African Women Innovate to Battle Climate Change

Flickr

October 14, 2015

Local knowledge can ensure communities continue to remain sustainable in face of climate change.

The United Nations marked October 13 as the International Day for Disaster Reduction, which this year focused on local and indigenous knowledge as a way to complement modern science.

In Africa, it is women who face the burden of providing resources at the household level. Fetching water, finding firewood and cultivating crops all fall on the women of the continent, and it is these women who as a consequence possess the greatest knowledge about the impacts of climate change on their environment.

Recently, the United Nations Development Programme and the Huairou Commission brought together women from 11 countries to share their expertise on how to adapt to climate change with policymakers.

By using creativity and often ingenious knowledge of local women, communities can ensure sustainable food production for future generations.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.

Photo Credit: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

We bring you perspectives from around the world. Help us to inform and educate. Your donation is tax-deductible. Join over 400 people to become a donor or you could choose to be a sponsor.

For more than 10 years, Fair Observer has been free, fair and independent. No billionaire owns us, no advertisers control us. We are a reader-supported nonprofit. Unlike many other publications, we keep our content free for readers regardless of where they live or whether they can afford to pay. We have no paywalls and no ads.

In the post-truth era of fake news, echo chambers and filter bubbles, we publish a plurality of perspectives from around the world. Anyone can publish with us, but everyone goes through a rigorous editorial process. So, you get fact-checked, well-reasoned content instead of noise.

We publish 2,500+ voices from 90+ countries. We also conduct education and training programs on subjects ranging from digital media and journalism to writing and critical thinking. This doesn’t come cheap. Servers, editors, trainers and web developers cost money. Please consider supporting us on a regular basis as a recurring donor or a sustaining member.