OUR PODCASTThe Women Leading on Climate Podcast — conversations with fearless women climate leaders from Canada and around the world who are stepping up and digging in
Hosted by Canada’s former Minister of Environment and Climate Change and WLOC founder, Catherine McKenna, Women Leading on Climate sits down with powerhouse women from Canada and across the globe who not only aren’t giving up on climate but are digging in - they know what’s at stake and are pushing action and solutions in a range of different and innovative ways.
She asks them what they’re focused on and where they see opportunities for action at this really challenging time. She also talks to them about personal things like what they do to get away from it all when things are tough - and even what song they would want on her dinner party playlist!
Episode 7: Fighting for a clean energy transition
This week, Catherine McKenna speaks with Ingrid Reumert, Senior Vice President at Ørsted, about the critical role women play in climate action and the renewable energy transition. They discuss the challenges and opportunities in the energy sector, the importance of business leadership in climate initiatives, and the need for regulatory innovation. Ingrid shares her insights on self-care for climate leaders and the significance of empowering the next generation of women leaders.
Episode 6: Taking Climate Action to Court
We dig into Indigenous guardians on the frontlines, how climate finance needs to reach the communities doing the work, and turning wildfire challenges into opportunities. Valerie and Hindu bring the goods on culture, land stewardship, and why women are leading the charge in their communities.
From student activists to senior legal strategists, the climate litigation movement is gaining unprecedented momentum. In this episode, Catherine McKenna speaks with two remarkable women using the law as a powerful tool for climate accountability.
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Sophia Mathur, an 18-year-old climate activist from Sudbury, shares her journey from drawing pictures for politicians at age eight to becoming the lead plaintiff in a landmark youth climate lawsuit against the Ontario government. Now starting university, Sophia reflects on how a childhood pinky promise with Catherine sparked years of activism—from launching Canada's first Fridays for Future climate strikes to partnering with Ecojustice to hold the Ford government legally accountable for backtracking on climate commitments.
Laura Clarke, CEO of ClientEarth, on how strategic litigation can accelerate climate action. She discusses ClientEarth's work tackling greenwashing in aviation and fossil fuels, enforcing the polluter pays principle, and supporting the historic International Court of Justice advisory opinion initiated by Pacific Island students. Laura explains how attribution science is strengthening climate cases, why targeting the "enablers" of fossil fuel expansion matters, and how legal precedents—even in cases that don't succeed—are shifting corporate behaviour and government accountability worldwide.
These conversations reveal why litigation has become essential to climate action—and how advocates of all ages are using the law to demand the future we need.
Episode 5: The next generation of Indigenous leadership
In this episode Catherine talks with two powerhouse Indigenous leaders—Valérie Courtois from Canada and Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim from Chad—about why Indigenous-led climate action isn't just important, it's essential.
We dig into Indigenous guardians on the frontlines, how climate finance needs to reach the communities doing the work, and turning wildfire challenges into opportunities. Valerie and Hindu bring the goods on culture, land stewardship, and why women are leading the charge in their communities.
It's all about interconnectedness—nature, climate, knowledge—and why listening to Indigenous voices is key if we want real climate solutions. Urgent, hopeful, and packed with wisdom.
Episode 4: Gina McCarthy - A Climate Czarina
In this episode Catherine is joined by Gina McCarthy, Former White House "Czarina" & head of America's All In. Gina is tough, funny, and all about delivery!
We dig into how to turn targets into action—build coalitions, speak like a human (health, jobs, fairness), and stay hopeful while acting with a backbone. So many awesome stories from Kigali to the West Wing!
Episode 3: COP30 in Brazil - women of the Global South take the lead
This week, we're on the ground in Brazil bringing you the voices that matter most ahead of COP 30.
First, COP CEO Ana Toni shares her bold vision for what these negotiations can—and must—achieve. Then, join Brazilian youth activist Paloma Costa ahead of her journey upriver to Belém, where she’s traveling in solidarity with the Indigenous communities of the Amazon.
Finally, climate and nature policy expert Ilona Szabo breaks down the stakes: what does the global South need from this COP, why Brazil's challenges are unique, and what real outcomes she's demanding from world leaders.
Three women. Three urgent perspectives. One critical moment for the Global South and our planet.
Episode 2: Katharine Hayhoe on how we’re not alone, why there’s hope, and how we need to talk
Catherine McKenna and Katharine Hayhoe dive into the reality that while the fight against climate change is intensifying, real progress is happening. They explore how we move forward together: by grounding political discourse in shared facts, mobilizing unexpected allies in faith communities, and mastering the art of climate communication that actually lands with people.
Katharine and Catherine get candid about the barriers women face—from online hate and misogyny to burnout—and why self-care isn't selfish, it's strategic. But the heart of their message is this: individual voices matter, and when amplified through community solidarity, they become unstoppable.
Whether you're a woman in science facing pushback or someone just finding your climate voice, this episode is a reminder that women and girls are leading this movement—and there's a place for you in it.
Episode 1: Christiana Figueres on keeping 1.5C alive
The Women Leading on Climate podcast launches with someone known around the world for her blunt, no BS take on climate, the indomitable Christiana Figueres.
A key architect of the Paris Agreement, Christiana talks about why 1.5°C is still alive - even 10 years after Paris - , the “magic” of women’s leadership in negotiations, and what you can do today to make a difference.