A group of women in India have demonstrated that despite the existing gender inequity and their low economic status, they can become a powerful resource to tackle climate change and reduce the emissions that cause it. In India, the most vulnerable populations to climate change — impoverished communities and women — are being affected first, and the most. For example, Oxfam India's blog comments about the devastating impact of drought on farmers, and the direct effect on women and children.
Gender as a Factor of Vulnerability to Climate Change It is estimated that women produce over 50% of all food grown worldwide. In India, more than 84% of women are involved in agricultural activities, and as a result they become the greatest victims of climate change's impact. In addition, gender inequality makes them disproportionately vulnerable to environmental alterations. Blogger Pricilla Stuckey, PhD points out on the blog This Lively Earth that women are unequally affected by climate change:
Farmer Sita Debi is an example of this. "When there is no rain, we women have to work really hard in the fields to try and grow crops. Our nutrition also suffers because we are the last to eat at the family table. A lot of us are anemic as a result," she says in the video filmed and posted on the blog Find Your Feet. Other women farmers appear in the video explaining how badly climate change is affecting their lives. When Women Fight Back Indian women don't just sit around waiting to be hit by climate change. They, also, fight back. As shown in the second half of the video, women are developing innovative ways to adapt and help prevent global warming. As reported in this Inter Press Service article:
Another example of women taking proactive steps to combat climate change is taking place in the village of Bidakanne, where women are growing crops such as linseed, green and chick peas, wheat and other legumes in between the rows of sunflowers, all without water and chemical inputs, such as pesticides. This type of agricultural activity is especially beneficial to the dalit or broken women, who make up the lowest rung of India's caste system. Through this system, women in the approximately 75 villages in the Medak district can now form associations to sell their crops, as well as gather surplus produce for poorer members. In addition, to using practices to reduce emissions and harmful pollutants, this type of activity also helps reduce poverty. The leadership and effort of these Indian women has not gone unnoticed within the online community. Shiba Prosad Bhattacharyya comments on the site India Together
|
__._,_.___