August 2020 www.womanthismonth.com 6 What would you say is the most memorable experience you have had as a biodiversity environmentalist to date? One of the most memorable experiences was being able to be in Paris with climate activists throughout the negotiation period of the Paris Agreement, which was being adopted in 2015. I was surrounded by so many passionate and inspiring women environmentalists who were working hard to ensure that women and gender was included in the climate text, with references to the need for clean energies and ecological justice. Seeing their passion and hard work to co-create a world that is safe and healthy for future generations made me feel so grateful and privileged to be part of this community of women climate & environmental activists. I am deeply grateful to the Women for Environment & Development Organization (WEDO) for such an opportunity. You recently put out a call for women working in the environmental field in the Arabian Gulf. What do you hope to achieve through this? Yes, I’ve recently put up a call for women working within the environmental field in an effort to establish a network to connect women in the Arabian Gulf. The environmental field in general is vast and very interconnected in a complex manner. The network makes it easier to identify who is available, with which kind of expertise and in which country. The response has been overwhelmingly positive with many women reaching out to me to express their excitement regarding this idea as it provides them with a circle of support. The network brings together women across all environmental fields ranging from renewable energy to ecology; scientists to activists; educators to policy experts. This network offers women in the field to collaborate, seek help, exchange expertise, ideas and support each other’s projects. This in itself can easily provide all sectors whether the public, private or non-governmental with the expertise or people needed within the region that have the expertise to make that necessary change. Women in this region ARE here, making a difference and this has to be known so that they are given the space and opportunity to grow. What are your thoughts on the current state of the environment (or specifically marine environment) in the Middle East? We are not in a great place, the Gulf countries are amongst the highest in the world in terms of carbon emissions per capita and as we all know high emissions contribute towards accelerating climate change. In addition, in terms of air quality, the Arab region was among the worst performers based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) since several Arab cities recorded levels of air pollution exceeding 5-10 times the WHO limits. It comes to no surprise then that several cities are among the 20 most polluted cities in the world. PEOPLE | interview
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