Women and Climate Justice: The Overlooked Connection

You’re looking at a powerful snapshot: a woman—likely from a climate-vulnerable region—navigating floodwaters while carrying a child.

It’s a visceral reminder that the climate crisis isn’t gender-neutral: women and girls often bear the brunt of environmental shocks, from disasters to displacement to the skyrocketing burden of unpaid care. Let’s dive into why women’s roles and risks in climate justice truly matter—and why they’ve been overlooked for too long.

Why Women Are Central to Climate Justice

1. Disproportionate Impacts

Women and girls, especially in low-income and rural areas, are disproportionately affected by climate hazards. They typically shoulder more of the burden of securing food, water, and firewood—tasks made harder by droughts, floods, and erratic weather. In disasters, women and children are 14 times more likely to die than men, and four out of five displaced people are women or girls (United Nations, UN Women).
Economic impacts are also gendered: female-headed rural households lose about 8% more income during heatwaves and 3% more during floods—adding up to a massive $53 billion in global losses annually (AP News).

2. Structural Inequalities and Violence

Women face systemic barriers: less access to land, credit, technology, education, and government services (Climate Change Academy, genderlawjustice.org, UN Sustainable Development Goals). In crises, gender-based violence spikes: displacement, resource scarcity, and breakdowns in social protections lead to higher rates of sexual assault, domestic abuse, and exploitation (Earth.Org, UN Women). For instance, after Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar, domestic violence increased sharply (Earth.Org).

3. Women as Agents of Change

Countless women are transforming the climate conversation—from grassroots organizers to policy leaders. They’re leading sustainable agriculture, seed preservation, reforestation, and community resilience efforts. Empowering women could boost yields by 20–30%, potentially feeding an additional 100–150 million people (United Nations).
But their inclusion is still limited: women represent only 34% of climate negotiating teams, 27% of climate ministry leadership, and less than 20% of senior scientific roles in climate-related fields (Climate Change Academy).

Feminist Climate Justice: A Framework for Real Change

UN Women and other advocates push for feminist climate justice, a comprehensive lens grounded in four key pillars: recognition, redistribution, representation, and reparation (UN Women).

• Recognition: Valuing women’s knowledge—including that of indigenous and rural women—and unpaid labor
• Redistribution: Redirecting resources and financing toward social welfare and women-led initiatives
• Representation: Including women equitably in decision-making and leadership roles
• Reparation: Ensuring climate funds and justice are directed to those most impacted and historically marginalized

A recent Indian framework calls for feminist leadership, strengthening women-led cooperatives and SHGs, boosting regional-language climate media, and aligning climate action with existing welfare schemes (The Times of India).

Real-World Stories Making a Difference

• Indigenous Women Leaders: Today’s Guardian profiles five incredible women—from the Amazon to Southeast Asia—who lead emancipation, land rights, weaving cooperatives, and climate resilience for their communities (The Guardian).
• Fashion Industry Vulnerabilities: In Tamil Nadu, garment workers—mostly women—are facing extreme heat, poor conditions, and health risks due to climate shifts. Yet, brands often ignore worker safety when building climate strategies (Reuters).

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