News & Articles
Stories, events and features from ACCEC’s work across Uganda — and the goals that guide us.
Briquettes Making Training At;
ROCK OF JOY NUR & P.SCH KALISIZO – KYOTERA DISTRICT
Backyard / Kitchen Gardening Training At;
MASAKA NOOR NUR & P/S KIMAANYA-MASAKA CITY
Involving Schools Community In Climate Action.
Electricity access in Uganda is approximately 15%, with only 24.2% of that used at the household level. Increased urbanization and high cost of electricity have continued to increase the demand for charcoal in urban areas across the country. However, this increased demand has come with a cost of increased deforestation. We skilled students about making briquettes from bio waste materials as an alternative solution to charcoal. Briquettes are a form of renewable energy (bio mass) made from bio waste materials in our surroundings like slashed grass, littered leaves, beans husks, banana peelings etc. They are a perfect substitution for charcoal and fuel wood having several other health and economic benefits. At Kikungwe Secondary School in Masaka district , over 100 students got involved practically from the preparation stage to the final stage of briquettes making. We trained them about the various forms of alternative organic binders that can be used. In this process they learnt how to make briquettes without spending a single coin on raw materials. The skill is easily transferable, therefore those who learned will train fellow students and their family members when they get back home. We taught them about Climate change and threats charcoal poses to our environment. They were green about Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), fortunately by the end, we taught them briefly and reminded them of their individual contribution towards achieving them by 2030. #SDG4 #SDG7 #SDG13 #SDG15
Fighting Hunger Through Backyard Gardening.
Plants absorb C02 in the air that contributes to global warming and converts it to life-giving, planet-protecting oxygen, so adding plants to the planet is always an environmental plus. Gardens decrease pollution by reducing the amount of food that needs to be transported long distances by truck or plane. Gardeners compost organic waste, keeping it out of landfills. When gardeners practice organic growing methods they help keep wastewater and groundwater chemical-free. And by avoiding invasive species and planting non-GMO, gardeners help to preserve the rich biodiversity of our planet. Consuming more fresh fruits and vegetables is one of the most important things you can do to stay healthy. When you pick vegetables right from your garden, the vitamin content will be at its highest. Also, you are reducing the risk of eating vegetables that contain harmful chemicals–you know exactly what you're eating. In addition, getting kids involved in the gardening process will make it more likely for them to try the vegetables. Being outside in the fresh air and sunshine can improve mood and make you feel rejuvenated and overall happy. Growing your own produce also gives you a great sense of accomplishment. Here we recycle plastic bags and buckets into vertical gardens which can be comfortably placed on the verandah. With this approach, even those without land can participate in the effort to fight hunger, malnutrition and poverty from a house hold level both in urban and rural setting. A concept that we want to see groups and communities like schools adopt. #SDG1 #SDG2 #SDG13
Need For Conservation Of Namagoma Forest.
A delegation of environment activists led by the Executive Director of “Action for Climate change and Environmental Conservation – ACCEC”, Mr. Kalungi Paul, made a tour to Namagoma forest located in Kyotera district in the centre of Kalisizo town council. This came after Mr Kachope Wilson “forest care taker for the last 30 years’’ came to our office seeking support in the conservation of this natural resource. Namagoma forest is a natural forest sits on approximately 4 acres of land. It has been in existence close to 50 years. It’s a hub of over 6,000 medicinal plants and trees in addition to many more species. It’s a home to various animals, birds, reptiles and insects. It has an immense contribution in climate change adaptation as well as environment conservation. It’s well-known for cultural preservation with four key cultural points or centres with in the forest. Down in the forest valley, there is a built water system which generates water that supplies the whole of the town council through pipes. Some of the challenges we found include: Unauthorised access by passers and hunters. This has put a threat on the wild life leading to extinction of some of rare animals from the forest since its boundaries are not protected, in addition to deforestation. Encroachment of the forest reserve land. This is due to rapid expansion of the town council and land grabbing by some of the neighbouring individuals. Lack of any documentation by the current care taker about the history of the place, events and the forest itself. He has played this voluntary job for the last 30 years. Unfortunately, there is no any written information available with him for current and future use or reference. Soil and water contamination by plastic pollution from the town council and neighbouring communities. Some part of the forest is heavily contaminated by plastic which puts the health of the neighbouring community at risk since it ends in the water stream which supplies them water for domestic use. These and a few other challenges propelled us to join hands in the conservation and preservation of this magnificent natural resource. At this point, we appeal to individuals and development partners to join us in this noble cause.
Accec At World Wet Land'S Day
Wetlands play an important role in climate change, because of their capacity to modulate atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases such as methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide, which are dominant greenhouse gases contributing to about 60%, 20% and 6% of the global warming potential, respectively. There are many different factors (biotic and abiotic) that influence the function of wetlands. Climate change has been identified as a major threat to wetlands. It can influence a wetland ecosystem by increasing temperature and also by changing hydrological patterns, which in turn can alter the biogeochemistry of the ecosystem. Climate change can affect wetlands by direct and indirect effects of rising temperature, changes in rainfall intensity and frequency, extreme climatic events such as drought, flooding and the frequency of storms. Altered hydrology and rising temperature can change the biogeochemistry and function of the wetland to the degree that some important services might be turned into disservices. This means that they will no longer provide a water purification service and adversely they may start to decompose and release nutrients to the surface water causing problems such as eutrophication, acidification and brownification in the water. We took part in celebrating world wetlands day in Masaka district. Here we got the opportunity to train and exhibit two items, that is, charcoal briquettes and pavers from plastic materials. Wetlands provide us with the necessary bio-waste materials needed to make briquettes. In addition, proper plastic management and disposal protects the wetlands from contamination and instead use those plastic materials to make pavers.
Community Training About Briquettes Making
Before climate change turns into climate crisis, we need to have everybody, every generation participative and ACT NOW to stop this global threat. In developing economies like Uganda, people cut down trees to burn charcoal since it’s largely the available source of cooking fuel especially in the urban setting due to its affordability. However, with the growing population, this triggers a steady increase in demand for cooking fuel which translates into increased deforestation thus worsening climate crisis. As of 2013, the country was losing 1.8% of its forest per year (MWE 2013; MEMD 2014). Between 1990 and 2010, an estimated 47% of forest cover was lost. It is, therefore imperative that steps are taken to protect the 2.6 million ha of forest remaining (11% of total land). Electricity access in Uganda is approximately 25.6% according to World Bank report 2016. Increased urbanization and high cost of electricity have continued to increase the demand for charcoal in urban areas across the country. From the statistics above, we chose to take the lead role of training communities on how to make cheaper and efficient source of cooking fuel which is briquettes as opposed to charcoal. In our approach, communities learn making briquettes without the use of any machines while using organic (natural) binders. However machines are needed at some stages to produce in bigger quantities and simplify the process. Once all communities are empowered, briquettes usage and adoption can perfectly substitute charcoal as a source of cooking fuel which fosters establishment of several business enterprises dealing in making, buying and selling of briquettes. Here, children, youth, adults and elderly from ‘’Serinya village – Masaka City’’ took part in the training.
Combating Plastic Pollution
Plastic pollution especially the single use plastics and polythene bags have proven to be a global threat to environment as well as a catalyst of climate change. Many cities are troubled with waste management but the plastic being one of the highest leading elements. Trough research at ACCEC , we have come up with a simpler and affordable solution to fix this issue. We convert plastic into plastic pavers that are used in compounds. Despite the funding huddles, the concept has proved to be a success. This skill is transferable and once adopted countrywide, it will yield tremendous results. Once various youth groups have been empowered to start, its sustainable since plastic is everywhere. As an organisation, we need some financial support and or partnerships to train various youth groups. This will create several jobs for the youth directly and indirectly, keep our cities clean, free from flooding and general health environment. We are researching about better, affordable, safer and simpler recycling mechanisms of coming up with plastic pavers. We have gone ahead to sensitise communities about the dangers of plastic pollution and its management practices. Here we are contributing to achievement of SGD 6, SDG 9, SDG 11 and SDG 13 .
Smart Cooking For Sustainable Environment And Development Project
We had the opportunity to train the community about how to use the environment in a sustainable way through making of briquettes. Deforestation is one of the major contributing factors to climate change. Trees are cut purposely to meet simple financial needs, charcoal and fuel wood. This is because the community have no idea about the sustainable solutions available to them. Making briquettes from organic waste is an available option to every house hold both in rural and urban setting. Briquettes have proven to perform better than ordinally charcoal and cheaper at the same time. They can be produced manually using hands at zero cost. However some simple manual machines make the exercise simpler. Currently on average, each household spends at least shs 4,000 (more than a dollar) per day. This translates into an average of 30 dollars (shs 120,000) saved in a month. Therefore, households will be in position to save and meet their basic needs, school fees and ultimately contribute to climate change mitigation and environment conservation. In the pictures below, the Executive Director for “Action for Climate Change and Environmental conservation” Mr Kalungi Paul, trains some community members on how to make briquettes step by step .
Gender Inclusion In The Fight Against Climate Change
We can achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 if we leave no one behind. At ACCEC we harness gender equality by building the capacity of women and youth to take the lead role. The impact of climate change is felt globally but communities in rural and hard to reach setting have been hit harder. They largely depend on agriculture for survival and this can no longer sustain them due to prolonged drought and floods in various places which destroys their crops. This leaves them sinking in stinking poverty since they have to spend their little hard earned savings on food and medication. Such arears register high rates of malnutrition in kids leading to stunted growth and sometimes death due to hunger. We trained women under ‘ ’Twezimbe women group located at Bulando Village, Bulando Parish, Masaka City’’ ‘’in pics below’’ about climate change, plastic pollution, environment conservation and climate smart agriculture. The group has 40 members but their average age is 55. They were so happy to be part of the fight against climate change after capacity building. We have trained them how to make briquettes from bio waste materials to stop the usage of fuel wood for cooking but also to earn the group some income. They are dedicated and committed to plant trees in their gardens. We visited a number of home steads for various group members and were free from littered plastic materials. They have embraced backyard farming. This will help to improve on food security in their homes, improve nutrition and generate them some income especially during dry season. ACCEC is dedicated to reach out to as many as communities as possible to create awareness, train and build capacity. SDG 1, SDG 2, SDG 3, SDG 5 and SDG 13
Climate Smart Agriculture
Agriculture is the back bone of Uganda’s economy and employs close to 80% of the population. With the changing climate patterns, it’s no longer reliable due to prolonged droughts and un-reliable rainfall. This has led to famine outbreak in many parts of the country. In an effort to address this global concern, we train communities about the climate smart agriculture practices. Many groups have learnt and adopted backyard gardening/farming. This is coupled with the rearing of birds and animals to provide the needed organic fertilizers. Here they are able to grow enough vegetables from a small space both in rural and urban setting. This has improved their nutrition and health as well as generating income from the sold surplus as a group. It’s great to see that these groups are implementing what we trained them about. This group is called ‘ ’Fruits of togetherness’’ located in Ssenyange A, Ssenyange parish, Masaka City. Our little effort here is contributing to achievement of SDG 1, SDG 2, SDG 3, and SDG 13.
Capacity Building and sensitizing a community group called ’Mukama ali naffe’’
At ACCEC we believe that if we are to win the fight against climate change, we need to change the behaviour patterns of our communities through sensitisation, awareness and capacity building. These groups of women are hardworking and ready to take part of the fight against climate change. We train them in various hands on skills so that they can generate income to support their families and reduce reliance on nature for survival. All they need is some additional empowerment so that they can scale up their production volumes. They showcased some of the sandals they make following a recent training by ACCEC . In the pics below, we had met a women group called ‘ ’Mukama ali naffe’’ located at Kinsadde village, Kitovu, Ssenyange parish, Masaka city. Our little efforts are contributing to the achievement of SDG 1, SDG 5 and SDG 13
Capacity Building and sensitizing a community group called “Twekembe women’s group’’
As the fight against climate change intensifies, we built the capacity and sensitized a community group called “Twekembe women’s group’’ with 105 active members located at Kabagabo village, Bulando Parish, Masaka city. They highly appreciated the rationale to keep our environment healthy. They learnt the dangers of cutting down trees, plastic pollution as well as their individual carbon foot print. They welcomed the skill of making briquettes from bio-materials and do away with charcoal. They were trained about climate smart agriculture. Here they can grow vegetables from a small space in their compound yard using organic fertilizers to boost their nutrition and sell the surplus to generate some income. They learnt about environmental sanitation, that is, each member was urged to build a utensils stand, have a clean pit latrine with a jerrican of water and soap. Here hand washing with soap and water was highly emphasized. We were delighted to meet the Bishop of Masaka diocese Rt. Rev. Serverus Jjumba on our way from the field. We discussed with him the different activities we are doing in the communities. He applauded us for taking the lead role as youths in the fight against climate change as well as community transformation.
Vegetables are supplements that should not miss out on any meal
For us to have healthy bodies, we need to eat a balance diet daily. Vegetables are supplements that should not miss out on any meal. Every household has the capacity to grow them from their compound backyards upon proper training. Where community members have established social groups, they can jointly sell the surplus and get some money to meet their other needs. They can be easily grown during the dry season since they are easy to irrigate and monitor. In addition, they can be grown from unwanted plastic that would have been trashed and polluted our environment. Therefore, community groups and or individuals will be able to generate some income to meet the basic needs of their households. unity transformation.
Advancing the Global Goals
ACCEC’s work contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Articles & features
Climate Change Effects
When climate change strikes our countries are affected by prolonged drought and or floods. This leads to loss of crops and or very poor harvests. Households therefore, can hardly have a single meal of balanced diet. This leads to hunger, malnutrition and stunted growth in the children. AECU calls upon, the fight against effects that rise due to climate change. Any helping hand is welcome to help the victims and vulnerable
Africa Climate Summit 2023
Africa particularly faces severe climate-related challenges, including drought, desertification, flood events, and increasing landslides leading to displacement, migration, food crises and, death. The continent is also disproportionately affected by the global temperature rise and is projected to experience escalating physical climate risks. Additionally, African governments' limited ability to respond to the climate crisis due to debt-distress and economic shocks necessitates urgent action to provide debt relief and increased liquidity. It is crucial to shift the narrative away from a division between the Global North and the Global South in addressing the climate crisis. Collaboration and collective action are vital for all nations to combat climate change effectively. Africa is ready to contribute to global decarbonization efforts by leveraging its abundant resources, including renewable energy, critical minerals, agricultural potential, and natural capital. By harnessing these assets, Africa can drive its own green growth and support global renewable energy needs. The continent also offers a range of investment opportunities for global capital to promote decarbonization and local economic development. Focusing on the theme: “Driving Green Growth and Climate Finance Solutions for Africa and the World”, The inaugural Africa Climate Summit 2023 will convene during the Africa Climate Week from 4-6 September 2023 in Nairobi Kenya, bringing together leaders and investors from Africa and beyond to share experiences and solutions for a sustainable, resilient Africa. The event aims to champion a positive, climate-compatible vision for Africa. Sessions will focus on adaptation and resilience, renewable energy and sustainable development, and financing for climate action. Leaders will be called upon to make ambitious pledges and commitments. A comprehensive "Pledging and Commitment Framework" will be developed to guide these actions. By embracing ambitious ideas and making bold commitments, we have the opportunity to turn the tide on climate change, not only in Africa but also globally. Climate action indeed requires such partnerships and synergies if we are to meet our carbon targets and particularly enhance our adaptive capacities. While governments and multilateral institutions play a central role, civil society and local communities also have vital contributions to make. Civil society, especially women and youth, ensures accountability, efficiency, and a science-based focus in climate action. Local and indigenous communities provide invaluable perspectives, ensuring sustainable and just development pathways align with their needs. We as the Action for Climate Change and Environmental Conservation (ACCEC) believe that this a step in the right direction for the continent and the world at large. We support this cause and we look forward to attending this summit particularly the Africa Youth Climate Assembly (side event) that will take place from the 1 st to 3 rd September 2023 where we shall amplify our voices as the youth so that we stand to be counted !! FIRELESS COOKERS. Fireless cookers are simple insulating containers that allow pots of food to continue to cook for an extended period of time after being removed from a heat source. This helps reduce the use of fuelwood, open fires and indoor air pollution. Fireless cookers can be easily assembled using various readily-available materials. By reducing time spent on collecting firewood and attending an open fire, fireless cookers allow women more time to spend on income-generating and/or educational activities. Based on information from a detailed monitoring survey carried out in 2020, it was confirmed that each fireless cooker saves an average of 0.74 metric tons of CO₂ per year. The staple meals in Uganda and other African countries often require a long period of boiling. Fireless cookers act as slow cookers. In the morning, someone prepares a meal of stew or beans on a conventional fire, bringing it to boiling. They douse the fire and place the stew pot in the fireless cooker to cook slowly for a few hours. Women are freed up to go out to work and know that food will be ready to eat when the family returns home in the evening. In addition, it prevents people from acquiring illnesses and diseases associated with eating cold food since they are rest assured that their food will be kept warm for at least 8 hours. We have them in volumes for those who wish to buy one and there is an opportunity to train communities, groups and individuals on how to make them. They are affordable, clean and energy saving. #SDG 3 #SDG7 #SDG13 CLIMATE CHANGE AND MALARIA Several studies show that changes in temperature and rainfall affect the natural habitats of mosquitoes, changing the prevalence of the vector or prolonging transmission seasons (or both) in some areas, and potentially exposing new regions and populations to malaria and other vector-borne diseases. Seen in this light, climate change has the potential to intensify the global burden of certain diseases, including malaria, and reverse interrelated developmental gains. The World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization have identified malaria as one of the most climate sensitive diseases, with a wealth of evidence suggesting significant associations between changes in temperature, rainfall and humidity and malaria incidence. Weather and climate are major determinants of the geographical distribution, seasonality, year-to-year variability and longer term trends of malaria. Periods of long-term drought can reduce transmission. Periods of unusually high rainfall, altered humidity or warmer temperatures can result in modified distribution and duration of malaria, as well as increased transmission, even in areas where control is strong. Natural climate variability – including the El Nino phenomena and other long-term meteorological cycles – are important not only in explaining trends in disease burden but also periodic upsurges in cases, including atypical epidemics. A World Bank report indicates that by 2050, climate change may threaten some previously unexposed regions of South America, sub-Saharan Africa and China causing a 50% higher probability of malaria transmission. It stresses the need to build alliances between malaria programmes, ministries of health and relevant environmental and development partners (including national meteorological agencies). It also calls for national malaria programmes to integrate the management of climate-related risks into their programme activities. #SDG3 #SDG13 At Action for Climate Change and Environmental Conservation – ACCEC , our environment related intervention has 3 approaches in addition to other medical interventions, guidelines and recommendations; 1. Growing of mosquito repellant herbs and trees in our compounds and gardens. 2. Clearing bushes around our homes and use the same bio waste materials to make charcoal briquettes thus saving some money in households. 3. Training or sensitization about proper plastic waste management since plastic enables water stagnation that acts as a breeding ground for mosquitoes. CLIMATE CHANGE AND NON COMMUNICABLE DISEASES, MENTAL HEALTH Attributes of our modern world, including over- and inequitable consumption, have contributed to the increase in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and their unfair social distribution. These same social attributes, along with continuing growth in the global population, have led to increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs), particularly CO 2 , methane, and nitrous oxide, and to climate change. This combined concentration of GHGs means that Earth's average surface temperature will rise by at least 2°C by 2050, with a further total warming by 2100 to within the range of 1.8°C–4.0°C. As the temperature of the planet rises, there are, and will be, more frequent and severe floods, droughts, storms, and heat waves. These changes to Earth's biophysical system will exacerbate and extend the rates and ranges of many diseases and overall poor health among all populations. And without a lessening of background rates of diseases, the multiplier effects of climate change on health outcomes will greatly exacerbate existing health inequities between and within countries, which poses a major additional challenge to international development. One major, although conservative, estimation suggested that the extent of climate change that had already occurred by the year 2000 was directly responsible for the loss of at least 5.5 million disability adjusted life years (DALYs) in that year and that the poorest countries and populations experienced the greatest proportion of the disease burden. That assessment related only to diarrhea, malaria, injuries from coastal and inland floods or landslides, and malnutrition. The most common NCDs (heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and respiratory diseases) accounted for 60% of the 58 million global annual deaths in 2004. The current and projected growth in mortality from NCDs is mainly in low- and middle-income countries. The mental health impacts of climate change are unequally distributed with certain groups disproportionately affected depending on factors such as socioeconomic status, gender and age. However, it is clear that climate change affects many of the social determinants that are already leading to massive mental health burdens globally. A 2021 WHO survey of 95 countries found that only 9 have thus far included mental health and psychosocial support in their national health and climate change plans.
Climate Change And Hiv/Aids
The health challenges arising from climate change and the HIV/AIDS epidemic are unprecedented in human history. A ground-breaking study in 2020 forebodes that our planet could see a greater rise in temperatures in the next 50 years than it did in the last 6000 years as a consequence of human activities. Without swift adoption of powerful mitigation and adaptation strategies, these temperature changes will drive extreme weather events such as droughts and floods, alter coastlines, and dramatically affect access to adequate food, clean water, and reliable shelter over the coming years. According to the World Bank, these effects are projected to cause an additional 5 million deaths between 2030 and 2050—mainly from malnutrition, malaria, and diarrheal diseases—and force over 100 million additional people into extreme poverty. Meanwhile, to date, over 70 million people have been infected with the HIV virus worldwide, nearly half of whom have died. According to the World Health Organization, 38.0 million people were living with HIV in 2019 and 690,000 deaths were caused by HIV/AIDS. Consequently, the global burden of HIV/AIDS remains one of the foremost challenges facing healthcare systems worldwide. The overlap between climate change and HIV/AIDS is of paramount global public health importance, particularly since both disproportionately impact regions of global vulnerability such as sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and Southeast Asia (SEA) that are heavily impacted by both HIV and climate change. In this context, “vulnerability” can be seen as having two components: the stresses that people are subjected to (external) and their capacity to cope with those stresses (internal). This logic has already been used to explain the “new variant famine” hypothesis, whereby communities with a higher HIV prevalence are more heavily impacted by moderate flooding and droughts due to their relative inability to recover from these events. Environmental justice has emerged as an important lens for assessing the disproportionate impact of climate change on vulnerable populations, including PLWHIV. Environmental justice is a theoretical and activist framework that aims to expose inequities in the distribution of natural resources among disadvantaged and minority groups. HIV/AIDS can be framed as an environmental justice issue due to the intimate connection that exists between natural resource allocation and the transmission and progression of HIV/AIDS. This is particularly true in the agrarian communities of SSA and SEA that rely heavily on subsistence farming for income and food security. For example, the World Bank predicts that 1.5°–2 °C of warming will result in a 40–80% reduction in food production in SSA due to droughts, flooding and shifts in rainfall. This is especially important since over two thirds of all people living with HIV currently live in the WHO African Region (25.7 million), with an additional 3.8 million living in SEA.
Hiv/Aids And Gender Based Violence (Gbv) Hiv/Aids
Several methods and interventions have proved highly effective in reducing the risk of, and protecting against, HIV infection, including male and female condoms, the use of antiretroviral medicines as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), voluntary male medical circumcision (VMMC), behaviour change interventions to reduce the number of sexual partners, the use of clean needles and syringes, opiate substitution therapy. GBV Involving local stakeholders in problem identification and solving. Ensuring GBV services are accessible for target groups and in hard-to-reach areas.
Gender And Climate Change
Strengthening climate action by promoting gender equality Across societies the impacts of climate change affect women and men differently. Women are often responsible for gathering and producing food, collecting water and sourcing fuel for heating and cooking. With climate change, these tasks are becoming more difficult. Extreme weather events such as droughts and floods have a greater impact on the poor and most vulnerable – 70% of the world’s poor are women. Despite women being disproportionately affected by climate change, they play a crucial role in climate change adaptation and mitigation. Women have the knowledge and understanding of what is needed to adapt to changing environmental conditions and to come up with practical solutions. But they are still a largely untapped resource. Restricted land rights, lack of access to financial resources, training and technology, and limited access to political decision-making spheres often prevent them from playing a full role in tackling climate change and other environmental challenges. Unleashing the knowledge and capability of women represents an important opportunity to craft effective climate change solutions for the benefit of all. Climate change represents the most complex challenge of our time – it requires a concerted, proactive and holistic response. Gender inequality may dramatically limit the resilience and adaptive capacity of women, families and communities. It may also restrict options for climate change mitigation. Evidence shows that women’s empowerment and advancing gender equality can deliver results across a variety of sectors, including food and economic security and health. It can also lead to more environmentally friendly decision making at household and national levels.
Climate Change And Gender Based Violance (Gbv)
With the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, report on Global Warming of 1.5ºC predicted an increase in natural disasters and the subsequent devastation in communities around the world, gender-based violence risks becoming an even bigger problem if it is not properly tackled. Unfortunately, violence against women and girls is deep-rooted in our societies and the international observance serves as a symbol of resistance as well as a call to action to eliminate gendered physical, economic and psychological violence. The 2019 theme was ‘Orange the World: Generation Equality Stands against Rape.’ Climate change is recognized as a serious aggravator of gender-based violence. Around the world, climate change-induced crises have also been shown to worsen domestic violence, whether in relation to sexual and reproductive health or discrimination against indigenous communities. Violence against women is not limited to developing countries. Research conducted into natural disasters, such as bushfires and droughts, in one developed country found that they have increased the risk of domestic violence in rural regions. One of the reasons for this is the social and psychological pressure arising from loss of income resulting from the growing impact of climate change on the agricultural sector. It is also an issue that goes beyond domestic gender-based violence. A report by CARE found that “in most disasters, women and girls are worst affected”. The report highlights that one out of five women who are refugees or who have been displaced because of a natural disaster has experienced sexual violence. Climate action is therefore an essential component in the ongoing fight to eliminate violence against women and girls. The world also needs greater involvement of women in climate action, for example by putting an emphasis on gender mainstreaming in the policymaking process. Tackling the issue of violence against women and girls is an important step towards achieving the core objective of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is to leave no one behind. This aligns with the need for gender equality and gender mainstreaming. UN Climate Change continues to be a driving force in supporting gender equality in its process, through the Gender Action Plan (GAP) and the Lima work programme on gender (LWGP).
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This work is more than an intervention — it is an investment in people, ecosystems and the future. By supporting ACCEC you join a growing movement to build healthier schools, greener communities and a climate-resilient Uganda.