22/04/2026 Women@PACE | Parliamentary Network for a Healthy Environment
The Women@PACE group and the Parliamentary Network for a Healthy Environment held a joint meeting focusing on the links between environmental challenges, public health and gender equality.
Opening the event, Aurora Floridia, Chairperson of the Environment Network and member of the Women@PACE Bureau, stressed the urgency of the issue, noting: “When we talk today about health and health protection, we cannot ignore its deep connection with environment.” She also highlighted the broader implications, adding: “Ensuring a healthy environment has become essential for both protecting health and safeguarding democracy.”
Participants then exchanged views with Anne Mahrer, Co-President of KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz, who underlined the role of civic engagement, stressing the importance of “age being no barrier to getting involved and winning”. Hannah Prins, lawyer and climate activist, highlighted the growing mobilisation of citizens, scientists and legal actors in response to the climate crisis. Emphasising the growing role of accountability, Ms Prins noted: “The climate crisis is already being addressed in the streets and in the courtrooms – now it is up to policymakers to act.”
The discussion also addressed the broader societal dimension of climate action, including the disproportionate impact of environmental degradation on women, the role of civic engagement and protest movements, and the need to ensure the protection of activists.
Participants emphasised that public expectations are shifting rapidly, with growing demand for stronger regulation of major polluters, the phasing out of fossil fuel subsidies, and systemic changes in economic and consumption models.
Concluding the exchange, speakers called on parliamentarians to align legislative action with scientific evidence, judicial developments and citizens’ expectations, stressing that the current decade is critical for ensuring a sustainable, equitable and healthy future.
