Rep. Lee Introduces Women and Climate Change Act of 2018

Mar 8, 2018
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On February 5, 2018, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduced the Women and Climate Change Act of 2018 (H.R.4932) to “address the disparate impact of climate change on women and support the efforts of women globally to address climate change, and for other purposes.”

The bill would establish the Federal Interagency Working Group on Women and Climate Change to coordinate and implement policies across the federal government regarding climate change impacts on women around the world. The group’s representatives would be drawn from more than 13 different offices, including representatives from the State Department, USAID, the National Science Foundation, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Such policies would aim to enhance women’s capacity to mitigate and adapt to climate change. For example, the bill plans to develop programs to educate women and girls about climate change, while also collecting data on how to best empower local communities. The bill also stresses the importance of cooperation with international civil society and multilateral organizations. For instance, the bill would help implement the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as part of its strategy. SDGs are a set of 17 global goals across social, economic, and environmental areas to promote sustainable development (read more about how EESI is helping to implement the SDGs).