Climate change
Summary
Climate change disproportionately affects women and girls. They face greater health risks, reduced access to education, and income losses due to their roles more often relying on natural resources. Women are also more likely to be displaced by climate disasters, and are underrepresented in climate decision-making, despite being among those most affected.
Gendered impacts
Below are a few areas where women and girls are disproportionately affected by climate change.
Health
Women are more likely to suffer from the health impacts of climate change, including respiratory diseases, malnutrition, and water-borne illnesses. This is because women are often responsible for collecting water, preparing food, bathing children, and caring for sick family members.
Displacement
An estimated 4 out of 5 people displaced by climate change are women and girls, and they are 14 times more likely to be killed by climate-fuelled disasters compared to men. When women are pressured to migrate to sustain a healthy and safe life elsewhere, they often face specific risks during their migration routes, including violence, exploitation, and human trafficking.
Education
When there are water shortages, girls are often the ones who are responsible for collecting water, which can take several hours a day. This leaves less time for studying and attending school. Drought also makes girls more likely to miss school when on their periods, due to a lack of water to maintain menstrual hygiene.
Decision-making
Women are often excluded from decision-making processes related to climate change, despite being disproportionately affected by its impacts. In the EU, only 26.8% of government ministers responsible for policies on environment and climate change were women in 2021. This can make it more difficult to implement effective solutions that take into account the needs and perspectives of women.
Income
Women represent 60% of agricultural-sector employment in low-income countries, which is often heavily affected by climate change. Droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events can lead to crop failures, which can have a significant impact on women's incomes.
Did you know?
People forced to move because of climate change-related factors are not legally classified as “refugees,” based on a strict interpretation of the 1951 Refugee Convention, which says that to qualify as a refugee you need to be fleeing persecution.
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Climate change, like all global issues, is deeply intersectional. While women and girls are disproportionately affected, it is equally important to acknowledge that indigenous peoples, people of colour, low-income and rural communities, LGBTQ+ people, those with disabilities, and displaced populations are also disproportionately affected. Fitting in to one or more of these categories multiplies this effect.
This entry is written as an introduction. Each point has multiple layers, and there are several other impacts that have not been covered.
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It is difficult to add in-text citations in this format. If you have questions about a particular source or data point, please submit a source request, and I will get back to you with in-text citations.
Berninger, Matthias. “Climate change impacts women more. We must legislate to protect their health” World Economic Forum. 16 January 2024.
World Health Organization. Protecting maternal, newborn and child health from the impacts of climate change: a call for action.Geneva: World Health Organization, 2023.
Fry, Lucia., Philippa Lei. A greener, fairer future: Why leaders need to invest in climate and girls’ education. Washington, DC: Malala Fund, 2021.
Dr. Kwauk, Christina., Dr. Liesbet Steer. “Four Ways That Climate Change Impacts Girls’ Education in Africa.” Global Center on Adaptation. 24 January 2023.
Sharma, Nithya., Carolanne Boughton, Sasha Palikarpova. “Climate change has a disproportionate impact on low-income women. Here’s how financial institutions can change that.” Women’s World Banking. 18 October 2022.
International Organization for Migration (IOM). “Gender, Migration, Environment and Climate Change.” International Organization for Migration. 8 March 2022.
CARE International. Evicted by climate change: confronting the gendered impacts of climate-induced displacement.Geneva: CARE International, 2020.
World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. Bring in the Girls! Girls’ and young women’s views on climate change.London: WAGGGS, 2022.
European Institute for Gender Equality. “Decision-Making on the Environment and Climate Change: Women Woefully Under-Represented in EU Member States.” European Institute for Gender Equality. 12 November 2021.
Published 20 October 2025