Gender Differences in Climate Change
The paper discussed in this precis is “Gendering Climate Change: Geographical Insights” by Farhana Sultana. It was published in the 2014 issue of The Professional Geographer after its initial submission in 2011. In the given article, the author discusses the implications of climate change on gender and social relations and encourages scholars and activists to think critically and engage in debates on a global scale.
The leading argument of this publication is related to gender differences in the effects of climate change and adaptation policies. Sultana (2014) argues that “the majority of the policy discourses and debates as well as academic writing on climate change have been largely ungendered, yet the impacts of climate change are acutely felt along gender lines and adaptation to climate change is a gendered process” (p. 373). It means that policymakers and climate change scholars currently disregard the fact that climate change affects men and women differently. Yet, for adaptation policies to be truly effective and comprehensive, they should consider the gender-specific challenges experienced by women.
Throughout the paper, the author provides numerous arguments to support her point. Firstly, she mentions the disproportionate effect climate change would have on different genders, increasing the existing divide (Sultana, 2014). Since gender relations are already made more difficult by other social factors, such as race and religion, the addition of climate change might bring irrevocable problems. Further, Sultana (2014) argues that women, particularly in South Asia, are more significantly affected by climate change because the patriarchal system limits their power and access to resources and knowledge. Finally, the author writes that current policies lack a gendered perspective because women do not participate in policymaking initiatives, which makes their voices unheard.
Personal Reflection
At present, gender equality is far from being achieved, and the article provides numerous examples of how gender inequalities are manifested in climate change. From this article, I learned that gender is one of the multiple social dimensions, along with class, religion, and race, which affect individuals’ experiences. For example, because of the prevalence of patriarchy in South Asia, one’s gender defines many aspects of one’s life. It determines whether a person has access to education, jobs, and community resources. Moreover, in some countries, gender seems to determine the person’s worth. Sultana (2014) writes that, during disasters, some parents prefer to save boys rather than girls when they cannot rescue all of their children. Thus, it is crucial to address these gender inequalities to ensure that all people have equal rights and opportunities.
The author used intersectionality when suggesting that scholars should focus on different perspectives when studying climate change instead of viewing the population as a homogenous group. Using an intersectional approach is important because it may help achieve equality. Intersectionality refers to one person incorporating several social identities, and the combination of these identities affects the person’s experiences. For example, women tend to be more significantly affected by climate change than men. However, black women may experience more adversity than white women because they may experience two-fold discrimination based on their gender and race.
Gender differences and intersectionality can also be applied to circumstances other than climate change. For instance, this perspective can be used in disability justice policies. Men and women can be affected by disability differently. Being disabled can be more difficult for women because of their generally accepted role of a caregiver and often experienced discrimination in employment and other areas. Overall, taking gender differences into account is important in order to ensure that no population group appears to be more disadvantaged than others.