Women And Children In A Climate Crisis

Climate change exacerbates violence against women and girls

12 July 2022 (United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner)

“It is estimated that 80 per cent of people displaced by climate change are women, according to UN Environment…When women are displaced, they are at greater risk of violence, including sexual violence, said Michele Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights…[during a panel discussion on] the relationship between climate change and violence against women and girls…[M]igration and forced displacement are among the most serious impacts of the climate crisis that are already impacting millions of people around the world…

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…[W]omen and girls make up more than 40 per cent of the agriculture labour force and are responsible for 60-80 per cent of food production…[and] are often doubly affected by discrimination, exploitation, and gender-based violence…Women environmental human rights defenders who work to protect land, water, nature, and communities are putting their lives at risk, Bachelet said…They are criminalized and silenced. They are threatened and stigmatized. They are at additional risk of gender-based violence. And many are even killed…[I]n Mexico and Central America between 2016 and 2019, about 1,698 acts of violence were recorded against women human rights defenders…

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…Bachelet provided recommendations on how to prevent and eliminate violence against women and girls due to climate change including recognizing that climate change and violence against women are intrinsically linked…States need to empower women for disaster preparedness and providing alternative means of livelihood if they are faced with a climate crisis…[and states] should hold people accountable with zero impunity for perpetrators of gender-based violence…” click here for more

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