Open AccessClimate Change and Women's Health: Impacts and Opportunities in India
Author(s) -
Sorensen Cecilia,
Saunik Sujata,
Sehgal Meena,
Tewary Anwesha,
Govindan Mini,
Lemery Jay,
Balbus John
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
geohealth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.889
H-Index - 12
ISSN - 2471-1403
DOI - 10.1029/2018gh000163
Subject(s) - climate change , extreme weather , psychological intervention , food security , socioeconomic status , affect (linguistics) , business , environmental health , disaster risk reduction , natural resource economics , environmental resource management , environmental planning , political science , development economics , geography , agriculture , economics , medicine , psychology , ecology , archaeology , communication , psychiatry , population , biology
Climate change impacts on health, including increased exposures to heat, poor air quality, extreme weather events, and altered vector‐borne disease transmission, reduced water quality, and decreased food security, affect men and women differently due to biologic, socioeconomic, and cultural factors. In India, where rapid environmental changes are taking place, climate change threatens to widen existing gender‐based health disparities. Integration of a gendered perspective into existing climate, development, and disaster‐risk reduction policy frameworks can decrease negative health outcomes. Modifying climate risks requires multisector coordination, improvement in data acquisition, monitoring of gender specific targets, and equitable stakeholder engagement. Empowering women as agents of social change can improve mitigation and adaptation policy interventions.