15 Understanding Gender Dimensions …
281
The rest of the review study is organized as follows: Sect. 15.2 discusses the theoretical framework. Section 15.3 will present the case studies, whereas Sect. 15.4 highlights the importance of gender mainstreaming in the climatic analysis. Section 15.5
will conclude the study.
15.2 Review of Literature: Disasters, Climate Change
and Gender
Disasters are characterized by sudden and extreme events, caused by different environmental
and climatic factors that usually hurt people and damage property. The most important disasters
are earthquakes, floods, landslide, hurricanes, droughts and diseases. Source EMDAT (2017).
Global climate change is one of the greatest environmental challenges facing the world today.
In the twentieth century, the increase in the global average temperature reached 0.74 °C, the
average sea level increased by 17 cm and the Northern Hemisphere experienced a considerable decrease in snow cover). Eleven of the warmest years since records have been kept,
have occurred during the last 12 years, representing an accelerating warming trend. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects additional global warming over the
twenty-first century from 1.8 to 4.0 °C. Source IPCC (2007).
Gender refers not to male and female, but to masculine and feminine—that is, to qualities
or characteristics that society ascribes to each sex. People are born female or male, but learn
to be women and men. Perceptions of gender are deeply rooted, vary widely both within
and between cultures, and change over time. But in all cultures, gender determines power
and resources for females and males. Gender is a central organizing factor in societies, and
it can significantly affect the processes of production, consumption and distribution. In fact,
the influence of gender on rural people’s lives and livelihoods is so substantial that by any
indicator of human development, female power and resources are lowest in rural areas of the
developing world. Source FAO (2011).
Gender inequalities constrain the survival of households when faced with climate
change. Due to existing socio-economic conditions, cultural beliefs and traditional
practices, women are more likely to be disproportionately affected by disasters,
including increased loss of livelihoods, gender-based violence and even loss of life
during, and in the aftermath of, disasters. For example, there is a strong correlation
between gender inequalities and women’s survival rate in disasters such as typhoons,
droughts and floods (Murillo and Tan 2017). The World Health Organization (WHO)
has estimated that women are up to 14 times more likely than men to die as a result of
disasters (WHO 2003; Neumayer and Plumper 2007). Hence, the empowerment of
women is a critical ingredient in building disaster resilience. International communities over the years have increased acknowledgement on the different experiences
and skills women have. At the Seventh Conference of Parties under the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Marrakech,
Morocco, participants from Samoa argued for increased representation of women
within the organizational and decision-making structure of the UNFCCC (UNFCCC
281
The rest of the review study is organized as follows: Sect. 15.2 discusses the theoretical framework. Section 15.3 will present the case studies, whereas Sect. 15.4 highlights the importance of gender mainstreaming in the climatic analysis. Section 15.5
will conclude the study.
15.2 Review of Literature: Disasters, Climate Change
and Gender
Disasters are characterized by sudden and extreme events, caused by different environmental
and climatic factors that usually hurt people and damage property. The most important disasters
are earthquakes, floods, landslide, hurricanes, droughts and diseases. Source EMDAT (2017).
Global climate change is one of the greatest environmental challenges facing the world today.
In the twentieth century, the increase in the global average temperature reached 0.74 °C, the
average sea level increased by 17 cm and the Northern Hemisphere experienced a considerable decrease in snow cover). Eleven of the warmest years since records have been kept,
have occurred during the last 12 years, representing an accelerating warming trend. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects additional global warming over the
twenty-first century from 1.8 to 4.0 °C. Source IPCC (2007).
Gender refers not to male and female, but to masculine and feminine—that is, to qualities
or characteristics that society ascribes to each sex. People are born female or male, but learn
to be women and men. Perceptions of gender are deeply rooted, vary widely both within
and between cultures, and change over time. But in all cultures, gender determines power
and resources for females and males. Gender is a central organizing factor in societies, and
it can significantly affect the processes of production, consumption and distribution. In fact,
the influence of gender on rural people’s lives and livelihoods is so substantial that by any
indicator of human development, female power and resources are lowest in rural areas of the
developing world. Source FAO (2011).
Gender inequalities constrain the survival of households when faced with climate
change. Due to existing socio-economic conditions, cultural beliefs and traditional
practices, women are more likely to be disproportionately affected by disasters,
including increased loss of livelihoods, gender-based violence and even loss of life
during, and in the aftermath of, disasters. For example, there is a strong correlation
between gender inequalities and women’s survival rate in disasters such as typhoons,
droughts and floods (Murillo and Tan 2017). The World Health Organization (WHO)
has estimated that women are up to 14 times more likely than men to die as a result of
disasters (WHO 2003; Neumayer and Plumper 2007). Hence, the empowerment of
women is a critical ingredient in building disaster resilience. International communities over the years have increased acknowledgement on the different experiences
and skills women have. At the Seventh Conference of Parties under the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Marrakech,
Morocco, participants from Samoa argued for increased representation of women
within the organizational and decision-making structure of the UNFCCC (UNFCCC