Prof. Joyashree Roy and Dr. Shreya Some talk about the existing social dynamics, embedding gender considerations, and facilitating women’s participation in the design and implementation of climate change adaptation projects in their recent article “How different initiatives about climate change can improve gender equality and progress toward SDG 5”.
Gender inequality originating from historical, socioeconomic, developmental processes, and deeply rooted social norms is a major factor exacerbating vulnerability to climate change impacts across sectors and regions. An important question in this context is whether ongoing adaptation projects, implemented to reduce climate risks and existing vulnerabilities, are widening or resolving this historical burden of gender inequality.
Prof. Joyashree, Dr. Shreya, and their colleagues reviewed more than 17,000 global studies across nine major systems and sectors and synthesized evidence on climate adaptation projects’ positive and negative impacts on gender equality.
The assessment found that there is a lack of targeted action for enhancing gender equality. Both positive and negative impacts on gender equality have been created in all nine major systems and sectors. The study pointed out that it is crucial to comprehend the context in which measures taken to adapt to climate change have harmful effects on gender equality and to develop policies around such negative impacts to prevent further escalation of those effects.
In addition, the literature review presents an approach to evaluate the net impact – positive and negative. The study found that such net impacts are negative in four systems and sectors: ocean and coastal ecosystems; mountain ecosystems; poverty, livelihoods, sustainable development, and industrial system transition.
The article highlights that existing societal dynamics disempower women, social exclusion prevents women from accessing technology, and forced migration inflicts labor burdens on women, asserting these as the reasons why climate change adaptation projects have a net negative impact on gender equality within the four systems.
Furthermore, the authors have identified five key areas that would enable future climate change adaptation projects to contribute to gender equality. It includes addressing the structural inequalities at the policy level, designing an inclusive decision-making process, revisiting legislation to regulate welfare measures targeted towards women in the labor force, enhancing active participation of women and marginalized groups and including them in the training information technology, and resources for (new) adaptation projects.
The study also identifies the gaps in evidence and shares future research priorities.
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Article: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-022-01266-6
