Hosted by CUBE, this event positioned indigenous women at the heart of the climate change debate.
Climate change does not affect everyone equally. In the fishing villages of coastal Sinaloa, Mexico, indigenous grandmothers navigat rising temperatures and environmental precarity while remaining largely invisible in climate adaptation discourse. Drawing from collaborative research in Guacaporito, this lecture revealed how age, gender, and indigeneity intersected to shape climate vulnerability and resilience in profound ways that conventional approaches had often overlooked.
Through the voices and adaptive strategies of fisherwomen themselves, the lecture explored why climate action failed without attention to Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI). These women were not passive victims but knowledgeable experts whose ecological wisdom and community innovations offered critical insights for climate justice.
The lecture challenged architects, designers, and built environment scholars to recognise whose knowledge counted, who became invisible in fragile environments, and why centring marginalised communities transformed how we understood and responded to our warming world.
Speaker
Dr Mariam Akinlolu is a Senior Lecturer in the School of the Built Environment at London Metropolitan University, where she also serves as Head of Research and Knowledge Exchange. Her research focuses on gender equity, climate justice, and social inclusion in construction and built environment sectors, with international partnerships across Mexico, Brazil, and South Africa.
Discussant
Ronke Shoderu is an Associate Professor and Deputy Head of Law in the Guildhall School of Business and Law. Her research explores sustainable development and governance within the World Trade Organisation, alongside student engagement and belonging. She champions innovative pedagogical approaches including problem-based learning and audience response systems.
Chair
Dr Matthew Barac is an architect, educator, and researcher. He leads the Afropolitan suite of research and knowledge exchange projects at London Metropolitan University, central to its partnership with the Africa Centre. He is Director of CUBE: Centre for Urban and Built Ecologies, Acting Chair of the UoA32 Panel for REF2029, and Head of Postgraduate Research at the School of Art, Architecture and Design.
Photo credits: Ronke Shoderu, 2025
Details
| Date/time |
Wednesday, 13 May 2026 5.30pm - 7.00pm |
|---|---|
| Book ticket | Event ended |
| Location |
Online
|
