The C40 Women4Climate conference has organized women mayors all over the world to work within the framework of municipal governments to mitigate the effects of climate change in their respective areas. For instance, in Caracas, Venezuela, under the mayorship of Helen Fernández, women are taking initiative to protect the environment at the local level. Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris and the chairwoman of C40, explains that mayors are closer to the climate issues emerging at local levels, making them more committed to solving these issues than larger governments are. Zandile Gumede, the first woman mayor of Durban, South Africa, was elected in part due to her leadership on environmental issues. Photo credit: STR/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
