Activists from Bangladesh, Honduras, Nigeria, Samoa and more share their climate policy ideas.

Young women are on the front lines of the climate movement. From organising strikes and documenting the effects of global warming to advocating to add climate education to school curriculums, they’re leading the charge for a fairer and more sustainable future.

The climate crisis disproportionately impacts girls and women. Malala Fund’s latest report estimates that in 2021 climate-related events will prevent at least four million girls in low- and lower-middle-income countries from completing their education. If current trends continue, by 2025 climate change will be a contributing factor in preventing at least 12.5 million girls from completing their education each year. Extreme weather events caused by rising temperatures — like droughts, floods and storms — kill more women than men and tend to kill younger women. And 80% of people displaced by climate change are women.

Considering this disparity, it is essential that the voices of women and girls are part of any solution. On International Women’s Day, we’re uplifting the role of young women in the climate movement and their ideas to protect the planet. Eight activists told us what actions they want to see leaders in their community take to address the climate crisis and with the help of the super-talented illustrator Andrea Pippins, we brought their ideas to life.

“There needs to be a shift in the way we think about natural resources in Honduras, moving away from exploitation for profit and instead prioritizing preservation. Deforestation is leaving many species of animals homeless and causing rivers to dry up. The government needs to do a better job organizing and funding its climate efforts. Additionally, many corporations just focus on their own interests and aren’t penalized for damaging our natural resources. Hitmen with links to a dam company assassinated Indigenous activist Berta Cáceres because she spoke out against a new dam and its impact on the environment and her community. This shouldn’t be allowed to happen. I hope that our authorities will one day recognize the beauty of our country and that we cannot continue to exploit our natural resources just for money.”

— Genesis Lanza, Honduras

“The action I want my leaders in the northern part of Nigeria to take is to make climate education a compulsory subject in schools, starting from the early stages. Give young people a chance to learn and voice their opinions on how they can contribute towards curtailing the immense danger of climate change in their society. Leaders shouldn’t be left alone in making decisions concerning the necessary solutions for a way out; there should be room at the table for innovations from young and adult alike. I also want to see equal representation of girls and women at climate action events. Climate change affects girls and women worse and their voices are needed when deciding how to take action.”

— Hannatu, Nigeria

“I hope that leaders in my community abolish companies’ and factories' ability to buy pollution credits, because if we are going to make any significant improvement against climate change we need to reduce emissions as much as possible instead of providing companies with room to produce more greenhouse gases. If some companies can profit from low emission others can too. I also hope that they will prioritize the usage of renewable resources like solar energy, hydroelectric power and tidal energy industrially and in supporting such attempts, make renewable energy more affordable and easily available to major companies and the general public.”

— Kirthana Sivabalan, Malaysia

“I would like our leaders to add climate change education to the school curriculum so that students are able to learn about its impacts and actions to be taken to mitigate the effects. Students can learn to switch off lights and computers in empty classrooms and halls, recycle plastic and walk or cycle to and from school. I also want leaders to create green jobs. For example weaving artistic and fashionable baskets out of recycled plastics, which will help address the biggest pollutant of the Earth’s oceans and also create employment opportunities.”

— Evelyn Acham, Uganda

“The leaders in communities should invest in water desalination plants, which remove the saline from saltwater to make freshwater fit for human consumption. According to the World Health Organization, 785 million people lack access to safe water, which also affects animals and plants. Climate change is making droughts more frequent and severe. Leaders can address this crisis by investing in water desalination plants, which should be powered by clean energy.”

— Farah Mkaouar, Tunisia

“I want to see leaders educate girls about fertility and population growth in school so that girls have the knowledge to make choices about family planning. If students learned about this from adolescence, it will reduce the pressure on the available resources and the effects of climate change. I also want leaders to ensure that girls are able to safely take part in ecotourism opportunities, which is when a traveler stays with local people, contributes to the local economy and doesn’t disturb the existing habitats.”

— Shamma Islam, Bangladesh

“I’d like the leaders in our global community to treat the climate crisis as if it were their own families on the front lines of it. To truly feel the urgency of the extreme weather events and rising tides. I’d like world leaders to treat the climate crisis as it fundamentally is, an emergency for all of humanity. I’d like for them to finally put people before power and profit. I want leaders to completely phase out of the fossil fuel era and ensure a just transition to renewable energy where the needs of workers are put first before the industries.”

— Brianna Fruean, Samoa

“I want leaders to listen to Indigenous youth. I believe that because Indigenous young people specifically have had a lived experience which allows them to exist beyond colonial influence. They are equipped with knowledges which contradict all of the violent systems. And from the way that I see it, it's the perfect solution. And Indigenous communities are already at the front line of the climate catastrophe. So it's like if we are actually going to address the problem, if we're actually going to address the real visceral consequences of the climate crisis, Indigenous communities are where we're supposed to be looking.”

— Tokata Iron Eyes, U.S.

What actions do you wish to see from your leaders? Share your ideas for tackling the climate crisis here.