Gender & Climate Archives

National Consultation on the Role of Panchayats in Gender Responsive Climate Action

At the National Consultation on the Role of Panchayats in Gender Responsive Climate Action on 8 October, leaders from government, academia, and civil society came together to reimagine women leadership and Panchayats as the foundation of inclusive, locally grounded climate governance. Organised by Yashwantrao Chavan Centre, Resource and Support Centre for Development (RSCD), and Asar, the consultation saw participation from representatives across Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Karnataka
Key recommendations included empowering tribal women for climate-resilient livelihoods, panchayats with climate finance autonomy, strengthening institutional support during climate disasters, supporting women farmers during climate crises, and ensuring gender-inclusive early warning systems.

Training Modules on the inter-linkages of Gender and Climate Change in India

Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society (JSLPS), Department of Rural Development, Government of Jharkhand in partnership with Asar and Child in Need Institute (CINI) have created training modules on the interlinkages of Gender and Climate Change in India. The modules were launched on August 25 in Ranchi and are being rolled out with JSLPS Self Help Groups across Jharkhand. These structured and interactive modules are designed to:

Build awareness among women Self Help Groups (SHGs) on the gendered impacts of climate change.
Strengthen women’s leadership in shaping equitable, context-specific climate solutions and facilitating the creation of locally led climate action plans.
Support marginalised communities with the knowledge, skills, and systems to adapt and build resilience to climate change.

The modules mark an important step in strengthening gender and climate linkages while building climate resilience for the state.

Assessment Report | Role of Vulnerability in Transition to Clean Cooking: A Case of Chikhli Slum in Nagpur, Maharashtra

This assessment explores the barriers to clean cooking among vulnerable communities in Chikhli slums, Nagpur, using a compounding vulnerability framework. Despite access to LPG connections, most households rely heavily on biomass due to affordability issues, cultural norms, and lack of awareness. Women, especially those in hazardous informal jobs, face severe health risks from continued chulha use. The report highlights the need for multifaceted policy interventions—ranging from targeted subsidies and IEC campaigns to land rights and localized LPG delivery—to support a just transition. It urges Nagpur Municipal Corporation to address intersecting socio-economic, gendered, and occupational vulnerabilities holistically.

Social and Behaviour Change for Reducing Household Air Pollution Handbook for the Facilitator

This facilitator handbook is part of the Cleaner Air and Better Health (CABH) project and aims to reduce Household Air Pollution (HAP) in Jharkhand through community-led Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC). Designed for use with Self-Help Group (SHG) women, it outlines three interactive group meetings focused on HAP awareness, promoting clean cooking alternatives like LPG, and enabling economic empowerment. Activities such as conversation maps, flashcards, and games guide participatory learning. The handbook culminates in a community meeting to reinforce key messages and catalyse collective action, with a strong focus on inclusivity, behavioural change, and local ownership.

Women’s Health and Household air Pollution

Gender Just Transition – A Communication Toolkit

This policy brief examines how drought Early Warning Systems (EWS) in Maharashtra can be made more gender-transformative. Drawing from field research with women farmers in Dharashiv, it highlights how current EWS fail to reach or support women due to technological barriers and gendered social norms. Women bear disproportionate burdens during droughts but remain excluded from planning and decision-making. The brief recommends localised, accessible communication, women-led committees, integration of traditional knowledge, and better access to food, water, health, and livelihoods. It advocates for a feminist, inclusive EWS that centres women’s voices, builds resilience, and ensures equitable drought preparedness.

Working Paper | Framing the Gender and Just Transition Discourse in India Perspectives of Women from the Informal Economy Across India

Just transition is an emerging concept in India, and the understanding of how gender intersects with it is evolving. Our study aims to bridge this gap in the discourse on gender just transition by listening to the perspectives of women in the informal economy through a theme based listening tool. Globally, it is recognised that the transition to a green economy will have disproportionate adverse impacts on women across the value chain
– owing to their higher dependence on carbon-reliant economies for livelihoods and energy
consumption, lesser resources to adapt, disruption of livelihoods and forced displacement,
and increased burden of caregiving. Our findings reveal that women’s participation in the
energy transition is equally critical as they are an integral part of the workforce and as
caregivers are primary consumers of energy at the household level. But their participation
is limited by access to green skills, impact on health due to lack of timely and affordable
care and social safety nets given the informal nature of their work. The gender just transition discourse and policies in India will have to recognise the societal gender norms that limit women’s participation and decision making in the energy transition and a whole
systems approach is suggested as a way forward for framing and guiding policy on gen-
der-just transition in India.

Designing A Gender Transformative Drought Early Warning System – Perspective of Women Farmers from Dharashiv, Maharashtra

India faces acute vulnerability to climate-induced droughts, with regions like Marathwada in Maharashtra experiencing persistent and severe drought impacts. Despite advances in drought Early Warning Systems (EWS), these systems often fail to reach or serve the most affected populations—particularly women farmers—due to their heavy reliance on technology and lack of gender-responsive design.

This policy brief highlights findings from a mixed-methods study conducted in Dharashiv district, one of the most drought-prone areas in India. The study employed literature reviews, media analysis, and direct engagement with women farmers through focus group discussions (FGDs) and listening exercises. The goal was to examine existing EWS mechanisms, assess their gender responsiveness, and recommend actionable pathways to build a more inclusive and effective drought early warning system.

Key Findings:

Disproportionate Impact on Women: Women bear the brunt of drought-related hardships—ranging from food and water insecurity to mental health issues and increased caregiving burdens. Their role as primary caregivers and household managers amplifies their vulnerability.
Limited Access to EWS: Existing EWS—primarily reliant on mobile, television, and radio communications—fail to adequately reach women due to barriers like limited technological access, low literacy, and exclusion from community-level decision-making.
Traditional Knowledge Undervalued: Women rely significantly on traditional and indigenous forecasting systems, which remain largely excluded from formal EWS frameworks.
Barriers to Participation: Patriarchal norms, domestic responsibilities, and social perceptions restrict women’s involvement in drought preparedness planning, both at the household and community levels.

Recommendations:

Localised and Inclusive Communication: Use community-based tools like temple speakers, SHG meetings, and women’s gram sabhas for timely, simplified drought warnings in local languages.
Women’s Leadership in EWS: Institutionalise women’s participation in drought planning through village-level committees and representation in Gram Panchayat meetings.
Strengthen Food and Water Security: Promote women-led food preservation, seed banks, and water storage infrastructure; enhance Public Distribution Systems with targeted provisions for vulnerable women.
Support Livelihood Resilience: Improve women’s access to credit, employment (e.g., NREGS), and drought-resistant farming techniques; encourage bio-farming and local input generation.
Enhance Health and Safety: Train frontline workers to address gendered health needs during droughts and provide safe spaces to counter rising gender-based violence.
Media and Policy Engagement: Develop media toolkits and encourage coverage that centers women’s voices and links drought to broader climate change narratives.

This brief concludes that a gender-transformative approach to drought EWS—one that integrates women’s knowledge, addresses intersectional vulnerabilities, and ensures equitable access to warnings and resources—is not just inclusive but essential for building resilient farming communities.

Gender and Climate Change: A Climate Equity Vision for Now

The document titled “Gender and Climate Change: A Climate Equity Vision for Now” by Asar Social Impact Advisors, published on April 25, 2023, presents a framework addressing the intersection of gender and climate change in India. Recognizing that women, especially from marginalized communities, are disproportionately affected by climate impacts, the framework emphasizes the need for their inclusion in climate policies and decision-making processes.

Developed in two phases, the framework first identifies the root causes of gender inequalities linked to climate vulnerabilities and proposes strategies that integrate mitigation, resilience, and adaptation efforts. These strategies are aligned with national government schemes to ensure relevance and applicability. In the second phase, feedback from stakeholders working in gender and climate change was incorporated to refine the framework.

Central to the framework is the promotion of inclusive governance by integrating women and marginalized groups, particularly indigenous communities, into all levels of decision-making. It advocates for innovative capacity-building and empowerment measures, adopting a rights-based, transformative approach to achieve long-term inclusive governance.

This evolving framework aims to bolster women’s leadership and resilience against climate change, ensuring that their voices and experiences shape effective and equitable climate action.

Women’s Role in Inclusive Governance of Commons amid Climate Challenges – A Facilitator’s Guide

The relationship between gender, commons, and climate change in India is complex and deeply interconnected. Commons—shared natural resources like forests, water, and land—represent collective heritage and are vital for cooperation, sustainability, and resilience. Gender plays a critical role in this equation, particularly in the context of climate change.

Women are central to the conservation and management of commons. Their traditional knowledge, practices, and deep understanding of biodiversity and climate contribute significantly to local ecosystems. Women use commons for household needs and livelihoods, making them essential to food security and community wellbeing. Their experiences and insights are vital for developing innovative, community-based climate solutions.

Facilitator’s Guide Overview
Target Audience: Indigenous women from Koraput district, Odisha.
Objective: To empower community members—especially women—with knowledge and tools to understand the commons and the regulatory frameworks governing them in Odisha. This guide supports mapping of local commons and facilitates dialogue with stakeholders for improved governance and ecological outcomes.
Duration: 5 days (40 hours)

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