Seventeenth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic & Social Sustainability

Abstract

Climate change is a universal crisis. However, its devastation is felt first and worst by women in poor countries. It is crucial to recognize and examine these gender disparities closely in order to understand how to protect vulnerable women and create a more effective, inclusive, and just climate policy framework. Therefore, I pursue the question: How does climate change impact women differently than men? In answering this question, I examine the effects of climate change on the security of women, with a case study of Mozambique. Mozambique is especially susceptible to the effects of climate change due to its low-lying coastal villages, and Mozambican women have borne the brunt of the maleffects associated with the 2016 El Niño-induced drought. This case study contributes an evaluation of the collective findings of the existing literature on gender and climate change. The ultimate findings are that women, particularly rural women in developing countries such as Mozambique, endure greater ill effects of climate change than men, including gender-based violence, reduced educational outcomes, and negative health consequences.