WSF Steering Group Meeting, 24 March 2025

The Women for a Sustainable Future (WSF) Steering Group convened online on 24 March 2025. The WSF Steering Group represents the diverse membership of the network and guides the group's strategic direction and activities. The meeting was attended by parliamentarians, former parliamentarians, a health official, and an environmental expert from Jordan, Libya, the Netherlands, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

The Steering Group evaluated outcomes from the WSF meeting held in Belfast in January and identified practical next steps for the network. The recent in-person meeting of the network addressed two pressing challenges: the rise of Islamophobia and far-right extremism in Europe, and the significant impacts of water scarcity on women’s health in the Gulf-MENA region.

On the topic of Islamophobia, the group emphasised the need for education, awareness campaigns, interfaith dialogue, and youth involvement as essential components of an effective response. The discussions in Belfast concerning water scarcity have catalysed progress in Libya, where a Libyan Senator has utilised insights from the WSF meeting to initiate governmental discussions addressing the country’s fragmented water management systems, including dialogue with the Minister of Environment.