Giving Compass' Take:

• Sundaa Bridgett-Jones and Pat Mitchell share five lessons in climate justice based on the COVID-19 crisis. 

• What can you do to support climate justice leaders? 

• Learn more about climate justice. 

COVID-19 is a health, economic and social crisis, but it also holds out an opportunity for the world to move forward into a more equitable and green recovery.  Women climate leaders sounded notes of hope, solidarity, and urgency during a webinar convened by the Skoll World Forum in partnership with Connected Women Leaders and The Rockefeller Foundation.

“We’ve come a long way in a month,” said Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. “We now have a global recession, hundreds of thousands of people out of jobs, and great concerns about health.” But even before the coronavirus, Robinson said, “we were not on course for a safe world.”

The good news is that we’ve seen the global community is capable of changing behavior quickly and dramatically to face a serious threat. We are doing it—staying at home, social distancing, self-quarantining—responding responsibly to protect ourselves and our fellow human beings.

The climate crisis is as serious and personal an emergency as the COVID-19 crisis. The world must put to use the lessons learned in these days, namely that science matters, that human behavior matters, and that our collective power — particularly the coalitions of scientists, business, entrepreneurs and governments bringing vital innovations — are all critical to solving both problems.

The response to COVID-19 has 5 key lessons for tackling the climate crisis:

  • Science matters; we must listen to the experts.
  • Human behavior matters; people’s agency is vital to bending the virus curve and also the climate curve.
  • Collaboration matters; the coalitions of scientists, businesses, entrepreneurs, and governments are bringing vital innovation needed for COVID-19 and climate.
  • The economic crisis is also an opportunity; we have to emerge with a green, resilient, equitable economic recovery with just transition.
  • Everyone must be healthy, for the protection of all; neither COVID-19 nor the climate crisis can be solved without solidarity and support for developing countries.

Read the full article about lessons in climate justice by Sundaa Bridgett-Jones and Pat Mitchell at The Rockefeller Foundation.