Strong Rural Women on Climate: Gathering to Listen and Learn

We decided to turn in a new direction for the next round of Strong Women focus groups. We know that all around the world women and girls are making enormous contributions to creating solutions to the climate crisis we currently face. It’s not a big surprise that the most promising solutions to the climate crisis are rooted in feminist principles. Principles such as collaboration, connection, creativity, compassion, empathy, and regeneration. The solutions are putting us on a trajectory that is live giving and life sustaining. Solutions that honor the fact that we are all connected to each other and the earth, come from a place of compassion, generate greater empathy and see regeneration and healing as the goal. Since the climate crisis is inescapable, we know we have no time to waste and want to learn about and highlight what rural women are doing to help end the climate crisis. The climate crisis is the largest challenge humans have ever faced. We asked the women in the focus group both how they are thinking about the climate crisis and what ways do they see a feminist approach being part of the solution? And, how do they feel about it? The group was full of activists, educators, experts, environmentalists, healers, problem solvers, scientists, and agents of change.