Reflections on Climate Week: Women in Leadership as a Climate Solution

The talk around the recently concluded Climate Week NYC continues to buzz. Will the discussions there get amplified and lead to concrete action? One topic that gained momentum at this edition—women and climate—urged on the imperative to integrate more women into leadership and which could eventually emerge as a game-changer for climate action.

Amina Razvi

14 October 2024

4 minutes

Long Story, Cut Short

The relationship between women’s leadership and climate action isn’t just theoretical—it’s proven and makes business sense.
In fashion, there’s a lack of diversity in leadership. While women make up a large proportion of its workforce, their representation in leadership roles remains woefully lagging.
The urgency of collaboration and bold action was echoed in countless panels, yet sometimes without concrete strategies for implementation.

As the dust settles on another whirlwind Climate Week NYC, it’s hard not to feel a mix of both optimism and skepticism. With over 900 events to choose from—Climate Week offers countless opportunities for inspiration, activation and networking. But now that it’s wrapped, the key question I keep returning to is this: Will the events of Climate Week lead to concrete action?

This year, the topic of women and climate gained momentum. There were a number of inspiring events, panels and conversations focused on the intersection of women’s leadership and climate action. This is incredibly promising—but we still have a long way to go. I’ve been thinking about how we turn this momentum and enthusiasm into connected and intentional action.

For the fashion industry, integrating more women into leadership could be a game-changer for climate action. When we talk about climate solutions for the fashion industry, we should be talking about advancing women into leadership roles as a climate solution as much as we talk about renewables, new technologies and sustainable finance. Simply put: we need more women in fashion leadership, from the factory floor to the board room.

The relationship between women’s leadership and climate action isn’t just theoretical—it’s proven and makes business sense. According to the World Economic Forum, women are more likely to invest in resilient communities, push for environmental protections, and advocate for social initiatives. In industries like fashion, which have considerable environmental and social footprint, this is the type of leadership we need to achieve the transformation we talk about, but haven't fully realised. Empowering women to lead in fashion can unlock innovative solutions to environmental and social issues and create long-term resilience for the entire value chain.

In fashion, there is a lack of diversity in leadership. While women make up a large proportion of the fashion workforce, their representation in leadership roles remains woefully lagging. Most garment workers are women, and women are the primary consumers of fashion, but the industry remains largely male-led. This imbalance is more than a gender equity issue, it’s a missed opportunity to achieve the industry’s climate goals.

Climate Week provides a critical platform to discuss the fashion industry’s challenges and opportunities on climate, but much of the talk felt familiar. The urgency of collaboration and bold action was echoed in countless panels, yet sometimes without concrete strategies for implementation. This repetition echoes the broader climate movement's dilemma—decades of calls for collaboration and partnership with not enough action to meet the urgency of the moment. As someone who’s spent the better part of a decade working on pre-competitive collaboration, I know firsthand that collaboration is easy to talk about and much harder to actually do.

Need for collective action

If we want to see real progress, we need collective action that’s intentional and coordinated across the entire fashion value chain—from the factory floor to the boardroom. The inclusion of women in leadership cannot be seen as an isolated goal but must be integrated into broader movements for climate action and social justice. Achieving sustainability in fashion requires more than technological innovation or incremental changes; it requires a transformation of the industry’s leadership dynamics.

While there are a growing number of initiatives aimed at increasing women in leadership and centring women in the climate conversation, the efforts feel fragmented and disconnected. During Climate Week, numerous panels and events focused on advancing women in leadership, but there’s not enough collaboration across these efforts to make it a cohesive movement. With new organisations and networks popping up at Climate Week, a siloed approach will limit the potential for deep, systemic change.

I truly believe that partnership is the new leadership. To advance women and climate action, we need more than just networks and events that promote and advocate for women’s leadership, we need activation of leaders and groups in partnership with one another. Once women reach these positions, they must be supported, empowered, and connected across the global apparel ecosystem. This support will enable them to champion the systemic changes needed to reduce the industry’s environmental impact and promote resilience throughout the supply chain.

While there is still so much more to do, in reflecting on Climate Week, there is reason for optimism. The conversations were rich, the energy was high, and the desire for change and deeper collaboration was palpable. But as we look ahead, we need to focus on translating those discussions into action—real, measurable, and lasting. One solution is clear: we need more women in leadership within the fashion industry. Their unique perspectives and leadership styles can drive the kind of transformative change that is desperately needed to combat the climate crisis.

The road to 2030, the target for many of the industry’s sustainability goals, is long, but not impossible to navigate. With intentionality, collaboration, and the elevation of women in leadership, we can create a fashion industry that not only reduces its environmental impact but also serves as a model for diversity, resilience, and innovation. The time for action is now, and the leaders who can guide us toward a sustainable future are already among us—if we give them the chance to lead.

Let’s not wait for the next Climate Week to ask if things have changed.

Let’s start making those changes today.