This International Women's Day, we are taking a moment to reflect on the immense gratitude we hold for the women who have paved a path for us. Over history, women leaders have fought for equal rights, not only for themselves, but for their families, communities, and the environment. We wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for a group of brave female activists before us, who gave us the confidence to break through barriers, showing us that women can be powerful leaders of change while also taking care of their community.
We have come a long way, but there is still so far to come.
Climate change continues to wreak havoc on our environment, impacting the health and wellbeing of so many with the depletion of natural resources and climate disasters. Our reliance on fossil fuels is only getting worse, creating green house gas emissions and global warming leading to drought and poverty around the world. Unfortunately, women and girls are disproportionately impacted by the damages of climate change, the UN estimates that 80% of those displaced by climate change are women. In fact, one of the top impacts to improving climate change, according to Project Drawdown, is educating girls.
Women's firsthand experience of the impact of climate change has made them uniquely qualified to fight for climate reform. This International Women's Day, we honour the climate leaders who have inspired us in the past, and set our intention on building many female climate change leaders in the future.
Wangari Maathai founded the Green Belt Movement to improve deforestation in Kenya by working with women's groups to teach women how to plant trees and earn a living from the land. The movement has trained 30,000 women in trades to raise them out of poverty, and planted over 51 million trees. She is the first African woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize in 2004.
American activist Winona LaDuke's non-profit the White Earth Land Recovery Project has revived the cultivation of wild rice in Minnesota, and sells traditional foods under its label Native Harvest. She's also the cofounder of Honor the Earth, a Native-led organization that provides grants to Native-run environmental initiatives, and the first Green Party leader to gain an electoral vote.
Author and social activist Naomi Klein wrote, No Logo, Shock Doctrine, as well as, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. A critic of capitalism, her latest mission has been to fight for reduced emissions. Her books on climate change are award-winning and some of the most influential materials of this decade.