Reflections from Wedu’s ED: How women are shaping climate resilience in Asia

I recently attended the third Bali Ocean Days conference, which is a gathering of policymakers, social innovators, and community leaders committed to protecting our region’s oceans. Representatives from Indonesia and fellow island nations (including Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and the Seychelles) shared urgent updates on conservation, resilience, and the accelerating realities of climate change.

Yet as I watched the exhibitor presentations, I felt unsettled. Four presentations in a row were delivered by white men- a stark reminder of whose voices are still most amplified in spaces shaping climate solutions in Asia. Representation matters, because visibility shapes who is trusted, funded, and supported to lead.

The women leaders who took the stage were, however, impossible to ignore. Rachel Sapery James of WWF’s Coral Reef Rescue Initiative spoke with urgency:

“Incremental action is no longer enough. Coral reefs are the lungs of the planet. If they die, we die with them.”

Hon. Alitia Bainivalu, Fiji’s Minister for Fisheries and Forestry, shared the lived realities facing island communities: village relocations, severed ties to ancestral lands, and cyclones growing in frequency and severity. Her message was clear:

“If island nations are allowed to fail, climate resilience has failed. If island nations are allowed to lead, climate resilience will succeed.”

Meeting women advancing climate leadership across the region, such as Bu Rili Djohani and Leilani Gallardo from the Coral Triangle Center and Suzy Hutomo of Women in Climate Bali, was equally energising. They reminded me that women are not waiting in the wings. They are already leading.

This is precisely why Wedu is launching the Climate Alliance for Women Leaders in Asia (CAWLA)– to strengthen leadership, unlock capital, and build the regional community needed for women to lead at scale.

Stay tuned. The future of climate leadership must be gender inclusive.