Girl Rising Assembles Young Climate Leaders to Highlight Connections Between Gender Inequity and Water Crises

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Mar 22, 2023, 08:44 ET

NEW YORK, March 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday March 23rd, Girl Rising will convene young climate leaders from some of the world's most affected areas who will call attention to connections between the global water crisis and gender inequity at a side event for the United Nations Water Conference. Girl Rising, along with co-hosts the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) and the Permanent Mission of Monaco to the United Nations, center the event on young voices like Future Rising Fellows Hilda Nakabuye, Uganda; Lauren Ritchie, The Bahamas; Leticia Tituana, Ecuador; Tia Kennedy, First Nations Canada and Mercy Kamonjo, Kenya. It will also feature esteemed speakers such as Her Excellency Ms. Isabelle Picco Permanent Representative and Ambassador of Monaco to the UN, Lotta Tahtinen Chief of Outreach and Partnership Branch in the Division for Sustainable Development Goals at UN DESA, Rashema Ingraham Executive Director of Waterkeepers Bahamas. The event is moderated by Christina Kwauk, social scientist with expertise on the connections between girls' education and climate change.

In 2021 Girl Rising launched Future Rising, a strategic program centered around the deep inter-connections among girls' education, gender justice, and climate change. Future Rising includes an annual Fellowship program for young leaders from around the world who are working at the intersection of gender equity and climate change. Girl Rising provides them with leadership development, storytelling training, network development, and opportunities to speak at global convenings.

Girl Rising uses the power of storytelling to change the way the world values girls and their education. In collaboration with local partners in eight countries in 2022, the non-profit delivers culturally adapted programming to millions of adolescent girls and boys, building voice, confidence, and agency. Girl Rising works with thousands of educators, parents, and community members to address barriers and powerful social norms that hold girls back.

The speakers will highlight links between girls' education and climate-related water crises. The Future Rising Fellows will share from their personal experiences about innovative solutions for water-related climate impacts, including community-based efforts to clean Lake Victoria in Uganda, sustainable agriculture techniques in Kenya's arid regions, and combining traditional and Indigenous resource management strategies with 21st-century engineering techniques in Ecuador. The Future Rising Fellowship is part of Future Rising, Girl Rising's new program which seeks to build awareness, spur action, and stimulate investment for girls' education as a potent climate solution.

Water scarcity and lack of water sanitation is a critical women's rights issue as it often results in the end of girls' education, putting them at risk of displacement, disease, and violence. By 2040, roughly one in four children worldwide will be living in areas of high-water stress, with girls being worst impacted, according to UNICEF. Girls and women are disproportionately tasked with water security for their household and therefore are most impacted.

Water scarcity is a significant threat to girls' education but on the other hand girls' education is a vital solution in tackling the crisis. Educating girls and investing in their skill development and leadership opportunities can lead to stronger and more resilient communities, better equipped to confront the global water crisis and its impacts on health, livelihoods, and conflict.

"The water crisis is affecting women and girls first and worst, and exacerbating the existing inequalities they face the world over," said Girl Rising CEO Christina Lowery, "And yet, girls and women, who are keepers of food and water security, caregivers and stewards of the land, are well positioned to become the powerful agents of sustainability and the leaders we so urgently need."

"The world is not making progress fast enough," said Tähtinen, "Not in terms of access to water, equality between genders or climate action. The Water Conference is an opportune moment to address all three of these issues together, as their impacts are often felt together."

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SOURCE Girl Rising