G d and

Gender d Cli
Climate
t
Change in SERD Operations
27 October 2010
Linda Adams
Social Development Specialist, SERD/SEAE

The views expressed in this paper are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of
the data included in this paper and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper do
not imply any view on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform to ADB's terminology.
 Outline
„ Why gender issues matter
„ Taking a woman’s livelihood
perspective
„ Gender entry points in SERD operations
„ What’s
h t’ missing
i i iin gender
d and
d climate
li t
change discussions
„ GMS gender and climate change TA
in SEAE
I. Why gender issues matter in climate change
adaptation and mitigation strategies

• Majority of extreme poor

depend on forest resources, of
which women are 70% (food,
fodder, fuel, medicine)

• Forests and land use (75% green

house emissions in Asia, mostly in
GMS and Indonesia)

• Women and men different roles

in forest resource management

• Voluntary migration as response

g is
to seasonal changes
increasing with climate change
and negative impact on FHH
• Climate change impacts not gender neutral
• Ability to adapt to changes in climate is gender
defined: depends on control over land, money,
credit and tools, good health and personal mobility,
freedom from violence
• Despite constraints, women are active climate
change adaptation agents
• Institutional gender blindness in forest management
• REDD+ and CDM
mechanisms have not
considered gender
dimensions
• REDD+ mechanisms likely
to compensate
communities/countries
that reduce emissions
significantly vs. groups not
involved in large scale
deforestation activities
(women) unlikely to
benefit significantly
• REDD+ benefit distribution
distrib tion
based on women’s roles in
forest management
presents a development
opportunity
II. Taking a Woman’s Livelihood
Perspective
9 Labour/time burdens
9 Fuel/energy needs

9 Agriculture practices (food security,

k
knowledge
l d b
base))
9 Forests as source nutrients for farms (feed
leaves livestock dung crops/fuel)
9 Male migration (reduced male labour,
resource entitlement claims)
9 Buyer environmental services for work
women already doing (global market
access)
III. Gender entry points in climate change
arena in SERD operations

1. Clean Energy Development

• Renewable energy (reduced fuel collection, improved health impact,
li hti
lighting source, income
i generation
ti dimension)
di i )
• Clean energy access for the poor (solar power, mini hydro power)
• Operations:
9 GMS Bio energy (alternative fuel
fuel, cooking stoves
stoves, food security)
9 VIE Biogas plants (alternative fuel, cooking, lighting, water pumping)
2. Sustainable Urban/transport

• Reduce fossil fuel driven vehicles (alternative forms of

transport)

• Transport/mobility systems often defined by limited

perspective

• Operations

9 CAM Rural Roads Improvement Project (vulnerability

mapping for rural roads to improve planning for
climate change adaptation includes rural women at
planning stages, emergency management and early
warning systems engage women during planning and
inclusion in operation
p of systems,
y cc adaptation
p
measures involve women in planting and caring for
road-side trees and other plants)
3. Forests and Land use
• Gender inclusive forest
management
• Land use and tenure
security
i ((carbon
b market
k
claims, REDD+ special
attention to social
dimensions such as benefit
sharing)

• Operations:
9 GMS Biodiversity Corridor
I iti ti ((women iin NR
Initiative
management forums, FHH
targets for LURCs for marginal
land women’s
land, women s income from
reforestation activity)
4. Climate change adaptation
• Climate
Cli t change
h agricultural
i lt l
adaptation (women’s roles in
agroforestry)
g y)

• Climate proofing infrastructure

intervention generate rural
women’s income opportunities

• Operations:
9 LAO Rural Access Improvement
Project along EWEC (environmental
stabilization of soil alongside roads,
tree p
plantingg ROW public
p land
provide women’s employment,
female contractors)
IV. What’s missing in gender and climate
change discussion (and risks arising from
lack of inclusion of gender issues)?
• Recognition of women farmers/natural resource managers’
i
important
t t role
l in
i climate
li t change
h policy
li framework
f k and
d
strategies. Narrow focus on GHG emissions reductions rather
than social impacts

• Mechanisms for distribution of carbon fund benefits for

vulnerable/women
• Inclusive processes in
l
large scale
l Cl
Clean
Development
Mechanisms (CDM)
( )
projects

• Research on
adaptation strategies
of women under
existing climate
change impacts on
agricultural productivity
andd ffood
d security
it
V. GMS Gender & Climate Change
TA in
i SEAE
• Regional advocacy/decision making: Ensure
women participate in decisions related to climate
change
• National programming/climate change fund
distribution: National Ministries of
Forest/Environment and Women’s Machineries
implementing REDD+ initiatives have improved
capacities on how to deliver equitable benefits to
poor rural women

• Local tools and mechanisms:

9 Women’s organizations have enhanced
capacities to access resources from REDD+ and
carbon financing mechanisms, including those
available from adaptation and clean energy
9 REDD+ mitigation funds enhance global market
access
9 CDM adaptation funds (renewable energy
technologies that are more available to women
and responsive to their energy needs)
 SERD Operations
„ GMS (41226) Climate Friendly Bioenergy
P j t (S
Project (S. Setboonsarng)
S tb )
„ VIE (2513) Quality and Safety Enhancement
of Agricultural Products and Biogas
Development (A. Musa)
„ CAM (2670) Rural Roads Improvement
Project (S.
(S Date)
„ GMS (40253) Biodiversity Conservation
Corridors (P. Ramachandran)
„ LAO (44138) Rural Access Improvement
along the EWEC (D. Salter)
Thank you
y