Advanced Search
November 28, 2023
The climate crisis affects everyone, but some groups are more vulnerable than others. When climate policies fail to make considerations for people who are at greater risk, the results are not only unjust, but ultimately less effective. This is especially true in the context of gender equality. The stakes are high for girls and women around the world as leaders, decisionmakers, and other stakeholders prepare to gather in Dubai for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
COP28 marks the first global stocktake. Established by the Paris Agreement in 2015, the stocktake assesses the world’s collective progress on keeping global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius (3.6°F) from pre-industrial levels. Countries will be measured against their own nationally determined contributions (NDCs) which they submit every five years to identify national climate challenges and establish emission reduction targets. The global stocktake also provides an opportunity to evaluate the status of women’s rights within the context of international climate policy.
Women and girls are uniquely vulnerable to and disproportionately burdened by the climate crisis. Health disparities that arise from climate impacts, such as the increased likelihood of uterine prolapse due to extreme heat, are often left unaddressed, in part because social taboos about women's health can discourage women from reporting medical issues. Extreme weather events, shortages of natural resources, and other climate impacts exacerbate social inequalities—and gender inequality is no exception.
In June 2022, the U.N. released a synthesis report on gender and climate change. The report summarizes some of the gender inequalities exacerbated by climate change. One common theme identified in the report is that women and girls are traditionally expected to collect water and firewood for their families, which requires them to travel longer distances as droughts become more frequent. These trips can be dangerous and can put women at risk of assault. Meanwhile, the report also noted that men are more likely to migrate to urban areas due to extreme weather events, leaving the women who stay behind with an increased workload as they maintain land for which they often lack ownership rights.
These are just a few of the climate-related gender disparities that are largely left unaddressed in climate plans worldwide. A September 2023 report from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), Taking Stock: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Climate Commitments, tracks the inclusion of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) as well as other drivers of gender equality in 119 nationally determined contributions published between 2020 and 2022. The findings show that gender issues are largely overlooked in climate commitments. Of the few NDCs that do acknowledge gender-specific burdens from climate impacts, many fall short of putting forth any actionable plans.
This article will focus on the following:
The UNFPA and QMUL report found that only 38 out of 119 countries (32 percent) referenced sexual and reproductive health and rights in their climate commitments. The most commonly addressed SRHR issue, referenced in 23 nationally determined contributions, was maternal and newborn health. NDCs that discussed maternal health generally recognized the impact of the climate crisis on pregnancy outcomes, with an emphasis on the specific impacts most prevalent in that particular country or region. For example, South Sudan's NDC identified extreme weather and infectious diseases as examples of climate change hazards that are expected to further worsen the country’s exceptionally high maternal and infant mortality rates.
Of the 38 NDCs that referenced sexual and reproductive health and rights, no countries mentioned abortion care and only Dominica mentioned contraception. Yet climate emergencies can disrupt access to contraceptives and increase the risk of sexual violence, especially for women who have been displaced by climate change. Somalia’s NDC indicates that women make up 70 to 80 percent of the internally-displaced people in its refugee camps.
Increased global action on sexual and reproductive health and rights could have a positive impact on climate change mitigation. According to a report from the Malala Fund, combined support for SRHR and girls’ education is an incredibly cost-effective way to help limit global temperature increase to two degrees Celsius.
Numerous case studies and surveys have established a correlation between climate-related stressors and gender-based violence. One such study in Uganda documented an increase in rates of domestic violence, sexual abuse, and female genital mutilation during an extended period of drought from 2014 to 2018. Another study from Vanuatu found that two tropical cyclones in 2011 corresponded with a 300-percent increase in reported cases of domestic violence.
Despite the abundance of evidence illuminating a connection between climate impacts and violence against women, the UNFPA and QMUL report identifies a mere 15 references to gender-based violence in national climate commitments, representing less than 13 percent of NDCs. Guinea's NDC discusses the scenario of women and girls facing a greater risk of violence while collecting firewood, and proposes stove upgrades as a possible solution. In addition to Guinea, eight other countries have outlined potential policy responses aimed at reducing rates of climate-related gender-based violence: the Comoros, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Jordan, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, and Tunisia.
A "Global Public Health” review from 2022 compiled the existing evidence establishing a relationship between climate impacts and child marriage rates. Researchers noted that boys are also victims of child marriage, but the issue is much more pervasive for girls, with 21 percent of girls around the world being forced to marry before the age of 18. One study from Tanzania found that periods of significant deviation from average rainfall correlated with increased rates of child marriage for girls, but not for boys. The global review, which focused on South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, identified several drivers of child marriage, including lack of resources, dowry and bride-price practices, displacement, education, sexual violence, and female genital mutilation. All of these drivers are impacted by climate change, directly or indirectly.
The term “coping strategy” was used to describe families that choose to marry off their daughters because they otherwise cannot afford to feed all their children. More families are faced with this choice during periods of economic strain following climate disasters. One mother in Bangladesh stated that “because of our financial problems after Cyclone Aila, I got my daughter married [at age 14].” Another common thread was among displaced families—often from environmental crises—choosing to marry off their daughters as a protective measure against the increased risk of sexual assault in temporary shelters.
According to the UNFPA and QMUL report, Vietnam was the only country that mentioned child marriage. Its NDC briefly acknowledged the heightened risk of child marriage associated with economic burdens from climate change.
Despite an abundance of anecdotal evidence showing a link between climate events and female genital mutilation rates (there is a need for scientific confirmation), no countries mentioned female genital mutilation in their NDCs.
The increased risks for women in a changing climate is perhaps a factor behind the positive correlation between female leadership and pro-climate policies. Unfortunately, the number of women in positions of government leadership remains low. Pew Research Center reported that as of March 2023, fewer than one-third of U.N. member states have had a female leader in their entire history. Based on current rates of improvement, the United Nations estimates it will take 130 years to achieve gender equality in executive government positions.
However, many of the women who are in positions of power have an outsized, positive impact on the climate and environment. Katrín Jakobsdóttir, prime minister of Iceland and chair of the Council of Women World Leaders, is steering her country’s effort to achieve its ambitious target of carbon neutrality before 2040, among other national sustainability measures. In the Caribbean nation of Barbados, Prime Minister Mia Mottley is implementing her plan to phase out fossil fuels by the end of this decade and, with her Bridgetown Initiative, has called for a fairer international finance system that would better accommodate the need to adapt to climate change. Meanwhile, Tanzania has become one of the first nations to produce an Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (an Africa-led initiative to reduce the continent's vulnerabilities to climate change) Country Compact thanks to the leadership of President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
The connection between women leaders and climate action extends beyond government roles into the private sector. A 2022 survey by the European Investment Bank found that women-led companies achieved better environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores, while a report published by the European Central Bank in the same year determined that “[b]anks with a relatively high share of female directors (i.e., above 37 percent) display about ten percent lower lending volumes towards firms with relatively high pollution intensity.” The latter report went on to state that “the ‘greening’ effect of the female members in banks’ boardrooms is stronger in countries with more female climate-oriented politicians.”
Despite the documented importance of gender diversity for effective climate policy, female representation is consistently lacking at the annual international climate conference. The UNFCCC published its annual gender composition report in September, which revealed that women account for only 38 percent of constituted (governing) body positions in 2023. This represents a one-percent reduction from last year. Significant progress on gender equality at COP28 will be imperative to realizing the UNFCCC’s stated commitment to advancing “knowledge and understanding of gender-responsive climate action… as well as women’s full, equal and meaningful participation in the UNFCCC process.”
Author: Alison Davis
We'll deliver a dose of the latest in environmental policy and climate change solutions straight to your inbox every 2 weeks!
Sign up for our newsletter, Climate Change Solutions, here.
Top-Rated Climate Nonprofit – 4-Star Charity