Gender Analysis Approach to Analyzing Gender Differentiated Impacts of Coping Strategies to Climate Change

Citation:

Kher, Jagriti, and Savita Aggarwal. 2020. "Gender Analysis Approach to Analyzing Gender Differentiated Impacts of Coping Strategies to Climate Change." In Handbook of Climate Change Resilience, edited by Walter Leal Filho, 2097-124. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing.

Authors: Jagriti Kher, Savita Aggarwal

Abstract:

Provision of safe water and fuel for the household is important Practical Gender Needs (PGNs) of women, which in turn are crucial to enable them to meet their Strategic Gender Needs (SGNs) of education, income, and control over resources. Climatic change and extremes coupled with demographic, socioeconomic, and technological changes enhance the scarcity of natural resources and negatively impact poor women much more as they cope by trudging longer distances to procure prime resources for the household. The present study examines the gender-differentiated impact of coping strategies to climate change using secondary data from published research conducted across developing countries using Moser’s gender analysis framework. The study has shown that most of the coping strategies practiced by families had much greater negative impacts on women and children as compared to males. The study also highlighted that gender analysis framework is a useful methodology to assess the impact of climatic stresses and extremes on men and women. If the Sustainable Development Goals of eradicating poverty, achieving good health, and access to quality education, safe water, and sanitation facilities and above all gender equality have to be met, it is very important to invest in basic infrastructure to provide for the Practical Gender Needs of women. Besides improving their quality of life, such investments will enable women to focus on their Strategic Gender Needs and also enhance their adaptive capacity to lead climate resilient lives.

Topics: Environment, Climate Change, Gender, Gender Analysis, Women, Infrastructure, Water & Sanitation, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Year: 2020