By Lila Sax dos Santos Gomes

In 2023, the South of Brazil was hit for the third year in a row by extreme rains, leading to intense flooding and infrastructure collapse. Zoraia Câmara left her house, fleeing with her dogs to her neighbors apartment, where she temporarily found shelter. “it’s not worth it” she told BBC news Brazil “this just keeps happening, I can’t stay here”. With “here” she means the city of São Sebastião do Caí, one of the regions most affected by the torrential rain in 2023 and about 59 km from Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul in south Brazil. The state was hit by floods a total of three times in 2023.  In June, 16 people were killed by flooding; in September 53 people died as a result of the passage of an extratropical cyclone; and in November, when more than 700,000 people were affected by torrential rain. A recent study from the meteorological Institute of Brazil shows that the number of days Porto Alegre suffers “extreme precipitation” – rainfall above 50 millimeters – has more than doubled since the 1960s. From 1961 to 1970, there were 29 days a year. This number increased to 44 days between 2001 and 2010 and rose to 66 days from 2011 to 2020.

Floods and extreme heat are two of the deadliest natural disasters made exponentially worse by climate change. But to concentrate on the environmental impact of the climate crisis would mean missing the very political nature at the heart of this crisis. While many parts of the world experience visible impacts like flooding and extreme heat, the crisis’s scope is much broader, affecting global food security, water quality, air pollution, and chemical usage. And the impacts are not the same for everyone. Women and girls are much more likely to be forced to flee their homes due to insufficient food and water as a result of the climate disaster. For example, by 2050, an estimated 158 million more women and girls could be pushed into poverty due to climate change, with marginalized groups disproportionately affected. This inequality calls for a critical examination of who bears the brunt of climate impacts and who is responsible for causing them.

Vulnerability is a key term in the context of the climate crisis. In short, vulnerability can be explained as the exposure to natural disasters before, during and after the event as well as the sensitivity of individuals or populations to the effects of climate events, influenced by things like socio-economic status, housing precarity, education, language barriers, risk perception and preparedness and climate change mitigation opportunities. While shifts are happening to allow for vulnerable populations to have more of a say in how climate mitigation and adaptation strategies are created, these processes are still often overshadowed by power dynamics and exploitative practices. But effective climate action must be equitable in order to ensure inclusivity.

“I don’t think that we can actually do proper work on equality, proper work on human rights, proper work addressing the complexity of the climate crisis (if we are) still ignoring and battling issues of social acceptability and social stigma, Leisa Perch, the keynote speaker during Yarrow Global’s workshop of feminist responses to the climate crisis in March*. “We know that historically and even today, these issues have implications for the ability to access services and the quality of those services, the ability to amass resources and to be able to deploy them and the ability to navigate throughout society, including their ability to raise their hand and say, I am vulnerable, and I need help in these ways.”

Accountability and Feminist Framework

Accountability in climate action involves not just tracking financial resources but ensuring they reach those in need equitably. This includes resource management, expenditure, procurement processes, and budgeting, ensuring transparency and effectiveness in addressing climate impacts. A feminist approach helps in navigating the complexities of social norms and power dynamics, challenging biases, and fostering social inclusion.

Roadmaps exist for how to create a feminist climate justice framework. For example, a recent such roadmap from UN Women entails key dimensions and principles of feminist climate justice. Considering redistribution, recognition, representation and reparation within an intersectional approach can aid practitioners in developing more inclusive programs and approaches to the climate crisis. Central to the way forward is however a fundamental change in our way of envisioning humans place in the world and our relationship to and with nature.

“What still sounds utopian to us has long been a reality in parts of Latin America: the concept of “Buen Vivir” or “Sumak Kawsay” calls for harmonious and ecological coexistence,” said Elena Mugurza, a panalist the the feminist responses to the climate crisis workshop. This indigenous concept is deeply rooted in Andean culture and has been incorporated into the constitutions of the governments of Ecuador and Bolivia, along with the attendant political challenges. “Despite the difficulties in implementation, this way of thinking of humans and nature as connected rather than separate offers enormous potential to sustainably change the way people think and live and promote a strong sense of community.”

Leadership and decision-making are critical, particularly in empowering marginalized groups such as women. Governance systems must enable inclusive decision-making to address power imbalances effectively. The road to get there is steep, but the urgency of the climate crisis – and its disparate effects – make it a necessary path to follow.

Feature image: Gloria Ushigua of the Sapara Association of Women in the Ecuadorian Amazon protests fossil fuel extraction in her Indigenous territory at the NYC climate week in 2023. Photo credit Sarah Sax/Yarrow Global

*The event “Feminist Responses to the Climate Crisis” held on 20. April 2024 was financed by the Bundesministerium für Internationale Zusammenarbeit. Für den Inhalt dieser Publikation ist allein Yarrow Global Consulting gGmbH verantwortlich; die dargestellten Positionen geben nicht den Standpunkt der Engagement Global gGbmH und des Bundesministeriums für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung wieder.