Earth Today | Women-led conference to showcase climate resilience solutions
Published:Thursday | July 17, 2025 | 12:07 AM
THE TWO-DAY, virtual Caribbean Women for Climate Justice (CW4CJ) Conference kicks off today with a menu of offerings, including exposure to “bold feminist perspectives” on disaster recovery, food security, health and climate adaptation.
This is together with case studies that provide real-world insights from the experiences within the Global South while boasting a high-level panel discussion and the offer of a grant-writing workshop.
Among the headliners for this year’s event are Kendria Ferguson, a sustainability and climate resilience specialist; and the Jamaica Environment Trust’s Dr Theresa Rodriguez-Moodie, chief executive officer.
“CW4CJ 2025 is an opportunity to learn from practical solutions, build meaningful networks for resilience, and strengthen the capacity to access grants and funding for climate initiatives,” noted Dainalyn Swaby, founder and co-host of The Global Yaadie Podcast, one of the organisers of the conference.
“It’s a space designed to move us from awareness to action and to ensure those leading on the ground are better equipped to keep going,” she added.
This year’s event is co-organised by The Climate Conscious Podcast, founded and hosted by Derval Barzey – with support from the Clara Lionel Foundation and GirlsCARE.
VALUE OF PARTICIPATION
Barzey has herself noted the value of participation in the event, at a time when women and men are differentially impacted by the changing climate, which has among its risks and impacts extreme hurricane and drought events, sea level rise and coastal erosion – with implications for freshwater and food security as well as public health.
“CW4CJ was launched in 2022 with a clear mission to highlight the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls, to showcase Caribbean women as powerful agents of change, and to build regional solidarity to advocate for an inclusive and intersectional approach to climate action,” she said.
“Since the inaugural conference under the theme “Invest in our Women, Invest in Our Planet’, CW4CJ has built a solid network of grassroots organisations, including youth, indigenous and women-led organisations,” she added.
“The growth of its network, from the Caribbean to its diaspora, and now in 2025 to the wider Global South is testament of its impact and value adding as a sustained movement connecting activist, policymakers and practitioner, while promoting justice and the greater inclusion of women and other underrepresented groups in climate leadership and resilience efforts,” Barzey said further.
This year, the organisers have said, they will continue to add value, with the goal to further build capacity through “social media engagement, digital storytelling and regional dialogue”.