Gender-responsive climate finance as a tool in Green Foreign & Security Policy

Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges for the humanity of our time. However, its impact is not equally experienced across the board. Pre-existing inequalities differentiate how the crisis is translated for the livelihoods of women and vulnerable social groups. Social, economic and cultural factors are an integral part of the picture. According to UN Women, climate-related disasters increase the risk of experiencing gender-based violence and displacement (UN Women, 2022). In addition to that, the IPCC has recognized that women’s livelihoods tend to be more affected when climate-related disasters such as droughts or floods occur (IPCC, 2023). 

That is especially relevant for rural women for example, who rely more than their urban peers on natural resources for their livelihoods, daily food and income. They often also have a limited access to education, financial opportunities, and decision-making processes -conditions exacerbating their vulnerability. This goes on to show that gender is only one dimension of the climate crisis that is in turn complemented by others such as race and socio-economic status. It is with this in mind that we should climate finance and especially within the framework of exercising Green Foreign & Security Policy (GFSP).

From a GFSP perspective, adopting a gender-responsive approach in climate finance is not only a matter of justice but also of strategic foresight. This approach flows directly from elements found in the GFSP narrative, such as feminist foreign policy, climate policy & sustainability, as well as fair trade, development and resources to name a few. We can already find elements of this approach in public policy, albeit incomplete. The European Union’s Gender Action Plan III and the Green Deal for example, emphasize on the importance of gender equality in climate action, recognizing that sustainable peace and security cannot be achieved without addressing the differential impacts of climate change on women and men.

In order to strengthen the resilience and adaptive capacities of women and marginalized groups, the focus should be on the integration of gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches into climate policies. Only this way will it be possible to address the unique needs and vulnerabilities of women and marginalized groups, while also unleashing their capacities, knowledge and leadership as agents of change. By doing so, we can ensure that climate action is inclusive, equitable, and capable of leveraging the diverse contributions of all individuals, fostering more sustainable and impactful solutions.

Looking back, looking ahead 

Today, the international community recognizes that mainstreaming gender into climate finance is beneficial for both climate and gender equality. This recognition translates into a variety of practices, including prioritizing women and vulnerable social groups as beneficiaries, strengthening their leadership in climate decision-making and providing access to financial opportunities. At the same time, the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and marginalized communities is highlighted, advocating for the transformation of existing inequalities (Sultana, 2014). However, this hasn’t always been the case.

Initially, little attention was given to gender equality and inclusion when discussing climate finance. It is only in recent years that climate finance frameworks and mechanisms have embraced these notions (UN Women, 2022, UNFCCC, 2014). In this context, gender-responsive climate finance now aims to go beyond traditional strategies by ensuring that climate action is not only effective but also just and inclusive. Beyond recognizing the disproportionate impacts of climate change within communities, it aspires to take actions to reduce social inequalities and advance gender equality and inclusion. 

In 2019, the Lima Work Programme on Gender (LWPG) underlined the significance of monitoring gender and inclusion as aspects in climate action. Accordingly, some international climate funds[1] now require integrating a gender-responsive perspective to access their funding. In addition to that, they are also mainstreaming gender into their operations through grants’ provision, monitoring systems, and knowledge management[2]. But how exactly is gender-responsive climate finance relating to the application of the GFSP narrative in practice? 

Connecting the dots

Over the last decades we have witnessed how climate change can become a destabilizing factor with lasting consequences that hinder peace. In that regard, considering the climate crisis only as an environmental issue, without taking into account the totality of its ramifications and impact, seems rather shortsighted. Indeed, the climate crisis has many global policy dimensions besides gender, including those of security and peace. It is based on this assumption that climate finance, gender justice and peacebuilding come together in the GFSP narrative and that is where this analysis is going to focus.

In 2023, the Heinrich Böll Foundation published the “Green Foreign Policy Snapshots: Preliminary Findings Report” where the elements of the GFSP narrative were set out as a whole. In this report, it is acknowledged that an inclusive, fair and sustainable global policy strategy should address precisely this nexus. Although the GFSP narrative has elements that go beyond these three aspects, they are pretty much at the core of the approach and this can be observed if we take a closer look. In fact, the interconnection can be traced in at least four of the elements included.

Firstly, the report highlights that GFSP requires alignment with sustainability objectives, as it recognizes the global dimension of the climate crisis as described by characteristic 3. Secondly, in agreement with characteristics 4 and 7, a gender-responsive perspective promotes climate policies that embrace equality, human rights, and representation. These values are at the core of the feminist foreign policy approach to peace and security that is included through characteristic 4. Finally, the promotion of peace and non-violence in characteristic 6 can be strengthened with financial resources that address existing inequalities, by investing in social cohesion and justice in a structural way. Principles’ alignment aside, to better grasp gender-responsive climate finance as a tool in GFSP we need to look into how it is currently applied in the field.

Insights from the field 

Following the development of policy frameworks that link climate, gender and peacebuilding, international organizations have been integrating gender-responsive and intersectional approaches into climate finance for some time now. For example, the Adaptation Fund[3] has funded the work of UN-Habitat aiming at the adaptation of urban communities in rural and conflict-prone areas of Pakistan to the increasing water scarcity and climate-induced hazards (floods and droughts). This adaptation is achieved through rainwater harvesting and capacity building, improving their safe water access. In addition to having a gender-responsive design that ensures the participation of women and other marginalized groups at all stages of implementation (planning, decision-making, training, monitoring), the project acknowledges women not only as beneficiaries but also as active agents of change through their roles as community champions, trainers, and leaders in the management of rainwater harvesting units. 

Taking a closer look, we can see several elements of the GFSP narrative present in this example. Indeed, women-led organizations, such as Shehersaaz, playing a key role in the execution of the project are in line with the elements of feminist foreign policy (characteristic 4). Moreover, the project promoted gender-environment synergies by linking women’s empowerment to ecological outcomes, notably through urban farming, rooftop gardening, and recycling initiatives that built green livelihoods. Here too, with a focus on local ownership of resources and sustainability, we find elements from Climate Policy & Sustainability as well as Fair Trade, Development & Resources (characteristics 3 & 5 respectively).

Another notable feature of this project is that different vulnerable groups, such as Afghan migrants, elderly people and persons with disabilities, also benefited from it. This has contributed to reduced risks of exclusion and social tensions, given that the project operates in conflict-prone and disaster-sensitive areas, notably Nowshera in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This feature is also very much in line with the inclusive and structural approach of the Promotion of Peace / Non Violence element found the GFSP narrative (characteristic 6) as well as with the universality of human rights and protections therein (characteristic 7). As a logical consequence, the project has also recognized the importance of empowering marginalized groups through capacity building.

The project’s approach, which integrates gender, environment and security, has produced tangible outcomes across all these three dimensions. First of all, it has advanced gender equality through the participation and empowerment of women in the project’s activities and by challenging traditional gender roles, strengthening social cohesion. Second of all, it has also improved water governance with improved water availability through rainwater harvesting, leading to communities becoming more resilient and with greater adaptive capacities. Third of all, the project’s inclusion of marginalized and migrant groups has fostered trust and local ownership, leading to a stronger social cohesion and potentially long-term peace[4]. These results demonstrate that combining approaches promoting gender equity, environmental sustainability and peacebuilding can yield durable resilience outcomes, transforming vulnerable communities into agents of both climate adaptation and social progress. 

In Colombia, a project funded by the Green Climate Fund has followed a similar approach, demonstrating positive outcomes in these areas[5]. The initiative seeks to address gender disparities in land ownership by integrating a gender-sensitive approach into the national land registration system. In fact, land inequality has fueled conflict in the country, where women and indigenous groups are underrepresented when it comes to land ownership. The project integrates a gender-responsive perspective through targeted outreach that includes women as beneficiaries of land-titling, as well as capacity building for gender-sensitive cadastral practices and community awareness, addressing cultural and social barriers that hinder land registration of women. 

As a result of these interventions, the project has shown concrete results with an increase in women’s land registration in pilot communities, as well as enhanced institutional capacity in land governance (UN Women, 2023). By integrating gender equality, climate justice, and security perspectives into its design and implementation, the project demonstrated the linkage between equitable land rights, environmental stewardship and social stability. Women’s empowerment has been increased through tenure security, while more sustainable land use and conservation practices have been fostered in post-conflict territories. 

In conclusion

Gender-responsive climate finance has been an effective mechanism for redistributing power and resources within the context of environmental governance. We have seen examples from different settings of how Green Foreign & Security Policy could take shape when it comes to climate finance. The added value of the GFSP approach in these cases is that gender justice and peacebuilding come together naturally and qualify what successful climate finance means. In unequal and fragile rural settings, where environmental stress overlaps with conflict legacies, this intersectional and gender-responsive approach offers a pathway to peace with justice. 

It also addresses historical exclusions by ensuring equitable access to resources, land, and decision-making spaces, while fostering cooperative and sustainable natural resource management. The question of resources is a distinct element (characteristic 5) in GFSP and it is tightly woven with local ownership, empowering indigenous and local communities as custodians of resources on their land. This is equally relevant to applying feminist foreign policy principles (characteristic 4) because the equal share of resources between all genders and vulnerable social groups creates more stable and peaceful societies. After all, sustainable social mechanics and economic security in the long-term is at the center of what peacebuilding is all about (characteristic 6) after the end of armed conflicts.

Importantly, to advance gender equality, the inclusion of marginalized communities and the consolidation of peace through climate finance, it is necessary to acknowledge multiple layers of vulnerability. The adoption of an intersectional approach ensures that interventions reach marginalized communities, while at the same time avoiding the inadvertent exacerbation of inequalities. Ensuring the participation and decision-making of vulnerable groups in climate governance contributes to gender equality, social cohesion and shared accountability. It strengthens women’s leadership as a stabilizing force, which, in turn, reinforces local institutions and enhances human security. 

There is no question. The need is great for a holistic approach on climate finance and the Green Foreign & Security Policy narrative brings many necessary elements on the table. We urgently need to reduce gender and social inequalities that disproportionately affect communities vulnerable to climate change and threaten peace, thereby  enabling the conditions for sustainable peace and long-term stability. Adopting the approach of the GFSP narrative in climate finance could get us there faster and securely. Why wait?

References

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2023). Climate Change 2023: Synthesis report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, H. Lee & J. Romero (Eds.)]. IPCC.

UNDP. (2026). From crisis to resilience: climate solutions for positive peacebuilding. https://www.undp.org/publications/crisis-resilience-climate-solutions-positive-peacebuilding.

UN Women. (2022). Gender equality in the face of climate change. UN Women. https://www.unwomen.org/en/news-stories/explainer/2022/2/gender-equality-in-the-face-of-climate-change

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). (n.d.). Introduction to climate finance. UNFCCC. https://unfccc.int/topics/climate-finance/the-big-picture/introduction-to-climate-finance

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). (2014). Report of the Conference of the Parties on its twentieth session, held in Lima from 1 to 14 December 2014: Addendum. Part two: Action taken by the Conference of the Parties at its twentieth session (Decision 18/CP.20 — Lima Work Programme on Gender). UNFCCC. https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2014/cop20/eng/10a03.pdf

Sultana, F. (2014). Gendering climate change: Geographical insights. The Professional Geographer, 66(3), 372–381. https://doi.org/10.1080/00330124.2013.821730 

Heinrich Böll Foundation. (2023). Green foreign policy snapshots: Preliminary findings report. Heinrich Böll Stiftung. https://www.boell.de/en/2023/05/15/green-foreign-policy-snapshots-preliminary-findings-report

UN Women. (2023). Annual report 2023: Women’s land rights and economic empowerment in Colombia. UN Women. https://data.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/documents/Women%20Count/Annual%20Report_UNWWC_2023.pdf