Dear Community,

This week we are honoring Mother’s Day in various places in the world and also honoring our collective Mother Earth that we all share in common. In this context, we celebrate the incredible strength and leadership of matriarchs globally who are rising up to combat multiple crises and working every day for climate justice solutions. Matriarchs such as Casey Camp-Horinek, Patricia Gualinga, Sonia Guajajara, Jacqui Patterson, Vandana Shiva, Murrawah Maroochy Johnson, Bayarjargal Agvaantseren, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, and many more! Their unwavering dedication and passion for creating a better world for future generations is truly inspiring. 

In this same spirit, we uplift the women, children, and communities impacted by ongoing violence, and we continue to join calls for a permanent and immediate ceasefire in Gaza. We do not turn away from the horrific violence and hardships in Gaza and Israel, Ukraine, Sudan, DR Congo and other regions—our issues are interlocking. There is no climate justice without human rights.

Join us in standing in solidarity with powerful women globally and our collective mission to protect sacred ecosystems for current and future generations. Please continue on in this newsletter for report backs from critical advocacy and actions by women leaders and movements.

The WECAN delegation to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

outside the UN Headquarters in New York City, April 2024. Photo Credit: WECAN

In April, the Women's Earth and Climate Action Network participated and advocated at the 2024 United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Twenty-Third Session in New York City. Our delegation advocated to implement Indigenous rights and to protect forests, water, communities, and the global climate. In addition to participating in and organizing many UNPFII strategy meetings and forums, WECAN was honored to organize in-person and virtual events uplifting the knowledge, expertise, and solutions of global Indigenous women leaders. 

We spoke out against false climate solutions, colonization, Indigenous rights violations, and harms to frontlines communities due to government policies and financial institutions. We also advocated for implementing solutions with a climate justice framework, practicing traditional knowledge systems, upholding Indigenous rights, promoting the right to self determination, implementing Rights of Nature, and advancing policies and practices of care and climate justice. We continued our calls for humanitarian aid and an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

As part of our advocacy, WECAN submitted our formal recommendations to the UNPFII highlighting how Indigenous women and Indigenous rights are vital to solutions of interlocking climate and biodiversity crises. Please see the WECAN website for our full submission.

Indigenous women are often the backbones of their communities, knowledge keepers of the forest, leaders of resistance efforts to defend their lands and waters, and innovators of many critical community-led climate solutions, and their rights must be ensured as they act to safeguard the environment and advance critical climate solutions. We hold deep gratitude to our partners, delegates, and colleagues for all the vital work being done. From the frontlines of the climate crisis to the halls of international forums, Indigenous women leaders are advancing Indigenous and human rights, protecting global biodiversity, and defending our global climate. 

Please see below to learn more about

WECAN events and advocacy at the UNPFII!

During the UNPFII, Indigenous organizations, NGOs, and country representatives offer interventions on the theme of this year's session which was, "Enhancing Indigenous Peoples' Right to Self-determination in the Context of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Emphasizing the Voices of Indigenous Youth". The interventions are an opportunity to hear from Indigenous peoples globally about their demands for action and impacts in their communities. Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN

Left: Sonia Guajajara, Minister of Indigenous Peoples in Brazil, and Osprey Orielle Lake, WECAN Executive Director reconnect at the opening ceremony of the UNPFII. WECAN is honored to remain in partnership with Minister Guajajara to advocate for women's leadership, Indigenous rights, and climate justice. Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN Right: UNPFII WECAN Delegate Casey Camp-Horinek (Ponca Nation), speaks out during a formal side event held at the UNPFII on Just Transition and false solutions. Photo Credit: Katherine Quaid/WECAN

During the UNPFII, the WECAN team and delegates met with staff from the UNFCCC High Level Champions office to discuss safeguarding Indigenous Rights as a solution to the climate crisis. Photo Credit: WECAN

UNPFII In-Person Event: Indigenous Women Upholding Indigenous Rights and Leading Climate Solutions

During this event, panelists discussed and shared the impacts of fossil fuels, deforestation, and the climate crisis in their communities and how they are implementing climate solutions, practicing traditional knowledge systems, upholding Indigenous rights, promoting the right to self-determination, and advancing policies and practices of care and climate justice. Thank you, gracias, and obrigada to our amazing panelists and all the people who joined! Indigenous women leaders fighting for healthy and thriving ecosystems and communities for all generations are a solution to interconnected crises.

Speakers included: Dr. Crystal A Cavalier, Ed.D, MPA (Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation), Co-Founder, 7 Directions of Service, Turtle Island/USA; Taily Terena (Terena Nation), Indigenous rights activist, Environmental Health Program Consultant for the International Indian Treaty Council, WECAN Coordinator, Brazil; Casey Camp Horinek (Ponca Nation), Ponca Nation Environmental Ambassador and WECAN Board Member, Turtle Island/USA; Olivia Bisa Tirko (Chapra Nation), President of the Autonomous Territorial Government of the Chapra Nation, Peru; President Whitney Gravelle (Bay Mills Indian Community), President and Executive Council Bay Mills Indian Community, Turtle Island/USA; Majo Andrade Cerda (Kichwa), from the Kichwa People of Serena, Leader of Economy and community development of CONFENIAE (Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon); Shirley Krenak (Krenak), Founder of the Shirley Djukurna Krenak Institute, Co-founder of ANMIGA, Brazil; Michelle Cook, Lawyer and Founder of Divest Invest Protect, Turtle Island/USA; Luzbeidy Monterrosa (Wayuu), Filmmaker and Founder of Shinyak Kashikai, Colombia; With moderation by Osprey Orielle Lake, Founder and Executive Director of Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), Turtle Island/USA

NEW WECAN VIDEO RELEASE: Indigenous Knowledge is a Climate Solution: Earthen Lodge in Ponca, Oklahoma

During our in-person UNPFII event, WECAN released a new video highlighting the birth of the Earthen Lodge in Ponca, Oklahoma.

At the epicenter of massive fracking in Oklahoma, Casey Camp-Horinek (Ponca Nation) Environmental Ambassador, WECAN Earthen Lodge Project Coordinator and Board Member, and her community are leading a renewed approach to food sovereignty and climate solutions with the building of the Earthen Lodge, originating from Indigenous wisdom and knowledge of the Ponca Nation.

Please watch and share this video and support climate justice in action!

The Earthen Lodge is stewarded by the Pa'tha'ta Women's Society in the Ponca community, as they seek seventh generation survival and beyond for their Nation in the midst of the escalating climate crisis. WECAN is honored to work in collaboration on this project, which is supporting community resiliency in the face of extreme fossil fuel extraction and ongoing climate disruption. The Lodge will provide safe harbor in times of climate disaster; offer space for cultural ceremonies and teachings; and create healthy and sustainable food and medicines for current and future generations in a region where the water and soil has been poisoned by Big Oil for decades.

Learn more about the Earthen Lodge Project by visiting our website!

Virtual Event: Indigenous Youth Leading Solutions

for Climate Justice

During this virtual event, young Indigenous leaders from around the world gathered to share their strategies and solutions for addressing fossil fuel extraction, deforestation and the climate crisis. Drawing upon Indigenous knowledge, panelists discussed efforts to defend Indigenous rights, champion self-determination, and promote climate justice and care for the Earth. Find resources shared during the event here.

Thank you to all the speakers: Pema Wangmo Lama (Mugum), Program Coordinator, National Indigenous Women's Federation (NIWF), Nepal; Morgan Brings Plenty (Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe), Environmental Justice Activist, Digital Organizing Fellow, Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN), Turtle Island/USA; Judy Kipkenda (Ogiek), Founder of Koibatek Ogiek Women and Youth Network (KOWYN), Kenya; Sheelah Bearfoot (Chiricahua Apache) MHS, Environmental Justice Advocate, Turtle Island/USA; Elle Rávdná Näkkäläjärvi (Sámi), Member of the Norwegian Sámi Association’s Youth Committee, Norway; Carole Monture (Kanienkehá:ka/Mohawk), Climate Leadership Coordinator, Indigenous Climate Action (ICA), Turtle Island; Talia Landry (Mashpee Wampanoag), Youth Advisor for Mashpee NEA and President of the Wampanoag Community Development Corporation, Turtle Island; with moderation by Osprey Orielle Lake, Founder and Executive Director of Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), Turtle Island/USA

In-Person Event: The Story is in Our Bones: How Worldviews and Climate Justice Can Remake a World in Crisis

Hosted by Patagonia NYC, WECAN founder and author Osprey Orielle Lake held a transformative discussion with Indigenous leaders Taily Terena (Terena Nation) and Casey Camp-Horinek (Ponca Nation) on the power of storytelling and climate action. In addition, there was also a special presentation of Osprey’s new book The Story is in Our Bones: How Worldviews and Climate Justice can Remake a World in Crisis. Thank you to all who joined us for this special event!

Protect the Water Protectors:

Rally Featuring and Led by the Standing Rock Youth Council

During the UNPFII, WECAN helped organize and participated in a rally led by the Standing Rock Youth Council to demand an end to the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). This fight is not over and WECAN continues in this Indigenous-led struggle to stop an illegally operating pipeline.

#NoDAPL is a global Indigenous led movement protecting land and water from the fossil fuel industries that encroach on Indigenous sovereignty. Governments must respect Indigenous rights, and listen to water protectors who have been calling to shut down DAPL for over a decade. Respecting Indigenous rights is a solution to ending the era of fossil fuels!

See recordings of the rally down below:

Indigenous Leadership in the Rights of Nature Movement

During this event, Casey Camp-Horinek (Ponca Nation), Indigenous Council Leader for the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature (GARN), and Julia Horinek (Ponca Nation), GARN North America Indigenous Organizer, officially launched GARN’s Indigenous Council during the UNPFII. 

At the seminal event, Indigenous leaders from global regions recognized the importance of Indigenous leadership and guidance for the growing Rights of Nature movement, and organizers invited Indigenous leaders from around the world working on Earth jurisprudence to join together to have a leading voice at GARN. WECAN is honored to serve on the Executive Committee for GARN and support the ongoing movement for Rights of Nature! 

On Earth Day, WECAN launched a new resource in the fight for environmental justice and support for women land defenders in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region! The "Escazú Agreement Toolkit for Women Land Defenders and Frontline Communities" equips women to navigate their country's laws to achieve the protections of the Escazú Agreement.

The Escazú Agreement in Latin America and the Caribbean, represents a landmark achievement in the pursuit of environmental justice, transparency, and sustainable development across the LAC region. However, the journey to accessing these rights can be fraught with legal complexities and barriers, particularly for women who are at the forefront of defending their land and communities. The WECAN toolkits aim to support the transformative potential of this historic Agreement to build a thriving and equitable future for all, including those courageous individuals defending land and ecosystems. The toolkit was developed by the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) with support from the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice. 

Since 2022, WECAN has been working with Indigenous women leaders and allies to stop the Line 5 pipeline in the Great Lakes region of the United States.

Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline has continued to operate illegally through the Bad River Band’s land in northern Wisconsin and the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, and threatens 20 percent of the world’s surface freshwater and violates Indigenous sovereignty. Despite strong opposition, Enbridge is moving forward with a proposed reroute and expansion of the pipeline. The existing Line 5 pipeline must be shut down and decommissioned, not simply re-routed and expanded. 

As part of our ongoing efforts to stop this pipeline, we wanted to share with our network the following announcements and ways that you can take action! 

The Army Corp of Engineers has officially announced the release of a draft Environmental Assessment (EA) regarding Enbridge's Line 5 Wisconsin Segment Relocation project, which is now underway. In the lead up to this release, the Army Corps has also confirmed that it will hold a public hearing on June 4th in Ashland, Wisconsin. If you are in the great lakes region and wish to learn more, please find the following details below: 

The Army Corps of Engineers will conduct a public hearing on June 4th, 2024. The public hearing will be held at the Northwood Technical College, located at 2100 Beaser Avenue, Ashland, WI 54806 from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. CST.

The office will now begin accepting public comment on this project through July 5, 2024. Please join us in telling the Army Corps that we must shutdown Line 5 permanently to protect people and planet! Submit comments by email to CEMVP-WiL5R-CDDComments@usace.army.mil.

Please look to our social media and upcoming newsletters for further ways to take action!

On April 24, WECAN was in New York City joining the kickoff action for the Summer of Heat campaign, calling for financial institutions to put people over profits and end investments that harm communities, ecosystems and our global climate. 

The first action was held at Citibank, a bank that has been involved in environmental racism by pouring over $332 billion into the fossil fuel industry since the Paris Accords. This has led to devastating consequences, especially in Black, Brown and Indigenous communities and communities in the Global South, where fire, flooding, extreme heat, and air pollution are rampant. Stand with us to confront environmental injustice and demand CitiBank drop fossil fuels. 

Watch the WECAN livestream here.

Find photos of the action here.

During the kickoff, hundreds took action, with 53 people arrested. This action is the first of many for the Summer of Heat campaign taking place this year. Stay engaged, stay informed, and keep fighting for climate justice! Plus, get ready to turn up the heat this summer with our electrifying campaign: summerofheat.org

On April 18th, the US Administration announced a momentous federal rule that will guide how the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) safeguards America’s public lands for climate, water, wildlife, and future generations. 

The BLM Public Lands Rule counterbalances the BLM’s disproportionate multiple-use mandate that, for decades, has given resource extraction, like mining, drilling, and grazing, excessive control over BLM-managed lands. With the newly announced rule, conservation is now considered an equally essential component of public lands management. In times of climate chaos, this rule is a step in the right direction as it guides any future BLM decision-making to protect watersheds and wildlife habitat, restore degraded landscapes, and incorporate Indigenous knowledge. 

As part of the Climate Forest Coalition, WECAN and dozens of organizations, as well as over 330,000 people, participated in comment periods to push the BLM to make enforceable protections for climate resilience and to protect Mature and Old-Growth forests against commercial logging. The proposed rule from 2023 was strengthened because of the public’s unwavering commitment to protect vital forests. 

While we celebrate this announcement, we must also recognize that there is still more work to be done in order for the United States to provide an even stronger, lasting rule that permanently protects all Mature and Old-Growth forests. 

As we look forward, we will continue to advocate to ensure the BLM reliably implements the guidance that the Public Lands Rule has given them. 

In April, WECAN Executive Director Osprey Orielle Lake participated in the EarthX Congress of Conferences. 

During the conference, Osprey spoke on a panel titled, "Legalizing the Rights and Voices of Nature," where she presented on the fast-growing movement for the Rights of Nature and how it can protect ecosystems and biodiversity for all generations. 

She also was interviewed in front of a live audience on how women's leadership can be a powerful catalyst and driver of climate justice and solutions. The interview will be aired online over the next month, so look for it on our social media!  

Reuters - Comment: Dear COP29, it's time to put women-led climate solutions on the agenda

In April, Reuters featured WECAN's work in a op-ed focused on the powerful solutions and adovcacy of women leaders fighting the climate crisis. Please be welcome to read and share the full article with your communities and networks here.

See an excerpt below:

Another collaborative, women-led, international climate initiative is the Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN). Aiming to “re-frame and redirect the narrative on climate change” to ensure that women’s work in the fields, forests, streets universities, and halls of power is pushed to the forefront of the climate discussion, the groups works closely with Gulf South Indigenous women, fostering local food networks that protect cultural practices.

WECAN Joins Letter Demanding POTUS Declare a Climate Emergency

WECAN joins over 400 organizations in submitting a letter to President Biden demanding a climate emergency. Our demands include:

1. *Finally* end fossil fuels & build back healthy communities

2. Make FEMA a tool for a just transition

3. Protect workers against climate change

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women's Awareness Day

May 5 was Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women's Awareness Day, a day to honor Indigenous women, girls, trans, and two spirit relatives whose lives have been stolen far too soon. This crisis is deeply connected to fossil fuel extraction, with "man camps" and other extractive industry infrastructure further exacerbating the MMIW epidemic. Indigenous women in the U.S. and internationally continue to face huge risks as they stand up against corporations and governments polluting and degrading Mother Earth. We must recognize that these crimes are happening on stolen lands, with Indigenous communities bearing the brunt of exploitation.

We must end violence against the land, and violence against women. Let's stand together and demand justice. There should be no more stolen sisters on stolen lands. 

Please follow and support these organizations working to end the MMIW/MMIR epidemic:

@NIWRC 

@mmiwhoismissing

@sovereignbodies

Please consider supporting WECAN as we continue to uplift the leadership and solutions of women worldwide fighting for climate justice and the defense of the planet for current and future generations.