Climate Change, Natural Disasters and Women

1. Climate Change, Natural Disasters and Women Liz Riley, Deputy Coordinator (ag) Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) Inter-American Commission of Women Thirty-Fourth Assembly of Delegates Santiago, Chile November 11, 2008

2. Presentation Overview • CDERA • Climate Change, Climate Variability and Natural Disasters • Impacts on Women • Way forward: Platforms for Action

3. What is CDERA? • Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency • Regional inter-governmental Disaster Management Organization - Headquarters in Barbados • Established in 1991 by Agreement of regional Heads of Government • Main function is to make “immediate and coordinated response” to disasters in Participating States. • Sixteen (16) Participating States

5. Climate Change, Climate variability and natural disasters

6. Definitions • Climate Change: “A change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods” Source: UNFCCC • Climate variability: refers to variations in the mean state and other statistics (such as standard deviations, the occurrence of extremes etc.) of the climate on all spatial and temporal scales beyond that of individual weather events. Source: IPCC • Disaster: A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society causing widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses which exceed the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources. Source: ISDR

7. SOURCE: EM-DAT: The OFDA/CRED International Database 2008

8. SOURCE: EM-DAT: The OFDA/CRED International Database 2008

9. Selected Hazard Impacts in the Caribbean Various sources: Collated by CDERA

10. Climate change impacts • Sea Level Rise – IPCC 3rd Assessment Report avg 5.0mm/yr over the 21st Century • Temperature increases: 11 of the 12 warmest years on record have occurred in the last 12 years. If concentrations of all GHG and aerosols kept constant at 2000 levels, further warming of 0.1degrees C would be expected * • ‘Very likely” that extreme heat events and heavy precipitation will become more frequent* • ‘Likely” that future tropical cyclones will become more intense with larger peak wind speeds and more heavy precipitation* * 4th IPCC Assessment Report

11. Climate change impacts • Actions to address current climate variability are the first steps towards addressing climate change adaptation for the future • Climate change impacts will vary from country to country, region to region, may also vary from community to community since impacts are linked to existing vulnerabilities • Climate change, climate variability and natural disasters are development issues

12. How do natural disasters and climate change affect women? • Overarching context – social dimensions of natural hazard impacts and climate change • Susceptibility vs resilience

13. Framework for the social dimension of vulnerability SOURCE: Kambon, 2005

14. How do natural disasters and climate change affect women? • Differential vulnerability of males and females to natural disaster and climate change impacts are reflective of their socially constructed roles • Responses of males and females to disaster differ

15. Women’s roles result in … • Limited access to resources including credit, extension services, information and technology • Limited mobility – linked to burden of care • Insecure land tenure • Limited access to information, training and capacity building initiatives

16. Women’s roles result in … • Do not receive adequate information on hazards and risks and the links to natural resource use and environmental sustainability to the same extent as men • Limited access to decision-making and leadership positions • Unequal value given to paid work by women • Women make up a large number of the poor in communities highly dependent on local natural resources for livelihood

17. Some key impacts … • May require additional support eg. to respond to early warnings due to limited mobility • Higher mortality rates: 2004 Indian Tsunami female mortality 3 – 4 X that of men in some communities • Inability or reduced ability to fulfill the role as providers of food water and fuel eg. Drought • Lose their jobs and have no means of securing compensation where such recovery programmes exist: eg. Hurricane Ivan Grenada 60 – 70% of workers in the informal sector were women • Constrained potential for recovery in the aftermath of disasters due in part to insecure land tenure

18. Selected Examples: Case Study Grenada Hurricane Ivan 2004

20. Map Of Grenada, Carriacou and Petit Martinique

21. Hurricane Ivan 2004 • Impacted Grenada on September 7, 2004 • Category 3 Hurricane • 115 mile per hour winds

22. Caribbean Case Study – Grenada, Hurricane Ivan 2004 Pre Event Conditions: • A relatively high elderly dependency ratio of 31.8 per cent; Elderly 61+, 26.5 per cent of population; • The poorest fifth of the population had reported first childbirth between the ages of 10-19. Teenage fertility rate 16.3 per cent; Post-Event Impact: • Burden of care increased Source: Grenada: A Gender Impact Assessment Of Hurricane Ivan – Making the Invisible Visible, UNECLAC and UNIFEM 2005

23. Caribbean Case Study – Grenada, Hurricane Ivan 2004 Source: Grenada: A Gender Impact Assessment Of Hurricane Ivan – Making the Invisible Visible, UNECLAC and UNIFEM 2005 Pre Event Conditions: • Informal sector: 60 – 70% female • 32% of the population unemployed • 28.8% of households defined as poor and 10.3% of households classified as indigent; • 48% of women-headed households are among poor women, 52 per cent of women head households; Post Event Impacts: • Direct impact on rural household income • Increase in women’s vulnerabilities related to access to land and care services and income for themselves and children • Women de-prioritizing the level of abuse in their lives – to their needs for shelter, food and income

24. Caribbean Case Study – Grenada, Hurricane Ivan 2004 • Resilience of Women • storytelling to children by women as a coping mechanism • One-pot cooks – community spirit Source: Grenada: A Gender Impact Assessment Of Hurricane Ivan – Making the Invisible Visible, UNECLAC and UNIFEM 2005

25. Climate change adaptation specific areas where gender specific aspects should be addressed • Energy • Water • Food security • Agriculture • Fisheries • Biodiversity and ecosystem services • Health • Industry • Human settlements • Disaster management • Conflict and security SOURCE: Kambon, 2008

26. Way Forward: Platforms for Action • POLICY, LEGAL FRAMEWORKS AND PLANNING: Mainstreaming of gender perspectives into national policies, plans, legislation and other measures including those related to sustainable development and climate change. Gender policy integration into recovery planning Caribbean Regional Strategy for Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) – Views gender as a critical cross cutting issue

27. GOAL Regional Sustainable Development enhanced through CDM PURPOSE To strengthen regional, national and community level capacity for mitigation, management, and coordinated response to natural and technological hazards, and the effects of climate change. OUTCOME 1: Enhanced institutional support for CDM Program implementation at national and regional levels OUTCOME 2: An effective mechanism and programme for management of comprehensive disaster management knowledge has been established OUTCOME 3: Disaster Risk Management has been mainstreamed at national levels and incorporated into key sectors of national economies (including tourism, health agriculture and nutrition) OUTCOME 4: Enhanced community resilience in CDERA states/ territories to mitigate and respond to the adverse effects of climate change and disasters OUTPUTS OUTPUTS OUTPUTS OUTPUTS COMPREHENSIVE DISASTER MANAGEMENT (CDM) Programme Framework

28. Way Forward: Platforms for Action • GENDER INFUSED INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKING - Does the information which informs policy decisions reflect a gender lens? • FINANCIAL • Flexibility of (eg. Post disaster) financing mechanisms to reflect women’s needs and priorities • Gender analysis of all budget lines and financial instruments for climate change essential to ensure gender-sensitive investments on programmes for adaptation, mitigation, technological transfer and capacity building

29. Way Forward: Platforms for Action • GOVERNANCE: Participation of women in decision making processes on natural disasters and climate change – creation of opportunities; inclusiveness • ENABLING ACTIVITES FOR PARTICIPATION • Increasing the understanding of natural hazard risk and the potential implications of climate change • Equal access for women to training, credit and skills development programmes to ensure full participation

30. Way Forward • View women as agents of change • (Indigenous) knowledge and expertise can used assist in climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and disaster risk reduction

31. Thank You!Questions? Contact Information Email: lizriley@cdera.org Telephone: 246-425-0386