What about Gender in Climate Change? Twelve Feminist Lessons from Development

Abstract

Adaptation and mitigation are two key responses to climate change. In the global South they prompt many questions: what is the direction and degree of change needed? How can new climate change policies be aligned with existing development initiatives? How are core social relations such as gender understood and prioritized in relation to technical and other solutions? In search of synergies between adaptation, development and mitigation, this article asks a pertinent question for sub-Saharan small-scale agriculture in particular: what can adaptation and mitigation learn from development debates on social goal setting, institutional change and gender equality? From the perspective of sustainability science and feminist literature, three main findings emerge. First, as regards social goal setting, adaptation and mitigation should, like development, support the escape out of poverty, ill-health and food-insecurity. Second, as regards institutions, adaptation and mitigation should address how gender regulates access to, use of and control over resources in terms of labor, land and strategic decision-making power. Third, as regards gender equality, adaptation and mitigation should learn from how development in theory and practice has addressed gender, women, nature and the environment. At its core, the analysis contributes twelve salient themes that can significantly inform adaptation and mitigation in research, policy and practice, thus serving as inspiration for a critical debate on much needed synergetic trajectories.

Technowomen: Women’s Autonomy and Its Impact on Environmental Quality

“…The moderation results found a U-shaped relationship between renewable energy and women's autonomy in a given period. The results are in line with the earlier studies of Terry [69], Ergas and York [70], Jerneck [71], Wang et al [72], and McGee et al [73]. These studies mainly provoked in favor of women empowerment that's resulting impact on tackling climate change issues.…”

“…Without including women in the decision-making process, the nation does not fully comply with the international agreements of tackling climate issues. Jerneck [71] concluded that gender equality promotes sustainable development through environmental knowledge and technological spillovers. Wang et al [72] confined their study's findings in favor of females' share in the labor force, contributing to lower carbon emissions by acquiring education and political autonomy.…”

Sustainability of Coastal Agriculture under Climate Change

“…From the perspective of sustainability science and feminist literature, the adaptation and mitigation to climate change should address the role of gender in strategic decision-making and in the access to the use of and control over resources [174]. In such a scenario, women's capacity building, along with the integration of participatory approaches in the management of natural coastal resources, is required to promote agricultural sustainability [175].…”

Inclusive Management Through Gender Consideration in Small-Scale Fisheries: The Why and the How

“…The study also shows that women have a strong spirit of entrepreneurship. Literature has found that women are normally "motors" of economic development (e.g., Jerneck, 2018). There is a lot to do in this regard and attention has been given to, for instance, the role of women in fish markets (Fröcklin et al, 2013) and for the whole fish value chain (Drury O'Neill and Crona, 2017).…”