Gender, Climate Change and Agriculture

Ecosystems and climate are interdependent. Agricultural food production is the economic activity that depends most on climatic conditions. At the same time, the change from traditional small-scale farming techniques to intensive large-scale agricultural systems has contributed significantly to climate change. Land-use change, flooding areas for rice and sugarcane production, burning crop residues, raising ruminant animals and using nitrogen fertilizers are all activities that release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Developing countries will be hit the hardest by climate change, particularly countries that depend largely on rain-fed agriculture. Climate change affects changes in plant growth and production through the spread of pests and diseases, increased exposure to heat stress, changes in rainfall patterns, greater leaching of nutrients from the soil during intense rains, greater erosion due to stronger winds and more wildfires in drier regions.

Gender Dimension

There are numerous significant linkages between gender and agriculture. Gender aspects in agriculture affect access to and control over resources, with consequences for food security as well as for market and policy decisions.

In many countries, women’s access to land is limited. Patrilineal inheritance customs regulate land ownership and property rights and thereby influence control over land and food sovereignty. At the same time, women make up 51% of the agricultural labour force worldwide, significantly more in the Global South. For example, 80% of female employees and self-employees in Sub-Saharan Africa are working in the agricultural sector.

There is an evident interdependence between rural poverty and climate change-related effects like desertification and land degradation. Because of their labour- and time-intensive work in order to care for their families, the share of women hit by poverty is unproportionally high. In many parts of the world, women are responsible for using and preserving land for food and fuel production, which depends heavily on soil quality. This makes them vulnerable to climate change impacts such as desertification, erosion and soil degradation. These impacts lead to  reduced crop yield and livestock numbers, less productivity and less income, and may increase women's workloads, place additional burdens on their health and reduce the time they have available to participate in decision-making processes and non-agricultural income generating activities.

In industrialised countries, studies point out gendered differences in attitudes related to agricultural production and products. These differences relate to views on food and health, ethical dimensions of food production and selection, nutritional attitudes and choices, dietary changes, food works and body images.

Response

When identifying and promoting GHG mitigation practices in agriculture, women’s involvement in decision-making processes and implementation is crucial, particularly given that women play a key role in ecological, fair and sustainable food production and consumption patterns.

Cultural and legal barriers must be removed so that channels and methods of participation are present in women’s everyday lives. Women’s legalized landownership, for example, would tackle inequalities with regard to ownership, property rights and customs.

Because of the importance of the environment to their daily tasks, many rural women have developed effective adaptation strategies in the face of a changing climate. Greater attention must be paid to the strategies already in place within rural agricultural communities.

Given women's key role in agriculture, it is necessary that gender disaggregated data becomes available for more countries and farming systems. It is fundamental for adaptation efforts to provide local climate information and enhance meteorological and climatological knowledge.

Further collaboration with rural women’s networks is crucial for the development of effective climate change policies and their implementation. These women provide important channels for sharing and disseminating information. Rural women should be included in developing information materials and dissemination strategies, reflecting a participatory approach to knowledge management. It is also important to build networks for grassroots women to promote equal land rights and support women’s groups who are working together to purchase land.