Feminisation of Climate Vulnerability | 15 Apr 2025

Source: TH 

Why in News? 

The Beijing India Report 2024 (India's Report on Beijing+30), released to commemorate three decades of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995), offers a comprehensive review of India’s progress on gender equality. 

• However, it gives limited attention to the growing intersection between gender inequality and climate change, a connection that is increasingly relevant, particularly for women in rural and climate-vulnerable communities. 

How Climate Change Disproportionately Affects Women? 

• Gender Burden of Water Scarcity: Globally, women and girls are responsible for water collection in 80% of households.  
  • Climate change-induced water scarcity forces them to travel farther, increasing their workload and limiting time for education and income-generating activities.  
  • The WHO reports that 2 billion people use contaminated water, heightening health risks for women and girls.  
  • In India, women spend about 150 million workdays each year collecting water. 
• Impact on Health and Well-being: Climate-induced events like droughts and food insecurity increase malnutrition among women, with food-insecure women being 1.6 times more likely to suffer from anemia.  
  • According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 52.2% of pregnant women aged 15-49 are affected by anemia. 
  • Extreme heat raises stillbirths and spreads diseases like malaria, dengue, and Zika, worsening maternal and neonatal health. 
  • Rising temperatures might result in India experiencing a 23.5% rise in domestic violence cases by 2090, more than Nepal and Pakistan. The IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report highlights greater risks of gender-based violence, trafficking, and sexual violence during and post-disasters. 
• Economic Impact: Extreme weather events like heat stress and erratic rainfall reduce agricultural productivity, causing significant income losses, particularly for women in agriculture.  
  • Climate-induced resource scarcity (e.g., water, fuel) increases women’s unpaid care work, projected to rise from 8 to 8.3 hours/day by 2050, limiting financial independence and deepening gender inequality. 
  • Job losses are expected in sectors dependent on the environment (e.g., agriculture, forestry), where women are overrepresented.. 
    • Women are significantly underrepresented in India’s manufacturing sector, comprising only 15–20% of the workforce. 
  • Climate change could push 158.3 million more women and girls into poverty by 2050, 16 million more than men.  
• Migration and Displacement: Rural women are highly vulnerable to climate-induced distress migration due to floods, droughts, and extreme heat, leading to adverse health outcomes like hysterectomies, infertility, and menstrual disorders.  
  • The UN estimates that 80% of people displaced by climate change are women, making them more susceptible to exploitation and gender-based violence (GBV) in migration corridors and camps. 
  • Displacement also exacerbates the marginalization of indigenous and forest-dwelling women, whose livelihoods, dependent on land and natural resources, are increasingly threatened by commercial exploitation and climate degradation. 

What is the Role of Women in Climate Resilience and Adaptation? 

• Traditional Knowledge and Food Security: Women possess deep-rooted knowledge of sustainable agriculture and local resource management. 
  • They preserve climate-resilient seed varieties adapted to local ecosystems, ensuring food security amidst erratic weather. 
  • Example: In tribal regions, women conserve native seed banks to protect crop diversity and nutrition. 
• Women-Led Climate Initiatives: Women are increasingly at the forefront of climate adaptation efforts, from sustainable farming to disaster response. 
  • Example: In Odisha’s cyclone-prone Ganjam district, women lead community disaster preparedness, acting as first responders. Their collectives also work on ecosystem conservation and livelihood restoration. 
  • Also, urban women focus on waste management, pollution, and health risks from climate change. Rural and indigenous women prioritize preserving forest-based livelihoods (e.g., Mahua collection), resolving resource conflicts, and reducing distress migration caused by climate events. 
• Community-Based Natural Resource Management: Women play a central role in managing water, forests, and agriculture at the grassroots level. 
  • Example: In Rajasthan, women participate in building Johads (traditional stepwells), helping conserve water and fight drought. 
• Sustainable Agricultural Practices: As caregivers and cultivators, women are well-positioned to promote eco-friendly agricultural techniques like crop diversification and organic farming. 
  • Example: Kavita Mishra, a computer engineer turned sandalwood farmer in Karnataka, showcases a successful model of sustainable and profitable farming. 
• Renewable Energy and Livelihoods: Women promote the use of clean energy to reduce environmental impact and improve rural livelihoods. 
  • Example: In Rajasthan, women of the Dooni cooperative dairy use solar energy to power their operations and run self-help groups.

What Measures can India Adopt for Minimizing the Impact of Climate Change on Women? 

• Mainstream Gender in Climate Frameworks: Integrate gender into the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC) and local climate action plans.  
  • Develop gender-responsive indicators and data systems to capture the gendered impacts of climate change, ensuring policies address women’s unique challenges. 
• Prioritize Climate-Responsive Budgeting: Avoid greenwashing by creating gender-audited climate budgets to track real impact and ensure equitable distribution of resources for women-centric climate initiatives. 
• Establish Local Support Systems:  Establish local Climate Support Hubs to provide disaster response, healthcare, legal aid, and migration awareness, ensure women’s participation in decision-making and legally safeguard their land and housing rights to prevent displacement and enhance resilience. 
• Skilling, Livelihoods, and Leadership: Promote non-farm skilling and diversify women’s livelihoods to reduce climate sensitivity.  
  • Establish training centers to help rural women learn climate-smart agricultural techniques (e.g., drought-resistant crop cultivation, water conservation practices) and clean energy technologies (e.g., solar panel installation), enabling them to adapt and diversify their livelihoods. 
• Enhance Women’s Access to Climate Information: Leverage mobile technology and community radio to provide rural women with timely and actionable climate forecasts, early warnings, and preparedness plans, recognizing their roles as caregivers and resource managers in climate adaptation. 

Conclusion 

Addressing gender inequality in the context of climate change requires a multi-faceted approach. By focusing on gender-responsive climate policies and empowering women at the grassroots level, India can build a more resilient, sustainable, and equitable future, advancing key Sustainable Development Goals such as SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 1 (No Poverty), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities).