COP28: Hillary advocates climate resilience in India, supports fight against climate change

Dubai, Dec 4: Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton highlighted the critical need for gender-responsive climate policies, with a particular emphasis on the challenges faced by women in India.
Addressing a session on Empowering Communities: Women at the Heart of Climate Resilience at global climate talks COP28 on Sunday, Clinton pointed out that extreme heat, largely driven by climate change, is a powerful and accelerating threat to livelihoods, human health, and our social fabric, and its impacts are disproportionately harmful and costly to women. She highlighted the critical need for gender-responsive climate policies, with a particular emphasis on the challenges faced by women in India.
“So extreme heat has to be viewed as one of the most dangerous results of changing climate, especially in India. It is happening, and we know it’s happening. And while we race to find big changes and transitions, we have to worry about what’s happening on the ground with so many millions of people, especially women in India,” Clinton said.
Drawing upon her longstanding association with the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) in India, the former US first lady illuminated the multi-faceted impact of extreme heat on women working in the informal sector.
“This is not just a health issue; it is an economic issue, a social issue, a political issue that I’m thrilled we are really raising the visibility up,” Clinton said, underscoring the integral role women play in the Indian informal sector engaged in labour-intensive occupations. (PTI)