CAREC Program announces winners of Gender Climate Awards 2024; ceremony set on 6 November 

The Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Program has announced the winners of the Gender Climate Awards 2024, with the Awards Ceremony scheduled on 6 November in Astana, Kazakhstan. 

The Gender Climate Awards is the second installment of the awarding scheme by CAREC in gender, formerly the CAREC Award for Advancing Gender Equality. The Awards aims to recognize individuals and organizations making significant contributions to gender equality in the context of climate change resilience, adaptation, and mitigation in central and west Asia. 

Below is the list of awardees to be recognized in Astana in the individual category: 

• Azerbaijan: Elmira Farzaliyeva, Founder and CEO of Urban Nature-Based Solutions 

• People’s Republic of China (PRC): Lun Yin, Professor at Southwest Forestry University 

• Kazakhstan: Aruzhan Mominbayeva, Project Manager at Centre of Green Technologies 

• Kyrgyz Republic: Nurzat Abdyrasulova, President at UNISON Group 

• Mongolia: Enkhgerel Ariunbold, CEO of Mongol Basalt JSC 

• Pakistan: Ayesha Amin, Founder and CEO of Baithak – Challenging Taboos 

• Tajikistan: Dilbar Shermurotova, Consultant & Grant Management Coordinator for local NGOs Nuri Umed & Arzanda 

• Uzbekistan: Feruza Alikulova, Communication Officer for UNESCO TVET Project Skills Development for Employability in Rural Areas of Uzbekistan 

Meanwhile, here are the winners in the organization category: 

• PRC: China Association for NGO Cooperation (CANGO) 

• 格鲁吉亚: Woman and the World 

• 哈萨克斯坦: Gumarbek Daukeyev Almaty University of Power Engineering and Telecommunications 

• 蒙古国: Mongolian Sustainable Finance Association 

• 巴基斯坦: Welfare Association for New Generation (WANG) 

• 塔吉克斯坦: Bonuvoni Fardo 

• Regional Organization: Association of Shymkent Access Alumni (ASAA) 

The winners, who were carefully selected from nearly 200 candidates across CAREC member countries, will receive the prestigious award in a ceremony on 6 November, 19:00–20:30 Astana Time. The ceremony will also feature the Lightning Talks Sessions, where the awardees will showcase their best practices and innovative contributions towards advancing gender equality and climate resilience. Full details about the awardees can be found 请点击此处进入安全登录页面。. 

Meanwhile, the CAREC Program, in collaboration with the Central Asian Bureau for Analytical Reporting (CABAR), the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan “Atameken”, Maqsut Narikbayev University and USAID’s Future Growth Initiative, will also hold the CAREC Women Business Forum (WBF) on the same day, 9:00-15:30 Astana Time. The WBF will discuss gender-responsive climate actions, gender finance in the climate change context, empowering women in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) fields, and strategies to enhance women’s participation in climate-related leadership roles. 

The public are encouraged to watch the Forum and the Award Ceremony that will be livestreamed via Zoom. Those interested in watching the events virtually may register through this link.

The CAREC Gender Climate Awards is an initiative of the CAREC计划的一项倡议. CAREC CAREC Program, launched in 2001 and supported by the CAREC秘书处设在亚洲开发银行（亚行）, signifies a committed partnership of countries and development partners working collaboratively to foster development through regional cooperation in central and west Asia.