, and shirts clinging mercilessly to sticky bodies. I see them grappling with small children and laptops and mental loads the size of Antarctica (which is incidentally where they’d rather be).

Men on the other hand? They casually stride around shirtless; on the street, in shopping centres, at parks, at the beach.

They don’t feel unsafe to do so. They don’t feel embarrassed. They don’t feel ashamed. They don’t (generally) feel uneasily sexualised and objectified.

While in Australia, indecent exposure laws only refer to the genital area, you will rarely, if ever, see a woman expose her breasts in public. You won’t see a woman, no matter how fed-up, hot or grossly uncomfortable she may be, casually strip off her top and stroll into the local IGA. (In recent days, I’ve seen six men do exactly that).

Why? Because we know that the simple action of making ourselves more comfortable would set an instant target on our backs. Not only of being publicly abused and ridiculed, but also the very serious threat of predatory behaviour; sexual harassment and assault. We know that male aggressors would be given greater licence by police to perpetrate these crimes than we would be to bare our breasts.

Moreover, despite federal laws supporting both men and women’s right to public toplessness, local councils impose their own rules. Topless women are often slapped with vague charges such as being a public nuisance, or committing offensive behaviour.

The double standard, when you sit and think about it for even a second, is incensing.

And with 2024 set to be hotter than the year before, perhaps a public protest of angry, topless women is high time.

Who’s in?

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The study’s findings are outlined in the For Our Futures report, which was co-researched by young people in Plan International’s Youth Activist Series’ across Australia, Nepal and Indonesia. 

The research comes as more than 20 schools were closed in NSW, Australia, on Friday, due to the current heatwave impacting the state and the risk of bushfires.

The study consulted more than 500 people aged between 10-24 (the majority being girls) from Australia, Nepal and Indonesia about the ways that climate change is impacting their education. The research methodology involved a series of survey questions and a data collection method called photovoice, which enables people to share their views through photo and video content.

Researchers found that climate change and climate-induced disasters exacerbate the challenges girls already face. Research by the Malala Fund predicts that by 2025, climate change will be a contributing factor in preventing at least 12.5 million girls from completing their education each year. 

Adding to the evidence base, the For Our Futures report revealed that 98 per cent of respondents were very concerned or somewhat concerned about how climate change is affecting their school life or how it will affect them in the future.

Sixty-two per cent of respondents had experienced disruptions to their travel to and from school due to climate change, and more than one in three had seen their school closed, damaged or destroyed due to climate change-related events.

Thirty-nine per cent were concerned about finding the job they want in the future because of the way climate change is impacting their education, and almost half of the respondents felt unsafe either at school or while travelling to school due to climate-related disasters.

“Less power to make decisions about my future,” was what 69 per cent of respondents in Australia said was one of the top concerns they had about how climate change was impacting their education. 

Over 50 per cent of Indonesian respondents were concerned about climate change disrupting their academic performance.

And in Nepal, 25 per cent of respondents had their textbooks or learning materials damaged or destroyed, with one Nepali respondent saying that “even if you go to school, books and textbooks get wet when you are soaked in water … There is a different kind of weather than it used to be; sunny days in rainy season and no rainfall in rainy season or no water because of rise in temperature”. 

“We won’t cop it”, said Plan International Australia 2023 Youth Activist Georgia Shakeshaft, regarding the climate injustice her generation faces. 

“Working on the For Our Futures report, I got to see how badly climate change is affecting my peers– in Australia, and overseas in Indonesia and Nepal,” she said, adding that “some of the stories we heard were shocking.”

“We need to listen to the voices of girls and young people, who are experiencing the effects of climate change firsthand. The climate crisis is robbing so many young people around the world of a smooth education. We are being robbed of a future.”

Speaking on behalf of their generation, the youth activists are using the results to call on wealthy countries like Australia to commit to the Loss and Damage Fund to support the most vulnerable in dealing with the climate crisis.  

Climate change is not gender neutral

The climate crisis “is impacting girls first and worst”, said Susanne Legena, Plan Australia’s CEO, adding that this is particularly true for girls in the poorest countries, who are “least responsible for climate change”. 

Household responsibilities become intensified by climate change, meaning that girls who most often take these on have less time to attend school. Water scarcity also makes it difficult for girls to manage their periods safely and with dignity at school. 

One in two survey respondents wanted girls to be taught more about how to prepare for disasters.

Legena described the climate crisis as “an intergenerational and gender injustice”. She says the For Our Futures report highlights the resilience and agency of young people. 

“Girls around the world are taking collective action to advance climate justice, and we are working with these girls and their communities to reduce climate risks, adapt to climate change, strengthen resilience, promote girls’ leadership and increase their political empowerment.”

Loss and damage fund

As the world’s most influential climate experts convene for another week in Dubai for COP28, two of the Plan International Youth Activists who worked on the report – Georgia Shakeshaft and Iremide Ayonrinde— will present the For Our Futures report at the international climate conference. 

Shakeshaft and Ayonrindw will make three specific recommendations, which include calling on the Australian Government to make a commitment at COP28 to contribute to the UNFCCC Loss and Damage fund. This fund aims to to support the most vulnerable and poorest countries to keep up with the rising costs associated with weather events related to climate change. 

They will also call for ‘disruption to education’ to be recognised as a specific form of non-economic loss that should be recognised by the UNFCCC Loss and Damage fund. 

Finally, they will call for the establishment of a National Council of Young Women on Climate to amplify diverse voices, focus on young women with lived experience of the impacts of climate change and enable direct communication between young women and decision-makers. 

Echoing their calls, Legena said the youth activists’ agency gives them hope for their futures. But she added that wealthy countries such as Australia, along with big polluters, must take responsibility and step up to take meaningful action by committing to the loss and damage fund.

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Amongst the sea of men in suits, female faces are largely absent despite the well-known fact that women are more vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change. This gender disconnect begs the question of whether female voices will be adequately listened to in the global climate conversation.

With 140 world leaders scheduled to speak at this year’s COP28, only 15 of them are women. And this measly 10 per cent is actually an improvement from last year’s summit which saw only 7 women represented out of 111 speakers (roughly 6 per cent). 

The gender balance of party delegations is also skewed as only 38 per cent of representatives are female, while 62 per cent are male.

Representing women at the summit are a small group of powerful voices, including President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen; Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottely; Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen; President of Honduras Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento and Prime Minister of Iceland, Katrín Jakobsdóttir.

Phasing out fossil fuels

As COP28 kicked off last week, the debate surrounding fossil fuels came to the forefront of the conversation, following comments from the summit’s President, Sultan Al Jaber that scientists have said echo the views of climate change deniers. 

During a She Changes Climate online event, Al Jaber– the CEO of the United Arab Emirates’ state oil firm, Adnoc– said there’s “no science out there, or no scenario out there, that says that the phase-out of fossil fuel is what’s going to achieve 1.5C.”

Al Jaber also said a phase-out of fossil fuels would not allow sustainable development “unless you want to take the world back into caves”.

Climate scientist Joelle Gergis called Al Jaber’s comments “disgraceful”, saying they dismiss “decades of work by IPCC scientists”. 

Advocating for renewable energy, President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen took to the stage at COP28 to call for more support for the global clean energy transition. She said the EU will push for key global emissions milestones, including global emissions peaking by 2025, a phasing out of fossil fuels and reaching 2030 targets for renewable energy and energy efficiency. 

“Climate change is the challenge of our century”,” says von der Leyen. “Our ambitions must match that challenge”.

Running out of time

The World Meteorological Organisation has confirmed that 2023 is assured to be Earth’s hottest year in history, with scientists everywhere warning that the world’s most important climate goal– constraining global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius– is becoming increasingly out of reach. 

The climate crisis is reaching a breaking point, and those most affected are struggling to have their voices heard in the race towards solutions. 

Women are at greater risk of poor physical and mental health when climate disasters disrupt health services. Evidence shows an increase in family and domestic violence following these disruptions, and an increase in economic disparity as women are forced to take on more unpaid work. 

Extreme weather caused by climate change increases food insecurity which exacerbates the risk of stillbirth and severely impacts maternal and newborn health.

The research shows women are missing from most national climate plans, and yet gender equality is strongly linked to climate justice. For progress’ sake, it’s time women’s voices become central to the narrative, which includes an increased leadership presence on the world stage.

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Partyka, a member of the Disrupt Burrup Hub group, pleaded not guilty to the charges and has said she will appeal against her conviction. 

Partyka’s mobile phone and laptop were seized from her apartment by Western Australian Police earlier this year. She faced two counts of failing to obey a data access order when she refused to give police password access to her devices. 

In court, Partyka, who works for the Australian Greens, said she had asked her employer for permission to allow police to access her devices but was told it would breach her employment contract. 

Writing on Instagram after the conviction, she said: “The two charges I was defending came about as a result of a counter-terror police raid on my home in February, during which my phone and laptop were seized. Police tried to force me to give them the passwords to my devices so they could copy their contents. I refused, and was charged as a result.”

“During the trial, police openly admitted the raid was carried out in response to “potential future offences” – ones that to this day are entirely unspecified and for which I have never been charged. 

“WA Police violated my privacy, deprived me of my liberty and breached the sanctity of my home in a chilling overreach that has not only gone completely unchecked – it has been reinforced and rewarded by today’s verdict.”

Partyka was fined $1,200 plus court costs. Outisde of court, Partyka said the fact that police had raided her home in relation to “potential future offences” that had not even occurred, was a “pretty distopian vision”.

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A post shared by Joana Partyka (@joanapartyka)

The Disrupt Burrup Hub group is a campaigning group focused on opposing Woodside’s Burrup Hub mega-project at the Burrup Peninsula in north-west Western Australia. The group says the gas expansion project is a “disaster” for climate change. The area is also home to the largest, oldest collection of Aboriginal rock art in the world.

Partyka has previously made headlines when she spray-painted a Woodside logo onto the plexiglass covering an artwork in the Art Gallery of Western Australia. She was convicted over this act, and was issued with a fine and costs. She aimed to draw attention to the threat posed to Aboriginal rock art by Woodside’s Burrup Hub project.

At the time, she wrote on Instagram: “Mark McGowan says my actions are irresponsible; I say he and his government need to take a look in the mirror”.

The crackdown on Partyka and the Disrupt Burrup Hub group by the Western Australian government and police comes as climate protesters across the country and globe face increased pressure. 

Another example comes from Queensland, where a group of climate activists who disrupted Queenlsand parliament for a few minutes last November could face years in prison. 

The group entered parliament and chanted “stop coal! stop gas!”, which  forced MPs to suspend parliamentary proceedings for three minutes. They were charged with disturbing the legislature – a charge that has not been laid in more than 30 years. There is a three-year maximum jail term associated with the charge. 

Among the group is an 88-year-old woman, Judith Rasborsek, who previously told The Guardian, “Of course I don’t want to go to jail. But if they do sentence me to jail, so be it. What else can you do?”

Then there is the case of Violet Coco, the climate protester who had her 15-month jail sentence quashed on appeal when Judge Mark Williams ruled that she had originally been imprisoned based on false information provided by NSW police.  

Coco, who drove a truck onto the Harbour Bridge and blocked a lane of traffic as part of a climate protest, was the first person in NSW to be jailed under new laws that aim to crackdown on protesters who block major infrastructure. The laws threatens protesters with up to two years in prison and $22,000 fines.

Other states have followed NSW in introducing harsh measures against environmental protesters. In Victoria, new laws have targeted protesters specifically at logging sites with the threat of 12-month jail sentences and $21,000 fines. 

In Tasmania, anti-protest laws were passed by the Rockliff government in 2022, significantly increasing penalties and creating new offences for non-violent protest activities at workplaces and forestry sites.

At the time, Kieran Pender a Senior Lawyer at the Human Rights Law Centre, said: “Tasmania’s democracy is weaker for the passing of this bill. Even with the amendments, it is a bad bill that should never become law. This bill will have a chilling effect on the right to protest in Tasmania, limiting the ability of people to exercise their democratic rights.”

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It means the federal government can ignore climate harm to natural wonders like the Great Barrier Reef in its risk assessment of new fossil fuel projects. The decision is a victory for Plibersek, who worked alongside two coal companies, Narrabri Coal Operations and MACH Energy, on the case.

The Environment Council of Central Queensland, represented in court by Environmental Justice Australia, argued that Plibersek must assess how coal and gas emitted from fossil fuel projects would pose serious and irreversible harm to protected plants, animals and places in Australia.

The court ruled that under current laws, the environment minister is under no obligation to explicitly consider the harmful effects of climate change when considering whether to approve new fossil fuel projects.

The two projects cited in the case were two mines in New South Wales: Whitehaven Coal’s Narrabri underground extension project and MACH Energy’s Mount Pleasant project.

President of the Environment Council of Central Queensland, Christine Carlisle said while her organisation respected the court’s role, it was “bitterly disappointed and alarmed” by the outcome.

“After today’s Court decision, Minister Plibersek might rush to approve new coal mines and gas wells,” Carlisle said. “Two big fossil fuel companies stood by Minister Plibersek’s legal team every day in Court and defended her refusal to act on the climate harm of their projects.’

“Those mining companies might be celebrating tonight. But there is no way a responsible government could call this a win. It’s devastating for us all.”

Carlisle said she was alarmed that the current laws mean it is “somehow not our Environment Minister’s job to protect our environment from the biggest threat”, referring to climate change. 

“She may try to argue she’s just following the law. But it’s her law. If our laws are failing in a crisis, it’s her job to fix it.  And, until then, she must put a pause on all new coal and gas approvals.”

Elizabeth McKinnon, a lawyer and co-CEO of Environmental Justice Australia, said her client is considering all legal options in the wake of the decision, including federal court appeals and injunctions.

“Our client is awaiting an assurance from the Minister that she will not rush to approve these and the other pending coal and gas projects on her desk while our client considers its appeal rights,” McKinnon said.

McKinnon also pressed the point that the decision does not change the science of climate change. 

“Nobody, not the Australian Government or the coal mining companies, challenged the facts set out in the thousands of pages of climate evidence,” McKinnon said.

“You don’t need to be a lawyer or a scientist to know that, whatever our old laws say, climate change is relevant to coal and gas approvals.”

This year, Plibersek has already approved four coal mining projects. The court’s decision on Wednesday has cleared the path for her approval of the two expansions in New South Wales, with the ABC reporting they have obtained documents showing the projects are likely to go ahead.

The Albanese Government has a target to reduce Australia’s emissions by 43 per cent by 2030 and to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said it shouldn’t have to fall on small community groups like the Environment Council of Central Queensland, “to take on the might of the fossil fuel industry and their accomplices in the federal government in court.”

“Australians voted for climate action at the last election, but every time the government fights to approve a coal or gas project they are putting Australia at risk of more frequent and extreme bushfires this summer.”

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Out of the 38 countries that have integrated sexual and reproductive health rights into their climate plans, only 23 reference maternal and newborn health, while only 15 reference gender-based violence. 

This alarming data comes out of the report, “Taking Stock: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Climate Commitments: A Global Review”, released today by UNFPA in collaboration with Queen Mary University London.

The report– a global first– examines the climate plans of 119 countries to establish how access to contraception, gender-based violence support services and maternal health care are integrated into climate adaptation goals. 

There’s been plenty of research showing climate change acts as a risk multiplier for women and girls.

Extreme weather caused by climate change increases food insecurity which exacerbates the risk of stillbirth and severely impacts maternal and newborn health. The report shows that women and girls make up the majority of the malnourished in countries where famine persists, such as Burkina Faso, Mali, Somalia and South Sudan.

It’s also been shown that heat exposure can increase infant and maternal mortality as well as pose risks to pregnant women and those experiencing menopause.

Meanwhile, climate-related displacement can disrupt access to family planning facilities and gender-based violence protection services.

The report lists only nine countries that include a description of policies or interventions to address climate-related increases of gender-based violence– the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Sierra Leone, the Comoros, Seychelles, Costa Rica, Jordan, Tunisia and Guinea.

“The climate crisis is not gender-neutral. In those countries most at-risk, women and girls are disproportionately affected even though they have contributed the least to the global climate emergency,” says UNFPA Executive Director Dr Natalia Kanem. 

“Highlighting emerging evidence of the impacts of climate change on the health and wellbeing of women and girls – from increased poverty and food insecurity to poorer maternal health outcomes to increased risk of gender-based violence and harmful practices – this review is a timely reminder of why it is so critical that countries prioritize sexual and reproductive health and rights in their climate strategies.”

These disproportionate climate impacts highlight the need for women to be represented at the table, discussing sustainable and inclusive solutions. 

And with the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 28) set to begin in Dubai this November, UNFPA is calling on countries to commit 1 per cent of their climate finances to sexual and reproductive health and rights.

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These figures come from a new report from Save the Children, Girls at the centre of the storm: Her planet, her future, her solutions, released to mark this year’s International Day of the Girl.

The report shows that an estimated 29.9 million teenage girls currently live in the world’s top 10 “child-marriage-climate hotspots”, referring to nations that carry the highest chance that a girl will be both married as a child and impacted by the devastation of climate disasters.

The compounding impact of child marriage and climate change on girls has created these hotspots in Bangladesh and sub-Saharan Africa, with the worst affected nations being Central African Republic, Chad and Guinea. These countries are also severely impacted in many cases by conflict, poverty, gender inequality and hunger.

Meanwhile figures from Save the Children show that in 2021, an estimated 4 million girls in low income countries did not complete their education because of climate-related events.

CEO of Save the Children International, Inger Ashing, said it’s time we recognise that the climate crisis is an emergency for girls’ rights globally.

“This research shows yet again the extent to which the climate crisis is jeopardising children’s rights – particularly the rights of girls,” Ashing said.

“The risks to girls are real. It’s the risk of sexual harassment and abuse girls face in the chaotic aftermath of a disaster, where overcrowding and lack of safe services leave them exposed. It’s being forced to marry before they reach 18, as families, impoverished by years of droughts, are going hungry and having to make impossible decisions about whose mouths to feed.”

Child marriage can have life-long consequences for a girls life, according to Save the Children, with girls much less likely to complete their education while facing a much higher risk of physical and sexual violence, and greater health risks during pregnancy and childbirth.

Ashing points out that less than 2 per cent of national climate plans globally mention girls, or give consideration to their specific needs and involvement of girls in decision-making.

“Girls are demonstrating extraordinary resilience in the face of these challenges, yet their demands and solutions are rarely included in discussions about the planet they will inherit. This is unacceptable,” Ashing said.

“Urgent and effective investment is key to adapting to climate change, and is particularly critical for children, especially girls who are highly susceptible to the short and long-term impacts.

“Current spending almost ignores children entirely – this needs to change.”

Kpemeh* from Sierra Leone

When Kpemeh* from Sierra Leone was 12-years-old, a man expressed his interest in marrying her. Her parents – subsistence farmers impacted by the climate crisis – felt financially pressured to agree to the marriage. Thankfully, Save the Children helped Kpemeh avoid the marriage, and she is now an advocate for girls’ education.

“[Child marriage] happens because of poverty. If a man has money, for example if he harvests palm fruits, he can harvest, process and sell it and support the [girl’s] family by giving them some palm oil,” Kpemeh says.

 “A man expressed interest in marrying me, but I declined. Subsequently, he approached my parents, expressing his desire to marry me. I said I am going to school. Their response was that you have to get married. If the man said he will support you, won’t you agree to him?

 “The climate has changed and our parents rely on farming. Rain does not fall when it is supposed to fall. It rains in both dry and rainy seasons, it rains when it’s not rainy season…and rains when it’s dry season.”

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For him, it was mission accomplished. But for myself and a group of prominent scientists, it was a galvanising moment. What followed was a week etched into my memory. Four days after the abolition we rose again to great a new organisation supported by thousands and thousands of Australians who believed clear, accurate science was vital to our democracy. In less than a week we raised over $1 million, the largest crowdfunding effort in Australian history at the time. It changed the course of Australian climate advocacy forever. To this day, we remain proudly independent and community-funded.

We launched the Climate Council with the firm conviction that Australians deserved a clear, independent voice on climate change. As I reflect on our journey over the last decade, I’m struck by the remarkable path we’ve travelled on our critical mission of accelerating climate action in this most critical time. 

I am extraordinarily privileged to serve as the CEO of the Climate Council. From the outset, we didn’t just wait to ride the next wave of action. We formed the wave ourselves. I envisage us as the metaphorical pebble in a pond, whose ripples spread far and wide, creating an ever-expanding circle of influence and change. It is a role we take seriously. 

I vividly recall the frustration we experienced when Tony Abbott dismissed the link between climate change and catastrophic events like the Blue Mountains fires. As well as the aggressive criticism we and others received in making clear that climate change was driving these worsening extreme events. By the time the Black Summer fires scarred the landscape from Southeast Queensland to Tasmania leaving smoke trailing across the entire southern hemisphere, no politician could deny it. 

Fast forward to today, I’m proud to say we’ve significantly shifted the climate conversation – showing that we have a big problem, but the solutions for Australia are available and can set the sunny country up for the 21st century.

By engaging some of Australia’s exceptional voices on climate change, we’ve catapulted the issue to the top of the national agenda with an unfaltering drumbeat of information and stories. This catalysed our growth into an evidence-based powerhouse. 

I’ve watched our supporter base flourish. In time, we were able to activate their voices in every segment of the economy. When we started, the climate debate was largely confined to scientists and policymakers. To make the conversation richer and more diverse, I knew we needed to expand and take everyone on this journey with us. 

So, in 2015 we established the Climate Media Centre, which has trained and deployed approximately 1,500 trusted community groups and voices like doctors, firefighters, and families to amplify the urgency of climate action.

As climate extremes became more commonplace, we also activated the Emergency Leaders for Climate Action (ELCA). This initiative brought together some of Australia’s finest emergency service leaders to help communities prepare for a future where climate disasters are the norm, not the exception.

Over 165 local governments have also joined the fray through our Cities Power Partnership (CPP), which has empowered them to act in unity for a common cause. I’ve seen them evolve into engines propelling Australia’s climate action in their communities.

It’s been like watching a choir grow, each new voice adding depth and resonance to the overall symphony.

I recall when only five percent of news stories actually mentioned climate change in the context of the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009. It was an uphill battle trying to show with each worsening heatwave, flood or fire to show that climate change, through the burning of fossil fuels, was the driver. Just like how we need to talk about the cause of a car crash when it happens to make our roads safer, we needed to show the cause of these unnatural disasters. During Black Summer around 49 percent of media stories talked about the cause. I am proud of the role the Climate Council has played in this shift. 

To put it in numbers, we have landed more than 230,000 media items, and supported thousands of inspiring voices through media training between 2013 to 2022. 

I’m proud of the way we have made complex issues tangible for everyday people, demystifying and humanising the science that can be so often misunderstood. We’ve done remarkable work over ten years, but there is even more to be done as the window of opportunity for a safe future narrows. 

Ultimately, at the Climate Council, we want to make ourselves redundant. 

Ideally, in another decade, we will have fundamentally transformed society to the point that organisations like ours will no longer need to exist. 

To me, that’s the pinnacle of success—when the cause we champion becomes so mainstream that the battle itself becomes a relic of the past.

As I look to the future, I am buoyed by hope and resolve. Climate change is the defining issue of our time, demanding an informed, urgent, and unified response to safeguard our common home. Until then, the Climate Council is steadfast in its commitment to leading that charge.

Real climate action is possible and beneficial for all. We have ten years of hard, inspiring work behind us, and with your support, we will keep building a legacy of action and hope to shape Australia’s climate future as we journey onward.

The Climate Council invites you to celebrate 10 Years of the Climate Council at our online event on Thursday 28th September, 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm AEST.

The post What a difference a decade makes in shifting the climate conversation appeared first on Women's Agenda.

Launched today, the UN Women and UN DESA “Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals: The gender snapshot 2023”, warns that more than 340 million women and girls- an estimated 8 per cent of the world’s female population- will live in extreme poverty by 2030, and close to one in four will experience moderate or severe food insecurity.

Unless more investment is put towards women’s empowerment, the next generation of women will still spend an average of 2.3 more hours per day on unpaid care and domestic work than men. 

Current progress is keeping the gender gap in power and leadership positions entrenched as well, according to the data.

The UN’s annual publication provides a comprehensive analysis of the current state of gender equality across 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with no indicator at the “target met or almost met” level. 

For the first time, this year’s report includes sex-disaggregated data on the intersections of gender and climate change. The data projects that by mid-century, climate change may push up to 158.3 million more women and girls into poverty (16 million more than the total number of men and boys) if the worst-case climate scenario is reached. 

“A resounding call to action” is what the UN Women Deputy Executive Director, Sarah Hendricks has described as this year’s report. 

“We must collectively and intentionally act now to course-correct for a world where every woman and girl has equal rights, opportunities, and representation,” she said, adding that “to achieve this, we need unwavering commitment, innovative solutions, and collaboration across all sectors and stakeholders.”

The figures show an additional USD 360 billion investment per year towards women’s empowerment is needed to achieve gender equality by 2030. 

At the moment, only 27 countries have comprehensive systems to track and make budgetary allocations for gender equality and women’s empowerment. 

No country is within reach of eradicating intimate partner violence, despite 245 million women and girls aged 15, and older, around the world, having been victims of physical and/or sexual violence perpetrated by an intimate partner. 

This year’s report also has a special focus on older women, who face higher rates of poverty and violence than older men. In 28 of the 116 countries with data, fewer than half of older women have a pension, and in 12 countries fewer than 10 per cent had access to a pension.

Globally, the gender earnings gap remains– for each dollar men earn, women earn only 51 cents. And only 61.4 per cent of prime working age women are in the labour force, compared to 90 per cent of prime working age men.

An estimated 110 million girls and young women around the world will be out of school in 2030. 

The amount of women and girls in conflict-affected contexts has risen significantly as well, with the numbers reaching 614 million in 2022– this is 50 per cent higher than the number in 2017.

Speaking on the report’s these worrying figures, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs of UN DESA, Maria-Francesca Spatolisano said that gender equality is “the very foundation of a fair society, and a goal upon which all other goals must stand.”

“By breaking down the barriers that have hindered the full participation of women and girls in every aspect of society, we unleash the untapped potential that can drive progress and prosperity for all.”

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O’Donnell alleged that she and other investors in Australian-issued bonds had been misled because the government failed to disclose how climate change might impact their investments.

Sovereign bonds allow governments to borrow money, from which, on top of taxes, they can fund expenditures and programs. Historically, investors consider sovereign bonds issued by stable economies such as Australia a safe bet.

Because our economy is large and our economic, political and legal institutions stable and mostly free from corruption, investors can be fairly certain that Australian governments will repay their debts.

This has created steady demand for Australian sovereign bonds, making them a reliable way for our governments to fund policy programs and respond to economic shocks. But O’Donnell’s lawsuit broadly questioned whether sovereign bonds were really safe for investors once the economic impacts of climate change were taken into account.

Her lawyers argued that the Commonwealth government should disclose the way climate change posed both “physical” and “transition” risks to the economy.

The first are financial risks that climate scientists say will impact Australia’s economy due to changes to the climate and the rise in extreme weather events. The second kind of risk emerges from changes in global demand for our fossil fuel exports.

O’Donnell’s lawyers also suggest that investors increasingly expect governments to try to manage their climate risks.

They point to the 2019 decision by Sweden’s Central Bank, Sveriges Rijksbank, to divest its holdings in Queensland and Western Australian bonds, because they are “not known for good climate work”, as an example of investors taking these risks seriously.

In March 2021 the Commonwealth sought to have the claim struck out, alleging it was not clear what risks should be disclosed.

At that time, few government bond prospectuses issued around the world referred to climate risks. However, Justice Murphy of the Federal Court decided to keep the legal action on foot because he saw an “informational asymmetry” between the government and investors regarding the nature of climate risks.

Following the election of the Albanese government, the Commonwealth decided not to contest the case in court, but to seek mediation.

Under the terms of the settlement, agreed on August 7 and to be approved by the court next month, the government will likely acknowledge on the Treasury website that climate change presents a risk to the country’s “economy, regions, industries, and communities”, and that there is uncertainty around the global transition to net zero emissions.

The government’s decision to disclose climate risks is no surprise. It is already taking steps to better understand and report on how climate change will affect the economy. Beyond taking policy measures to support the transition to a “net zero” economy, it has tasked Treasury with developing a national sustainable finance strategy.

It has also asked some large listed companies to analyse and disclose their climate-risk exposure, and is developing a legal framework – called a “taxonomy” – to better regulate sustainable finance.

The Reserve Bank of Australia’s new governor, Michele Bullock, also said in a recent speech that the economic implications of climate change could affect the stability of the financial system.

The settlement is significant because, for the first time, an AAA-rated government will recognise climate change as a systemic risk that can affect the value of its bonds. Large sovereign investors and credit-rating agencies are already focusing on how climate change impacts a country’s ability to repay, and pricing this information into its loans.

All this is creating pressure for governments like ours to better understand and disclose climate risks when they borrow money.

But climate risk disclosure in sovereign bonds is not enough. Governments are qualitatively different entities to companies, from which these disclosure practices evolved.

Companies are more able than governments to rid themselves quickly of polluting assets, acquire new clean resources, or change the location of their operations. Investors can engage with companies on climate change through annual general meetings, but they struggle to influence governments on climate change (although some are trying to develop strategies for doing so).

So while the recent case is a reminder for government issuers to consider how climate change will impact government bond repayment obligations, their challenge isn’t solved by better disclosure practices.

Nevertheless, Australian governments should continue their plans to better understand and disclose climate risks.

Moreover, under instruments such as Sustainability Linked Sovereign Bonds, governments can set climate-related performance targets, such as lowering carbon emissions by 10% by 2025. A government that does not meet these predetermined targets could be subject to an increase in its interest rate, or another penalty.

These instruments create an incentive for governments to achieve real emission reductions, which is the only activity that will ultimately address climate risk in the economy.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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