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The Climate Crisis and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence
Education and Environment - Out of the borders
by Daniela Delgado
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CARE International has reported that these events are disproportionately affecting wom en. Disparities in information, mobility, de cision-making and access to resources and training limit their ability to access relief and assistance, threatening their well-being. And since women and girls face various forms of sex ual and gender-based violence (SGBV), changes in the environment push them into a vulnerable position by exacerbating existing inequalities.
For example, research published by aid organ isation Plan International reports shows that, in Ethiopia, drought and desertification are in creasing women’s risk of sexual assault. As water sources and wells are drying up, women need to walk long distances for fetching water or fire wood, leading to more rapes and abductions.
In Bangladesh, young girls are being forced to marry in the aftermath of extreme floods, because “it means one less mouth to feed”. In exchange for cattle, girls in Malawi and South Sudan are also being sold off in marriage during extreme droughts. Child marriage becomes then a survival strategy, relieving pressure on the family or as the only way to generate income. The situation is similar when it comes to forced prostitution - it is happening as it seems to exist no other choice.
In western Kenya, as fish have become scarcer, fishermen are now not only expecting money as payment, but they're also demanding sex. This practice is now so common that, according to an International Union for Conservation of Nature study, it became known as the Jaboya system.
And it doesn’t end here - there is an increased risk of domestic violence in places where women are responsible for agriculture. If a sudden natural disaster threatens the harvests, the stress arising from the loss of income can have dramatic effects, ultimately leading to violence, often perpetuated by their own relatives.
Traditional gender roles are also influencing SGBV during extreme weather events. Namely, women are more likely to die as a result of flooding because they rarely seek refuge in emergency shelters. In Bangladesh, they might prefer to barricade themselves in their huts, where they often end up washed away by the floods, than being in very cramped shelters, since it's not appropriate to stand there face-to-face with men or to use the same toilet. Moreover, it often falls to women to take care of old people and children, tying them home where they can be more vulnerable to hurricanes or floods. Even after natural disasters have ended, if emergency accommodation doesn't offer protected rooms, women and girls can be vulnerable to violence by men when they use shower or toilet facilities.
To end this row of examples, activism must be addressed. In Mexico and Central America, between 2016 and 2019, around 1698 acts of violence were recorded against women human rights defenders. Threats and sexual violence, such as rape, are often used to target environmental activists to weaken their status within the community, and to prevent other women from working to preserve the environment from the construction of a new mine or dam, for example.
But SGBV resulting from extreme weather events isn’t uniform at a global level. Climate change is a threat multiplier, meaning it esca lates social, political and economic tensions. Furthermore, the risks are acute for racialized women and girls, older women, the LGBTQ+ community, women and girls with disabilities, migrant women, and those living in rural, re mote, conflict and disaster-prone areas.
As an example, in 2016, people in Fiji thought that Cyclone Winston was a sign of divine rage against LGBTQ+ people. In the sequence of Hurricane Katrina, there was a backlash against gay communities because others blamed them for the disaster. In other cases, transgender people have been threatened in relief shelters or barred from access to them.
Kim van Daalen, researcher.
All of these examples make the idea of privilege very clear. Climate change is not gender-neutral. And it is unjust - the ones contributing the least to it, are also the ones being more impacted by its consequences. As it fosters SGBV, the need to address this issue becomes evident, concerning each place and culture.
Apart from local movements that have been playing their role, some other wider movements are combining the two issues - climate change and SGBV. In particular, it is possible to point out ecofeminism that has sought to explain the crucial linkage between environmental destruction and violence against women.
Nonetheless, at a governmental and intergovernmental level, there is much to be done. On the one hand, the ultimate goal seems to be the end of structural gender inequalities as a whole, tackling the violence perpetrated against women and girls. On the other hand, recognizing increased SGBV as a particular consequence of the climate crisis as part of the agenda is essential - institutions must be ready and capable to cope with it and make a change, supporting and incorporating women and girls in climate policy and decision-making. Climate action without inclusivity will fail to endure the climate crisis today and will generate more challenging issues in the future.
