According to United Nations statistics, nearly one tenth Widows around the world live in extreme poverty, including widows widowed by climate-related disasters.
Without legal protection and access to justice, a widow’s ability to acquire property rights depends largely on the strength of her relationship with her husband’s family and norms within the community.
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Dispute resolution often comes down to family mediation, and due to Social stigma and costsit is rare for women to challenge inheritance rights.
Attempts to abolish unequal inheritance laws are often vehemently rejected on the grounds that the reforms contradict religious teachings, threaten cultural identity, and destabilize families and wider society.
In fact, such arguments provide an example of how family law that respects religion and culture has become most entrenched and resistant to improvement.
Denying women equal inheritance rights undermines their decision-making power, economic independence and monetary prospects, and increases their risk of homelessness, exploitation and gender-based violence.
All of this makes them more vulnerable to climate change and harder to recover from climate-related losses and resource conflicts.
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Hazards from rising global temperatures, such as severe droughts and floods, are disproportionately harming women and girls in many ways, especially in the global South, which is experiencing some of the most extreme weather.
The study found that women have the most 14 times more likely to die Or injured in a climate-related disaster, followed by a surge in sexual and domestic violence, human trafficking and maternal mortality.
Access to health services, including sexual and reproductive health, is often difficult or impossible for those displaced.
Facing all this without an effective social or financial safety net can be scary. The economic hardship caused by the climate crisis and forced migration has pushed people further into poverty.
This disproportionately affects girls, who more often drop out of school to work or get married, which parents see as a coping mechanism to increase financial stress and protect daughters from sexual violence.
marginalized
Another way climate change is burdening women and girls is by making it more difficult to gather and produce food, collect water, and provide fuel for cooking and heating, which are seen as women’s responsibility in many communities.
Further travel to access scarce resources takes up valuable time that could be used for productive activities such as education or income generation.
This extended travel time also increases the risk of sexual violence. A study in Western Darfur, Sudan found that, 82% of rape cases Women were treated at clinics while performing routine tasks such as fetching water and firewood, and nearly a third of victims reported multiple rapes.
As the primary users of natural resources and those statistically most affected by climate damage, women play a pivotal role in environmental management and decision-making. However, they are often excluded or marginalized.
participate
Gender equality goals must be at the heart of environmental governance. Especially at the local level, women have been working hard to develop coping strategies and address climate-related challenges. They are resourceful innovators with the knowledge and expertise needed to successfully mitigate climate change.
Women’s rights groups around the world join forces to correct flaws in family law Global Movement for Equality in Family Lawwhich calls on governments to ensure equality under the law for all women and men in all matters related to the family, regardless of religion, culture and tradition.
The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) in its 2022 report on achieving climate justiceeStrengthening women’s rights to land and other natural resourcesas one of the three key elements, along with “empowering women and girls to assert their environmental rights and actively participate in decision-making processes” and “strengthening regulatory frameworks and institutional capacity for feminist climate action”.
Make sure these reforms will help women break the cycle of poverty, benefiting them, their families and wider society – including greater protection of ecosystems.For example, research shows that women’s participation in natural resource management is associated with Better resource governance and protection.
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This high-level political forum on sustainable development Provides an annual opportunity for the United Nations to review commitments and progress towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
In 2022, Goal 5 on gender equality and Goal 15 on life on land were selected for an in-depth assessment – both recognized by the international community as components of sustainable development.
Sadly, while gender equality is enshrined in most national constitutions, commitments do not always translate into legal and policy frameworks, and even when laws are fair, entrenched patriarchal social norms often lead to poor enforcement.
Laws and policies must address the unique requirements, vulnerabilities and contributions of women as agents of change. Unless laws guarantee women equal rights in all spheres of life and are empowered to participate equally in decision-making, government action will perpetuate existing gender inequalities and hinder women’s ability to adapt to a changing climate.
this author
Roya Rahmani is a former Afghan ambassador to the United States and a global strategist for Equality Now. Equality Now is an international women’s rights organization that uses the power of the law to protect and promote the rights of women and girls around the world.For more details, please visit www.equalitynow.orgFacebook @equalitynoworgand twitter@equal now
