The 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) took place in Glasgow, Scotland from 31 October to 12 November 2021. Our members and accomplices, especially those from the Pacific, have been engaged in advocacy in intergovernmental spaces on climate change over the years, and this engagement with COP26 was a continuation of our exploration of interlinkages between SRHR and the environmental, ecological and climate crises of our time.
In an effort to expand constituencies of South-based younger feminists who are leading movement building for sexual and reproductive justice and creating a stronger foundation for transformative social change in our communities and contexts, we supported our member from the UK and a younger feminist accomplice from Fiji to attend COP26. The latter shared her reflections with us post the conference. Our objectives in this advocacy space included influencing member states, civil society and other stakeholders to have comprehensive responses to climate change that consider interlinkages with health, sexuality, bodily autonomy, reproductive justice, etc. as well as take into account, and providing cross-movement solidarity and support to climate justice and environmental justice movements including advocacy for a loss and damage financing.
During COP26, we provided input to the women and gender constituency intervention as well as contributed to the key demands of the women and gender constituency. Our inputs were based on our Action Agenda and focused on realizing sexual and reproductive justice for women, adolescents, girls in all our diversities and ensuring the leadership and meaningful participation of young South-based feminists at all levels in shaping transparent, just, accountable, and sustainable development policies and programs that enable the realization of sexual and reproductive justice.
As a way of contributing to cross-movement and cross-regional organizing, solidarity, and analysis towards positioning a stronger interlinked sexual and reproductive justice approach, we participated in the protest during the conference which was a response to the challenges feminists witnessed such as the shrinking civil society presence within the processes and the weak outcomes that were being proposed by states which lacked strong commitments. We hope to build up on this theme by engaging in CSW66 and COP27 in 2022.