Diversifying Indigenous Vulnerability and Adaptation: An Intersectional Reading of Māori Women’s Experiences of Health, Wellbeing, and Climate Change

Abstract

Despite evidence that Indigenous peoples’ multiple subjectivities engender diverse lived experiences both between and within Indigenous groups, the influence of multiple subjectivities on Indigenous peoples’ vulnerability and adaptation to climate change is largely un-explored. Drawing on ethnographic research with Indigenous Māori women in Aotearoa New Zealand, this paper provides empirical evidence that subjectivity-mediated power dynamics operating within Indigenous societies (at the individual and household scale) are important determinants of vulnerability and adaptation which should be considered in both scholarship and policy. Using an intersectional framework, I demonstrate how different Māori women and their whānau (families) live, cope with, and adapt to the embodied physical and emotional health effects of climate change in radically different ways because of their subject positionings, even though they belong to the same community, hapū (sub-tribe), or iwi (tribe). In underlining these heterogenous experiences, I provide an avenue for reconsidering how climate adaptation scholarship, policies, and practices might better engage with the complex, amorphous realities within Māori and other Indigenous communities. I argue it is possible to develop more inclusive, tailored, and sustainable adaptation that considers divergent vulnerabilities and adaptive capacities within Indigenous communities, groups, and societies and supports customised vulnerability-reduction strategies.

Climate change and its impact on the mental health well‐being of Indigenous women in Western cities, Canada

“…This environmental injustice exacerbates existing vulnerabilities, leading to feelings of displacement and a heightened sense of insecurity. Examining the mental health impacts of forced relocations and the loss of connection to ancestral lands is crucial in understanding the intersectionality of climate change and Indigenous women's well‐being (Abi Deivanayagam et al, 2023; Higgins, 2022; Johnson, Fisher, & Parsons, 2022; Johnson, Parsons, & Fisher, 2022; Smith, 2023).…”

“…Research on the intersection of climate change and the mental health well‐being of Indigenous women in Western cities in Canada is a critical area with several gaps (Johnson, Fisher, & Parsons, 2022; Redvers et al, 2023; Vinyeta et al, 2016; Williams et al, 2018). For instance, limited studies explore the cultural and spiritual dimensions of climate change impacts on Indigenous women's mental health (Stone et al, 2022).…”

“…Therefore, various Indigenous health studies (Redvers et al, 2023; Tiatia‐Seath et al, 2020; Vinyeta et al, 2016; Williams et al, 2018) suggested that research needs to focus on identifying and understanding the resilience practices, traditional knowledge, and community support systems that contribute to the mental well‐being of Indigenous women in the face of environmental changes. Other studies (Gonda, 2017; Johnson, Fisher, & Parsons, 2022; Johnson, Parsons, & Fisher, 2022; Walker et al, 2019) also suggested that limited attention has been given to the intersectionality of climate change impacts with other stressors faced by Indigenous women, such as historical trauma, systemic discrimination, and socioeconomic disparities. Therefore, research should explore how these intersecting factors compound the mental health challenges faced by Indigenous women in Western cities in Canada.…”

Climate change, biodiversity loss, and Indigenous Peoples’ health and wellbeing: A systematic umbrella review

“…More research is needed that conducts in-depth gendered analyses of climate-health and biodiversity impacts, particularly studies that consider the perspectives and experiences of gender-diverse individuals along with self-identified women and men. Opportunity exists for research to take an intersectional approach and interrogate how additional factors such as income, employment, housing, age, and class intersect with and shape experiences of Indigenous health, gender, and climate change [ 84 ].…”

Equity zombies in Canada’s blue economy: a critical feminist analysis for equitable policy implementation

“…Environmental and climate justice approaches highlight how equity issues related to climate change are entwined with equity issues more broadly in society. They draw attention to the way racialized people of color, Indigenous peoples, low-income people, and disabled people (among others), face greater exposure to environmental racism and thus harm from industrial developments, toxic waste, pesticides, and climate change (Pellow, 2000;Pulido, 2000;Pellow and Park, 2002;Harrison, 2011;Bond, 2014;Piepzna-Samarasinha, 2020;Johnson et al, 2022). In addition, they highlight how social inequities are structural, resulting from patriarchal and white supremacist practices that maintain and institutionalize white privilege within governments (and other institutions).…”