Heat, Health and Gender Workshop Global Diversities and Inequalities Research Centre

A four-day Workshop on Safeguarding Women’s Wellbeing in a Changing Climate

15 - 18 September 2025

We are organising a four-day interactive online research workshop that will bring together participants from the UK and Mexico to develop practical cooling solutions for heat-related challenges caused by climate change. This workshop combines collaborative research sessions with a challenge prize competition designed to foster long-term partnerships and ongoing research between the two countries. Our goal is to create sustainable solutions that can make a real difference in the lives of these resilient women and their communities.

The workshop will unfold over four engaging days, beginning each morning with inspiring keynote presentations from indigenous community leaders and leading researchers. These sessions will provide crucial insights into both the lived experiences of those facing extreme heat challenges and the latest scientific understanding of climate-related health impacts. Participants will also have opportunities to connect through mentor speed-dating sessions and dedicated networking time, allowing researchers from both countries to build meaningful professional relationships.

The workshop will culminate on the fourth day with an exciting pitch session where teams will present their innovative cooling interventions designed to combat heat stress. Three winning teams will receive £3,000 each to implement their solutions, providing real resources to turn ideas into action. The online format makes this valuable opportunity accessible to selected participants at no cost.

This workshop represents a unique opportunity to contribute to urgent climate adaptation work while building international research collaborations that can continue long after the workshop concludes.

The challenge prize

At the heart of our workshop is an exciting challenge prize, "From Nets to Chill: Sustainable Cooling for Mexico's Women Fishers". This competition seeks innovative proposals for developing sustainable cooling solutions specifically designed for indigenous and rural fisherwomen in Mexico, addressing the urgent need for climate change adaptation in the face of intensifying heat waves. Through this challenge, we aim to empower fisherwomen, strengthen their resilience to extreme heat, enhance their ability to adapt, and foster meaningful collaboration between early career researchers from the UK and Mexico to co-create culturally relevant and community-driven solutions.

During the workshop, we will launch an open call inviting early career researchers from both countries to form international teams of five people each. These diverse, cross-cultural partnerships are essential to developing solutions that truly bridge different perspectives and expertise. Immediately following the workshop's conclusion, each team will submit short proposals outlining their innovative cooling solutions, setting the stage for an exciting competitive process.

Our selection committee will carefully review all submissions and shortlist the five most promising proposals based on  the following key criteria:

• Solutions that contribute meaningfully to the economic development and social welfare of Mexico while directly addressing the heat stress challenges faced by fisherwomen
• Demonstrate genuine long-term impact with the potential to generate positive development-related outcomes over the next ten years
• Showcase strong collaborative efforts between researchers from the UK and Mexico

The shortlisted teams will then prepare detailed proposals and present their ideas in a dynamic "Shark Tank" style presentation to the selection committee. These presentations will highlight each team's innovation, the feasibility of their proposed solutions, and their potential impact in strengthening women's resilience to heat stress. Following these presentations, the committee will deliberate and select three winning teams, with results announced within seven days of the workshop's completion.

Each winning team will receive £3,000 to implement their proposed solutions, providing real resources to transform innovative ideas into tangible change for the communities that need them most.

Who can apply

We welcome applications from anyone who holds a minimum of an undergraduate degree in any subject discipline. The interdisciplinary nature of climate challenges means that valuable perspectives can come from diverse academic backgrounds, whether in environmental science, social work, engineering, anthropology, public health, or any other field.

Participants should be comfortable collaborating in either English or Spanish, as our workshop will bring together researchers from both language communities. All applicants must be based in either the United Kingdom or Mexico to align with our bilateral research partnership.

Most importantly, we are seeking individuals who share our commitment to gender equity, climate justice, and respectful community engagement. These values are central to our work with indigenous fisherwomen communities, and we want to ensure that all participants approach this research with cultural sensitivity and a genuine dedication to collaborative, community-centred solutions.

We encourage applications from people at all career stages who are passionate about making a meaningful contribution to climate adaptation research and building bridges between academic knowledge and community needs.

Please submit your application by Monday 11 August 2025 at 11:59pm (UK Time) by completing the online form.