Description of the project:
APWLD believes that empowering women’s local movements is essential to both achieving gender equality and shaping effective, gender-just responses to climate change. Through its Climate Justice programme APWLD supports grassroots organisations to conduct evidence-based community research on the impacts of climate change, design solutions and advocate for relevant policy and resource changes. APWLD uses a Feminist Participatory Action Research (FPAR) framework to develop the capacity of marginalised women so they are able to collectively understand, document, discuss the impacts of climate change and develop community solutions in response.
Climate impact:
Women play a critical role in coping with the impacts of climate change, yet they are too often excluded from decision-making processes. The programme aims to equip the women with knowledge and experience so they can participate in policy dialogues, and advocate for their own needs and solutions to be included into climate policies at the local, national and international levels. In 2017, the Climate Justice FPAR programme focuses on climate-induced migration.
Gender impact:
The Climate Justice FPAR empowers grassroots women particularly through improving their political leadership skills which allows them to address their own issues in relevant decision-making processes. FPAR gives voice to women as the experts of their own lives and enables them to shape policy decisions and increase their power. It strategically positions women as the researchers and experts of their community issues as well as promotes them into policy dialogue.
Scalability /replicability:
APWLD is developing a training module on the FPAR to guide its implementation by other organisations. FPAR methods are versatile as methodology and can be adapted for documenting and advocating for any community issue, not limited to issues related to climate change. For instance, APWLD has used FPAR methods in the past for implementing community-led research and advocacy on issues of violenceagainst women, land and labour rights.
APWLD – Asia Pacific Forum on Women,
Law and Development
www.apwld.org