Women and the Climate Crisis

COP26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, is now underway. This provides a perfect opportunity to explore the fundamental concerns surrounding gender and climate change. 

According to the IPCC, "Africa is one of the most vulnerable continents to climate change and climate variability". For example, alpine glaciers in the Rwenzori mountains of East Africa are highly sensitive to changes in temperature. A study by Taylor et al. (2006) found that rising air temperatures of ~0.5 degrees Celsius over the last four decades contributed to a rapid glacier recession rate of ~0.7km2 per decade. As this warming continues, a shift towards fewer but heavier precipitation events is expected, leading to more frequent and intense floods and prolonged droughts, thus contributing to water and food insecurity. 

Why does gender matter in this discourse? 

 

Women "in the global South are particularly vulnerable to climate-related hazards, and resource scarcity", as a result of their ascribed societal roles and responsibilities. For example, women account for 80% of the agricultural industry in Africa and shoulder the responsibility for staple crop production. With 95% of sub-Saharan Africa dependent on rain-fed agriculture, prolonged droughts and variable rainfall patterns place rural women at risk of food insecurity and a vicious cycle of poverty. Men, typically involved in fishing and livestock rearing activities, can adapt or relocate more easily when crop failure occurs. Women's vulnerability to climate change is particularly impacted when their livelihood depends on it, and is further exacerbated by their limited mobility due to cultural roles as primary caregivers, having less access to assets and resources and reduced capacity to adapt, ultimately leaving them to struggle to sustain their families.

As mentioned in my previous blog post, women bear the burden of water provision. As climate change is likely to limit natural water supplies through more prolonged droughts, and previously reliable water sources like boreholes dry up, women are forced to walk much longer distances in search of water. This places additional strain on women's health and reduces the available time for decision-making, income generation and educational activities within their communities. Ubisi (2016) found that rural women of the Mopane district in Limpopo faced with climate change impacts have a sense of hopelessness due to their inability to escape and improve their current situation. Furthermore, women left with no other choice but to leave drought-ridden areas in Northeast Nigeria are targeted by Boko Haram and face additional risks of underage marriage, domestic and sexual abuse, and human trafficking. Women are seen as commodities, and due to their lack of autonomy and enforced rights, they are vulnerable and prone to abuse and exploitation.

What does this mean for COP26?

COP20 established the Lima work program on gender (LWPG); a commitment designed to integrate gender into the Climate Convention and the Paris Agreement. There has been some progress, for example, women's participation in climate delegations has increased by 3-5% every year for the past three years. However, climate policies today do not adequately account for the distinct impacts of the climate crisis on women and girls. For example, when it was revealed that the UK's COP26 team would be all-male, it sparked outrage, as it reflected an ongoing systemic failure for female representation and their critical role in climate solutions.

 

"Women's leadership is a climate solution, especially the leadership of Indigenous women, women from the Global South, and those most impacted by the climate crisis already.".

Figure 1: Women leaders rising for climate justice at a WECAN event during COP22.

 

However, these are the voices most neglected and underrepresented in conversations about climate change. There is a need to address the underrepresentation of women in governing agencies and climate policy to find a solution to the climate crisis. This would allow diverse decision-making processes to recognise and account for the needs of all women at all decision-making levels. COP26 is an opportunity for gender-sensitive climate policies and measures to be undertaken, however, currently there remains a gap between policy and action. Elevating the voices of African women is critical for influencing global climate debates and reducing the repercussions encountered by women who are disproportionately affected. Enhancing women's resilience to climate change impacts at the local scale is also necessary. For example, this may involve adjusting farming practices in a way that is not entirely dependent on rainfall and growing drought-resilient crops.