While Caribbean countries continue to strengthen climate advocacy and promote sustainable solutions, a deeper understanding is emerging of the injustices that disproportionately affect vulnerable and marginalised communities. Among these groups, girls and women face heightened risks to their safety, lives, and livelihoods. Organisations like GirlsCARE(Climate Action for Resilience & Empowerment), are shining a spotlight on the critical intersections between gender and climate justice.
Based in Jamaica, GirlsCARE is a grassroots organisation dedicated to empowering young girls and women across the Caribbean through its mentorship programme. Now in its fifth year, the Climate Justice Mentorship Program for Young Women equips participants with the tools, knowledge, and networks they need to become climate justice advocates.
This programme goes beyond local boundaries, centering regional voices and fostering inclusion for gender justice across the Caribbean. Each cohort enters a collective space built on learning, solidarity, and care. Here, mentees discover the importance of community and gain guidance on leading sustainable futures for themselves and their communities.
The initiative is designed to provide comprehensive support over 14 weeks, including community-building sessions, seminars, and collaborative projects. Mentees gain mentorship from climate justice leaders and experts in activism, research, and organising, receiving tailored insights, advice, and resources to support their personal and professional goals. This year’s cohort includes young women aged 15–27 from the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Guyana, and Jamaica.
“Being a mentee in the GirlsCARE Mentorship Program has completely shifted the way I see myself and the future of the Caribbean. This isn’t just a program that teaches you things. It’s a space that makes you feel seen, heard, and believed in. As young Caribbean women, we’re too often left out of conversations about climate justice and gender equality, even though we’re living the realities every day. But through GirlsCARE, I’ve realised that we don’t have to wait for permission to lead change,” said 2025 mentee Attiya Griffith.
Mentors play a pivotal role in shaping the programme’s impact. Based in countries such as Jamaica, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago, mentors engage mentees in one-on-one sessions, group workshops, and networking opportunities. The programme is more than a 14-week initiative—it is a space for collective learning, community building, and care, connecting experienced leaders with young women seeking guidance, skill development, and support.
“Women and girls are at the forefront of climate change and bear the brunt of its impacts, yet they remain underrepresented in decision-making spaces. Through this mentorship program, we are investing in young women from the Caribbean as agents of change, empowering and educating them to drive climate solutions that are inclusive and effective at the community, regional, and international levels,” said Programme Coordinator Princess Avianne Charles.
The mentorship covers key areas such as intersectional climate activism, fundraising for youth-led climate action, and climate policy and advocacy. Participants gain hands-on experience, learn to educate their peers, integrate climate into other areas of activism, and develop initiatives that inspire more young women and girls to engage in climate action.
For more information on the Climate Justice Mentorship Program and how to get involved, visit girlscare.org or contact GirlsCARE at girlscareja@gmail.com.
