Gender Responsiveness

In the context of climate change, gender responsiveness refers to an approach to climate policy, mitigation and adaptation strategies and programs that takes into account the differential impacts of climate change across gender identities. Women and girls comprise the majority of the world’s poor who are dependent on natural resources made vulnerable by the impacts of the changing climate and biodiversity loss. The higher risks and burdens that women and girls face in relation to climate change are also due to a range of sociocultural factors; the care-giving responsibilities that traditionally fall to women such as child-rearing and water collecting will become more labor-intensive and riskier as resources become scarcer on a warming planet. 

Climate-related disasters also exacerbate gender health disparities. Extreme weather has been found to have an adverse effect on the bodies of people who can get pregnant and menstruate and gender diverse people. A gender responsive approach to climate change addresses these disparities. This could look like everything from ensuring women are represented in climate negotiation and policy-making spaces, to funding girl’s education. The UNFCCC has established an agenda to address gender and climate change and the Paris Agreement references gender-responsive adaptation action and capacity-building.