“Avec Nous / Pour Toustes” which translates to: “With us / For All of Us” – stood as the core value of the feminist civil society led conference hosted in Paris this week. We were proud to support and co-organize sections of this incredible feminist gathering prior to the Feminist Foreign Policy Conference convened by the French Government.  

With COP30 in Brazil taking place less than a month after, we aimed to celebrate the achievements of those spearheading feminist climate action, whilst inviting fellow feminists to reflect on the intrinsic link between climate justice and gender justice. 

Our diverse delegation of WECF staff and partners, – including previous Gender Just Climate Solutions Winners Delali Adedje and Lucie Gamond Rius– co-organized, moderated and spoke at several events. Read all about it in this snapshot report below: 

Session: Feminist diplomacy as a lever for climate justice 

The full event featured 4 dedicated sessions, and we were honored to co-host the session dedicated to the intersection of feminist foreign policy and climate action and policy.  

The session consisted of two panels, the first one moderated by WECF France’s Léah Khayat, featured GJCS award winners Delali and Lucie who were invited to give their testimony on the gendered impacts of global warming they have experienced, as well as how they implement equitable solutions on the ground. 

Delali shared about Yokumi’s work in Togo, a feminist enterprise she founded in September 2019 to ensure access to market for the shea butter cosmetics products manufactured by 50 rural women structured in a cooperative in Kelizio, close to the Fazao-Malfakassa National Park. Delali and the cooperative members won the GJCS awards for their outstanding initiative to decarbonize the shea butter manufacturing process, through the installation of a solar PV unit, improved stoves and a biodigester using vegetable waste from the shea nuts.  Delali gave a vibrant testimony of the efforts she had to go through between 2022 and 2025 to find accessible and reliable funding to implement this project, even though the climate mitigation and adaptation outcomes are strong. She also explained how climate change and ecosystem degradation is affecting the availability of the resource, as well as the working conditions of local women in this sector. 

Lucie’s intervention brought to the forefront the devastating impacts of the physical and sexual violence women climate refugees are suffering as they are forced to flee their home country and find themselves stranded on the exile road, without safe shelters, nor support to start a new life. She explained how simple technical trainings and childcare support – activities she implemented in Turkey – can transform women refugees into powerful actors of a just energy transition. 

The second panel, moderated by Marine Pouget (CAN) and consisting of Hindou Oumarou (AFPAT), Christine Chambon (AFD) and Rebecca Heuvelmans (WECF), moved the discussion from practice to policy and back again. We dove deeper into what needs to happen at COP30 and beyond to fully mainstream and implement gender-responsive climate action. 

Rebecca Heuvelmans highlighted the particular importance of COP30 as a “gender COP”, given that this year a new Gender Action Plan needs to be adopted. Breaking down the recommendations by the Women and Gender Constituency’s gender working group into two key words, Rebecca Heuvelmans stressed that the next GAP should be both “Ambitious and Actionable”. 

“Climate action is most effective when it is just and it is most actionable when it is ambitious. The next GAP needs to be both.”  – Rebecca Heuvelmans (WECF)

Have a look at the amazing live drawing prepared for a summary of the session:  

*small correction, the organization La Framboisières works in France, but its founder has previously worked in Turkey

Connection, Community & Celebration: 10 Years of Gender Just Climate Solutions 

 After the panels, we were excited to open up the Gender-Just Climate Solutions world to this community of feminist changemakers.  

Building on the first celebration which took place during the UNFCCC intersessionals, this intimate evening event included short pitches from those within WECF who have built, supported, and amplified GJCS, as well as stories from previous Awardees Delali and Lucie who shared about the impact of the award, its mentoring programme and diverse community. Through an interactive exercise, we reflected how in one way or another all our work touches on the intersection of climate and gender justice and urged those in the room that we all have a unique role to play in strengthening the ecofeminist movement. 

We closed off the evening with a vibrant evening reception joined by all participants of the “Avec Nous / Pour Toutes” conference. 

Keep an eye out for the next article featuring our engagement in the official FFP Conference and additional events! 

The co-organisation by and participation of WECF France at the “Avec Nous / Pour Toustes” conference has been made possible with the support from the European Union.
The content of the event and its recap article are the sole responsibility of WECF and partner organisers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.