Impact of Climate Crisis on Women and Girls

#### GS1 Paper

Syllabus: Indian Society

Source: TH

Context: The climate crisis affects everyone differently, with women and girls facing disproportionate risks due to existing roles, responsibilities, and cultural norms.

Impact of Climate Crisis on Women and Girls:

Aspect | Impact

Health | Women bear the brunt of climate-related health risks due to caregiving roles, facing challenges from heat waves, extreme weather, and vector-borne diseases.

Pregnant women and new mothers are vulnerable to malnutrition, childbirth complications, and limited access to maternal healthcare after disasters.

Additionally, health issues resulting from climate change can exacerbate social issues and strain social support systems

Livelihoods and Income | Women in rural areas rely heavily on climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture, facing income loss and food insecurity from climate-induced factors such as unpredictable weather and soil degradation.

Education and Literacy | Climate disasters disrupt education, with girls more likely to be withdrawn from school due to safety concerns or increased caregiving duties.

Water and Sanitation | Women’s responsibility for water management makes them vulnerable to climate-induced water scarcity and contamination, limiting opportunities for education, income, and community involvement.

Inadequate access to clean water and sanitation facilities affects women’s health and hygiene, leading to higher rates of waterborne diseases and maternal mortality.

Gender-Based Violence | Interpersonal tensions often escalate during climate-related disasters due to competition for scarce resources like food and shelter. This can lead to increased domestic violence within households.

Prolonged Heat Waves | Prolonged heat poses risks to pregnant women and exposes women and unborn children to pollutants, impacting respiratory and cardiovascular health.

Child Marriage | Climate-induced disasters can lead to child marriage as a coping mechanism, setting back gender equality progress and community resilience.

Disproportionate deaths | Women and children are 14 times more likely than men to die in disasters, according to the UNDP

Rural to Urban Migration | Men’s migration due to extreme weather events leaves women with increased responsibilities, decreased income, and limited access to land and resources, increasing vulnerability to climate impacts.

Decreased Adaptive Capacity | Women’s integration into the informal economy affects their decision-making power and adaptive capacity, leading to greater risks during climate disasters.

Biased Social norms | Lack of access to resources and discriminatory practices restrict women’s ability to adapt to climate change.

Role of Rural women in the fight against climate change

Aspect | Examples of Women’s Contributions to Climate Resilience

Agriculture | In Odisha, women resurrect traditional crops that withstand frequent floods and droughts.

Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) teaches women farmers how to respond to shifting climate patterns to support themselves better financially.

Reducing domestic pollution | E.g., Charlot Magayi helps Kenyan women transition from dirty cook stoves to clean ones, improving community health and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The African program Solar Sister, led by women, helps communities establish small-scale solar systems for energy independence, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.

Watershed Management | Women collectives in Nagpur use indigenous techniques to turn parched lands into fertile areas.

Seed Preservation | Rural women in Telangana act as seed guardians, safeguarding native seeds against climate uncertainties.

Sustainable Fishing | Fisherwomen cooperatives in coastal Karnataka advocate for regulated fishing practices and marine life sustainability.

Waste Management | Rural women in coastal Karnataka lead circularity efforts, transforming kitchen waste into compost and promoting waste segregation and recycling.

Agroforestry | Women farmers in the Malnad region practice agroforestry, intercropping native trees with traditional crops to combat erratic rainfall patterns and enhance soil fertility.

Community Influence | Rural women actively participate in community decisions and drive movements, using their vote and voice as agents of change.

Constitutional Rights for safeguarding Vulnerable groups against Climate Change/Disasters:

• Right to Life and Personal Liberty (Article 21): The Constitution guarantees the right to life and personal liberty, which includes the right to live in a safe environment free from the adverse effects of climate change and disasters (Read the recent SC ruling here)

• Right to Equality (Article 14): Women and girls are entitled to equal protection under the law, ensuring that they receive equitable treatment and opportunities in climate change adaptation and disaster response measures.

• Right to Health (Article 21): The Constitution recognizes the right to health as an integral part of the right to life, ensuring access to healthcare services to mitigate health risks posed by climate change and disasters, particularly for pregnant women and children.

• Directive Principles of State Policy (Article 39): The Directive Principles of State Policy mandate the state to ensure that women are not subject to discrimination and have equal rights to livelihood opportunities.

• Fundamental Duties (Article 51A): Citizens have a duty to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife, which are essential for climate resilience and disaster mitigation efforts that benefit women and girls.

• Protection Against Exploitation (Article 23): The Constitution prohibits trafficking, forced labour, and other forms of exploitation, safeguarding women and girls from vulnerabilities exacerbated by climate change-induced displacement and migration.

• Special Provisions for Women and Children (Article 15): The Constitution allows the state to make special provisions for the advancement of women and children, including measures to enhance their resilience and adaptive capacity to climate change and disasters.

• Protection of Tribal Rights (Article 244): Indigenous women and girls have constitutionally protected rights to their traditional lands and resources, which are essential for their resilience to climate change impacts.

Steps to Make Climate Crisis Gender Neutral:

• Implement social protection programs providing access to healthcare, education, clean water, and sanitation. This includes cash transfers, food security initiatives, and insurance schemes for women and girls affected by climate events.

• Support sustainable livelihoods through poverty alleviation, inclusive economic growth, and sustainable agriculture practices.

• Empower women by providing equal access to resources, which can enhance agricultural yields and promote local solutions, particularly in rural areas.

• Gather sex-disaggregated data to better understand women’s diverse roles and experiences as agents of change.

• Reduce the impact of prolonged heat waves on vulnerable groups through heat wave warnings, adjusted work and school timings, and cooling facilities.

• Involve urban local bodies and municipalities in climate action planning and urban design to mitigate heat and improve resilience.

• Map key water resources and develop local plans to improve water access and management for women

• Reform State-action plans on climate change to apply a gender lens and implement gender-transformative strategies, recognizing the vulnerabilities of all genders.

Conclusion:

To address climate change effectively, it’s crucial to recognize all genders’ vulnerabilities and implement gender-transformative strategies for comprehensive and equitable adaptation. Women shouldn’t be viewed solely as victims but as leaders in climate action. State-action plans on climate change must incorporate a gender lens, and legislation and policies should support women’s meaningful participation in decision-making processes.

Insta Link:

• SC: Right against adverse Climate Impacts as integral to Right to Life and Equality

Mains Link:

‘Climate Change’ is a global problem. How will India be affected by climate change? How Himalayan and coastal states of India will be affected by climate change? (2017)

Q.1 Which of the following best describes/describe the aim of ‘Green India Mission’ of the Government of India? (UPSC 2016)

• Incorporating environmental benefits and costs into the Union and State Budgets thereby implementing the ‘green accounting’.

• Launching the second green revolution to enhance agricultural output so as to ensure food security to one and all in the future.

• Restoring and enhancing forest cover and responding to climate change by a combination of adaptation and mitigation measures.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

(a) 1 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Ans: C

Q.2 With reference to ‘Global Climate Change Alliance’, which of the following statements is/are correct? (UPSC 2017)

• It is an initiative of the European Union.

• It provides technical and financial support to targeted developing countries to integrate climate change into their development policies and budgets.

• It is coordinated by World Resources Institute (WRI) and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 and 2 only (b) 3 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Ans: A