Climate change is not only one of the greatest environmental and development challenges facing the world today, it is one that will have critical impacts on human rights and inequalities, including gender inequality.
It is therefore deeply appropriate for the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and UN Women to have collaborated in developing Mainstreaming Gender in Green Climate Fund Projects, a practical manual to support the integration of gender equality in climate change interventions and climate finance.
This publication comes at a critical time in the global response to climate change. As the portfolio of the GCF grows rapidly, and with it the needs of countries for capacity development, the manual intends to provide national designated authorities, focal points, accredited entities and delivery partners with guidance to effectively – and holistically – mainstream gender in GCF projects and programmes.
The Policy states that:
- Women, as well as men significantly contribute to combating climate change. Shifting the paradigm towards low-emission and climate-resilient development pathways, which is the Fund’s mandate, requires a large number of individual and collective decisions by women and men. A gender-sensitive approach is therefore part of a paradigm shift;
- Climate change impacts women and men differently, to the detriment of women, and existing gender inequalities are likely to be exacerbated by climate change; and
- Gender inequality, exacerbated by climate change, is linked, as are other development areas, to vulnerability and risks. The greater vulnerability of women to climate change stems from gender norms and discrimination that result in the imbalanced division of labour, lower incomes, and lesser livelihood opportunities; less access and control over land and other productive assets; fewer legal rights; lesser mobility and lesser political and professional representation.
You can download this toolkit for free here.
