Born as an in-depth column in 2015, the success of the "Women, Rights and Climate" initiative has turned its activity into a stable Section of Italian Climate Network (ICN). The group has been renamed over time into Climate and Human Rights Department and carries out activities aiming at analysing the link between climate change and human rights, with a defined focus on gender issues. As Department Coordinator, I develop activities on the consequences of climate change on people’s lives, analysing how to alleviate the struggle of vulnerable groups from a human rights perspective. In the same capacity, I have been participating in the UNFCCC climate negotiations since 2015, monitoring the human rights principles integration in the implementation of the Paris Agreement and Paris Rule Book, participating in the advocacy activities of the Women and Gender Constituency and collaborating with the Inter-Constituencies Human Rights Working Group. Thanks to the experience I gained at the UNFCCC and in recognition of my successful application for the UN ECOSOC consultative status, in 2019 I have started working also in a Policy Advisor capacity, using the ECOSOC consultative status to monitor how climate change issues are integrated into UN spaces traditionally dedicated to human rights.
Key Responsibilities and Achievements
Collaborating with the Women and Gender Constituency and the Human Rights Working Group on monitoring and reporting on the UNFCCC talks, advocacy work within the UNFCCC including drafting of official manifestos and statements, peaceful demonstrative actions organisation (since 2015)
Authored 50+ articles and reports (COPs’ outcomes, climate justice, just transition, human rights…)
Spokesperson for the Women and Gender Constituency, UNFCCC COP23 closing Plenary
Representative for the Women and Gender Constituency, UNFCCC COP24 COP Presidency question time
Monitor how climate change issues are integrated into UN spaces traditionally dedicated to human rights (UN Partnership Forum 2022, United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA-5), Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66), High-Level Political Forum 2022)
For more information please visit Italian Climate Network’s website.
Italian Climate Network (ICN) regularly attend the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conferences with a delegation of young observers. The delegation provides support to the ICN’s advocacy action, monitoring activities and technical reporting of the conference with detailed insights on the ongoing negotiations and side event topics.
Key Responsibilities and Achievements
UNFCCC Civil Society Observer since 2015 (from COP21 to COP26 & intermediates)
Authored 50+ articles and briefs (COPs’ outcomes, climate justice, just transition, human rights…)
Collaborating with the Women and Gender Constituency and the Human Rights Working Group on monitoring and reporting on the UNFCCC talks, advocacy work within the UNFCCC including drafting of official manifestos and statements, peaceful demonstrative actions organisation (since 2015)
Spokesperson for the Women and Gender Constituency, UNFCCC COP23 closing Plenary (2017)
Obtained official membership to the Women and Gender Constituency (2016)
Obtained ICN’s accreditation at the UN ECOSOC (2019)
ICN representative to the UN Climate Change Summit (2019)
ICN’s spokesperson on gender and human rights topics (release of interviews for Rai News, Lifegate, Giornalisti nell’Erba, Radio Popolare)
Successfully ran and participated in 6 side events at the UNFCCC, overseeing content/PR, logistics and follow-up (average 80+ guest attendance and the participation of major stakeholders as international experts and governments representatives)
Voluntary compensations – social and environmental benefits of the Faircarbon proposal - UNFCCC COP21 (2015)
Event live with Francesco La Camera, General Director of the Italian Environmental Ministry - UNFCCC COP22 (2016)
Protecting Human Rights, Health and Gender Equality from Climate Change - UNFCCC COP23 (2017)
Youth engagement in climate action in the Mediterranean - UNFCCC COP23 (2017)
ACE in action: examples of youth leadership on climate change education and awareness creation - UNFCCC SB46 (2017)
Climate change impacts and the human right to water - UNFCCC COP24 (2018)
For more info please visit the Italian Climate Network’s website
After a year of trial lessons in 2015, Italian Climate Network launched in September 2016 the School Project, an annual series of classes to explain climate change to secondary school students. The project has a multidisciplinary approach highlighting the tight connection between these issues and topics like human rights, health, waste management and climate science. The educational initiative aims at providing correct knowledge about the phenomenon of young people, raising awareness and empowering them. In the 6 years circle 2015/2020, The School Project reached, 45 schools, 30 cities, 11 regions and engaged 8000+ students.
I am the author and lecturer of the Climate and Human Rights lesson of the Italian Climate Network’s School Project. Between 2016 and 2020 I regularly travelled to Italy to deliver the project to Italian schools.
For more info please visit the Italian Climate Network website.
I joined the EIT Climate-KIC in 2018 as an event manager. I worked in direct contact with the CEO Team to deliver the events of the organisation, including major events like the Partners Retreat (the Hague) and the Whole of EIT Climate-KIC (Amsterdam). My key responsibility and achievements included:
Successfully managing 10 events across Europe (between 10 and 300 guests)
Reviewing and improving processes and procedures to bring in compliance with the EU procurement policy on transparency and equal treatment
Supporting the logistical organisation of four Regional Innovation Scheme workshops (30+ attendance on average) and contributing with some content production for the events (topics - just transition, innovation, sustainability, circular economy)
From 7 to 13 September 2017 the first Club of Rome Summer Academy “Challenging an unsustainable economic system” took place in Florence (Italy) in cooperation with the University of Florence. The Academy brought together students and academics, young professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs, artists and activists as well as some of the world’s leading social and systems thinkers. The conference offered in-depth, cutting-edge insights into the problems of our economic system and into various potential solutions. About 120 people from 25 different countries participated.
In this occasion, I wrote and delivered the workshop “Human Rights and Climate Change: the role of Climate Justice in the SDGs realisation” to one of the working groups of the Club of Rome Summer Academy.
Generative Communication (Luca Toschi, University of Florence)
Can We Still Meet the Paris Agreement? (Anders Wijkman, Co-President of the Club of Rome)
Tech for Humanity – Reflections on the Technological Revolution (Carlos Pereira, Anders Wijkman)
A New Enlightenment: At the Core of the New Club of Rome Report “Come On” (Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker, Co-President of the Club of Rome)
Ressources, Greed & Cooperation: Fishbanks Simulation Game (Orsolya Ujj, Brigitta Pulay, and Atilla Krall)
The Seneca Effect – Why Growth is Slow, But Collapse is Rapid (Ugo Bardi, University of Florence)
Solving Inequality – A Central Platform for the Health of the Population, the Economy and the Planet (Kate Pickett, University of York)
Medeas Workshop: Designing a New Energy-Economy Model (Ugo Bardi, Sara Falsini, Davide Natalini, Ilaria Perissi, Jordi Sole, Inigo Cappellan-Perez, and Sara Falsini)
New Well-Being Measures – Beyond GDP Workshop (Katherine Trebeck, Oxfam UK)
Reshaping Capitalism: An Asian Worldview (Chandran Nair, Founder Global Institute for Tomorrow)
