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ToT on Climate Change and Action for Women Cooperators by ICA-AP Women’s Committee

 

The ICA-AP Women’s Committee organized the first ToT on Climate Change and Action for Women Cooperators in Thimphu, Bhutan from 21 to 24 October 2024. The ToT was hosted by ICA member - Department of Agricultural Marketing and Cooperatives (DAMC) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MoAL) and was conducted in partnership with the National Confederation of Cooperatives (NATCCO, the Philippines).

 

The Women’s Committee, with support from the Japanese Consumer Co-operatives’ Union (JCCU), initiated this ToT program in 2022 as part of ICA-AP’s ongoing efforts to empower women in cooperatives to lead climate action. In 2022, the Committee, in partnership with NATCCO, developed a manual as a resource tool for the ToT. In 2023, the manual and training methodology were tested in Vietnam, following which, the feedback and suggestions were incorporated in the manual as well as the methodology. This year, Bhutan was chosen for the first ToT due to its high level of environmental awareness even though it faces serious challenges from climate change. Changes in weather patterns such as extreme temperature in different seasons and erratic rainfall are now common in Bhutan.

 

 

A total of 25 women representing government agencies, cooperatives and the private sector participated in the ToT delivered by two resource persons from NATCCO - Ms. Daisybelle M Cabal (Chief Operating Officer) and Ms. Lasalette M Gumban (Head, Advocacy Unit).

 

The ToT focused on the following:
 

  • Understanding the link between climate change and cooperative action: Participants explored how cooperatives can play a vital role in building climate resilience, particularly in vulnerable sectors such as agriculture and rural development.
  • Promoting environmental sustainability: The training highlighted practices such as sustainable agriculture, resource management, and conservation techniques that could be implemented by cooperatives to mitigate the effects of climate change.
  • Building leadership capacity among women: The ToT aimed to empower women to take leadership roles, particularly in environmental advocacy and sustainability projects.
  • Practical action planning: Participants were guided to prepare action plans to address specific climate challenges in their regions, using their cooperative structure as a platform for change.

 

The training sessions helped deepen the understanding of the trainees on how cooperatives can play a key role in tackling climate challenges, and they were encouraged to develop action plans to continue their efforts post-training. The participants' feedback was positive, and they expressed their eagerness to apply what they had learnt in their respective roles. They found the ToT manual and assessment tools helpful for monitoring and documenting the practices followed by cooperatives and farmer groups.

 

 

During the interactive sessions, we learnt about different climate-friendly practices followed in Bhutan at the community level. Some of the practices included waste segregation, refusal to use plastic bags, incorporating the 5R policy, maintaining healthy rivers and the environment by avoiding garbage dumping, etc. These examples will be used in future trainings.

 

The closing ceremony was attended by MoAL Secretary - Mr. Dasho Thinley Namgyel, ICA-AP Regional Director - Mr. Balu Iyer, officers from DAMC - Ms. Tshering Wangmo, Mr. Namgay Wangdi and Mr. Pema Wangchuk. In his remarks. Mr. Namgyel thanked the ICA-AP Women’s Committee for organizing the ToT on climate change in Bhutan and observed that the theme is very relevant to the country. He also expressed his appreciation for selecting women as the recipients of the training and noted that when women are educated, the whole nation gets educated. Mr. Iyer, in his remarks, thanked DAMC for hosting the ToT and selecting a rich pool of trainees who participated actively. He also thanked the resource persons from NATCCO for their invaluable contribution to making the program a success. Ms. Wangmo delivered the vote of thanks on behalf of DAMC. The trainees committed to developing action plans to take forward the knowledge they acquired and promote suitable climate-friendly activities that can be incorporated by cooperatives and farmer groups. The closing ceremony concluded with the awarding of participation certificates to the trainees by Mr. Namgyel.