Someone made a joke about the severity of the hardship facing families in Nigeria at the moment. He pointed out how the fathers who ran away leaving wife and children to hardship would have committed suicide if it were to be in this "maxi" hardship season.

For some minutes, I was lost in deep thought of why womanhood is subjected to injustice by the fact of its natural configuration.

If famine could make a man evade responsibility and subject his woman and children to the attendant untold hardship, what is now the lot of women who are disproportionately affected by climate and other environmental emergencies?

This is to emphasize the injustice that womanhood faces which cannot be overlooked for posterity's sake.

To ease these challenges, women need to be empowered and equipped to mitigate challenges, cope with, respond to, and build their resilience, not just to live but also to be fulfilled.

Last weekend, I joined the International Women's Communication Center under the leadership of Alhaja Aminat Goroso and the Crisis Response Team to Flooded Communities in Nigeria in a stakeholders' forum to discuss the impacts of flooding and other climate emergencies in Nigeria. This is necessary to empower and build the resilience of at-risk communities particularly women and children against the scourge of climate change and other environmental hazards.

The matter of environment and human security is our concern at Whole Planet Initiative. With you, we would rescue the planet and save lives and livelihoods from environmental hazards.

Sincerely,

Adebukola Margaret A.

Climate Activist // Sustainable Development Advocate // Disaster Risk Manager // Serial Entrepreneur.