As a Maldivian woman, discussions and negotiations around climate change are very familiar territory. I grew up in a small island nation that has been very active in the intergovernmental climate negotiations. Climate impacts, adaptation and loss and damage are an everyday part of our realities. This year though, I was in a new position of leading an observer organisation’s delegation to the Conference of the Parties (COP27), in Egypt. Here I share some reflections on my experience:
As a unique leader in a sector in need of change
I am fully aware that there is a diversity gap when it comes to climate and environment organisations headquartered in the UK. Especially at leadership level. Recent research studies (see here and here) tell us that we are in fact one of the least diverse and inclusive sectors in the country, with only 7% of senior leaders being from ethnic and racialised minorities. And honestly I don’t need more data to show me that, all I have to do is look around. At the senior leadership level in the UK climate sector, women like me – brown skinned, raised in a country on the frontlines of climate change – are few and far between. So leading a team at the world’s biggest climate conference was quite a unique experience. As a leader my foremost concern was the experience and wellbeing of my team. In the run up to the event we implemented a strategic and operational process which would create a ‘home team’ and an ‘away/on ground team’ meaning objectives, roles, responsibilities, and support structures were clear. Our team had colleagues with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds – hailing from India, Canada, Pakistan, Ireland, Syria, the UK and Egypt – and so my lived experience of navigating work travel and intergovernmental spaces was helpful. I felt proud to steward such an experienced international team! I like to use a Situational Leadership Model where possible, meaning I can switch between different leadership frames to meet the needs of our team and objectives. It was helpful to use that agility in a fast paced environment like the COP, where my team were doing a lot and facing different challenges and opportunities on a daily basis.
Championing public engagement as the key to unlock ambitious climate action
Climate Outreach is an international organisation, headquartered in the UK. CO believes that public engagement is critical to build a social mandate on climate change that drives ambitious climate action. We go to COPs to champion this message – and to ensure that the commitments to public engagement that are already enshrined in the Paris Agreement (PA) are implemented. Article 12 of the PA – ‘Action for Climate Empowerment’, or ACE – calls on governments to focus on 6 areas: public awareness; education; training; access to information; participation and international cooperation. These must be invested in by governments, businesses and civil society so that people understand and know how to act on climate change, whether that’s in terms of their awareness of climate impacts, their ability to adapt and build resilience, learning skills for a green economy, their consumer choices and lifestyles, or their voting preferences. I feel proud to work for an organisation that recognises the role of ordinary people in driving change – climate change is everyone’s problem and as we know in the Maldives, diverse people develop innovative solutions to it when they are empowered to.
Supporting the CO team to deliver high quality events
ACE hasn’t been a high priority for both governments and civil society organisations observing COPs. Understandably, there have been big battle grounds over climate finance that have taken centre stage. But as a leader of an organisation focussed on public engagement, and ACE, I wanted our delegation to be confident about our role in this busy and at times overwhelming international space. One way that I reassured them is around our independent approach – we focus on building meaningful partnerships that can engage people from all walks of life on climate change. We therefore believe that it’s really important to have open and empathetic conversations with groups, organisations and states who may have very different viewpoints. Coaching team members to feel confident in our approach is something I really enjoy. As a result of this, we were able to champion the message of public engagement in multiple events, including in one we co-hosted with the COP27 Presidency, the UNFCCC and our long standing partner Greenish – “Unlocking the potential of ACE through civil society engagement in climate adaptation”.
I also enjoyed the opportunity to share our work on the intersection of climate change and oceans in a number of events, including sharing insights on CO’s Ocean Visuals project at the UNESCO hosted Communicating Ocean Science for Climate Action event on 9 November; at Communicating Science for Policy: the challenge and opportunity in the Nature Positive News Room 11 November; and Türkiye’s Long Term Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan, at the Türkiye Pavillion on 17 November.
Leadership in the Climate Sector
The climate and environment sector has branded itself as ‘people-centred’. Yet, I can’t help but wonder why the ‘climate sector’ is not as diverse and representative as society is. This is especially curious when the evidence is clear that the people who suffer the disproportionate impacts of climate and environmental degradation are ‘people of the global majority’ – whether that’s people of colour, working class people and those from countries in the so-called Global South. This is often acknowledged as an issue and followed with statements such as “it is a sector issue” or “not many many people of colour apply for jobs in this sector.” Nothing will change until we take an active role at acknowledging and addressing the root causes of the issue. At CO we reflected on our own unconscious biases and the structural and systemic barriers for entry that existed in our own recruitment practices as a Human Resource Management priority. I am proud to say that in less than 2 years, we made significant progress in diversifying our team. We recognise that we still have more work to do as an organisation, but I believe we have demonstrated that lack of diversity is a solvable issue through inclusive leadership. I admit, with diversification, comes the challenge of unlearning what we as leaders think is good for everyone and adapting our structures and cultures to be inclusive of everyone. And this often involves looking at our culture and traditions and re-evaluating them from the viewpoint of others. It is not always easy to change and transform, but I believe that when it is for the right reasons, it is not difficult either.
The landscape of the climate sector is constantly evolving as the crisis intensifies and spills into other sectors in societies. Today we are seeing parents, businesses, sports champions and health workers campaigning for climate action. This is a sign that our mission – pushing for climate engagement beyond just government and traditional climate and environment NGOs – is starting to pay off. No doubt this creates new challenges around stewarding a plurality of actors towards some common goals- but this is something I enjoy managing as a leader. For instance, at CO, we are having to manage the tensions between being generous to the movement and at the same time maintaining client confidentiality. Another frequent challenge is the tension between financial security against maximising impact. Yet I embrace these challenges and know that there is always a balance that can be found with inclusive leadership.
Noora Firaq
Noora grew up on the frontlines of climate change – in the Maldives – one of the most climate-vulnerable countries in the world due to the country’s natural land scarcity and low-lying geography. She has lived experience of how climate change shapes socio-economics, psychology and the security of communities.
After Business and Law School in the UK, she started her career at Financial Ombudsman Service (UK). She has worked in charities, co-operatives, and ethical finance in the UK. Through her diverse career experiences, she has developed a passion for organisational behaviour, transformation and leadership and has completed the Executive Leadership programme at Oxford University, Saïd Business School.
Noora is currently Deputy Chief Executive Officer at Climate Outreach, an independent think-and-do tank working to create a social mandate for climate action.
