This week, the U.S. Embassy in Cairo launched Women and the Environment Week, a series of events from March 10-16 focused on the vital role women are playing in the fight against climate change.
The program will bring together women environmentalists, content creators, and filmmakers to raise awareness about climate change through their participation in a series of film screenings, workshops, and talks at the U.S. Embassy’s American Spaces in Cairo and Alexandria.
The week-long program kicked off with a screening of Exposure (2022), a documentary that tells the story of 11 women—four of them from Arab-majority countries—who travelled to the North Pole to focus the world’s attention on the climate crisis. Following the screening, attendees discussed the film with its director, American filmmaker Holly Morris, and one of the expedition’s participants, Anisa Al Raissi from Oman. Morris is also offering a series of masterclasses and workshops on documentary filmmaking and digital storytelling throughout the week.
In discussing the vital role women are playing to raise awareness about climate change, Deputy Chief of Mission Nicole Shampaine stated, “In November, Egypt hosted the UN Climate Change Conference, COP27, where President Biden joined leaders from Egypt and around the world to advance a plan of action in the fight against climate change. This week’s events build upon that work by bringing together women leaders from the environmental and arts communities to continue raising awareness about the detrimental impacts of climate change and the danger of inaction.”
Since 1978, the U.S. government, through USAID, has contributed over $30 billion dollars to Egypt’s development, representing one of the most substantial assistance commitments by the U.S. government to any country in the world. Over $300 million are committed to protect Egypt’s natural resources and build resilience to climate change, including $200 million in environmental education and awareness, conservation of wildlife reserves, and eco-friendly tourism, as well as the establishment of ten International Applied Technology Schools that include environmental education in the curricula and link secondary school students with green jobs.
