GENDER DIFFERENTIATED CLIMATE CHANGE DISCOURSE IN RURAL COMMUNITIES IN
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

GENDER DIFFERENTIATED CLIMATE CHANGE DISCOURSE IN RURAL COMMUNITIES IN
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

N. ASSAN

he discourse on climate change should provide adequate attention to
gender differentiated roles and vunerability, either at the local community
level and international climate change negotiations because the impact of
climate change affects women and men differently. There is a missing link
to scientific assessment of climate change and responses to climate through
a gender dimension and the policies enacted to mitigate and adapt to its
impacts. Currently, there is insufficient knowledge regarding gender
differentiated impacts of climate change worldover. However, there has
been a consensus that in trying to understand climate change in general, we
need to appreciate gender and gender relations. The discussion explores
the gender dimension of climate change and the policies enacted to
mitigate and adapt to its impacts with the aim of developing gender
sensitive approaches with regards to mitigation measures and adaptation
strategies in rural communities in developing countrie. Women and men in
most developing countries are especially vulnerable to climate when they
are highly dependent on local natural resources for their livelihood. It is
important to remember, however, that both men and women are not only
vulnerable to climate change but they are also effective actors or agents of
change in relation to both mitigation and adaptation. The relationship
between women and the environment revolves around their concerns for
providing family food security, fuel, water, and health care. As climate
change research knowledge is accumulating at a remarkable pace, it is
intersecting with disasters regarding developing nations in fascinating ways Yet, there remains a significant gap in integrated quantitative and
qualitative methods for studying climate change perception and policy
support in rural communities. Men and women extensive theoretical and
practical knowledge of the environment and resource conservation should
be given due consideration. Their potential contribution to climate
mitigation by being part of the intervention strategy should be sufficiently
exploited

Scientific Journal of Pure and Applied ScienceS

2015