How are rural women in developing countries adapting their livelihoods and traditional roles in response to climate change, and what barriers do they face in accessing climate-resilient solutions and technologies?

1. Key finding

Overall
Perceptions of climate change, adaptation strategies, access to resources, and social networks for effective adaptation are distinctly shaped by gender, with men and women exhibiting differentiated roles, resources, and support systems that influence their adaptive capacities and responses to climate impacts. 

Women and girls-related
Gender roles significantly shape adaptation strategies in agriculture, with men typically engaging in labor-intensive and resource-focused activities, while women prioritize less labor-demanding tasks and household food security, reflecting distinct responsibilities in response to climate challenges. Women face restricted access to productive resources, limiting their adoption of technical climate adaptation strategies and often confining them to managerial roles, while men tend to dominate resource-intensive activities due to cultural norms and differential resource ownership. Women face restricted access to productive resources, limiting their adoption of technical climate adaptation strategies and often confining them to managerial roles, while men tend to dominate resource-intensive activities due to cultural norms and differential resource ownership.

2. Short summary

Research reveals mixed evidence regarding gendered perceptions of climate change. While men and women share similar views, women often report greater concern, especially over specific threats like crop losses and saltwater intrusion. This heightened concern may stem from a more fatalistic outlook on climate, possibly due to limited access to information. Gender roles critically shape these perceptions; for example, women in Uganda focus on issues impacting fuel and water due to their domestic roles, while men emphasize soil fertility and livestock health.

Adaptation strategies also differ by gender. Women, restricted by unequal access to resources, tend to adopt managerial adaptations like crop rotation, while men typically engage in structural changes like flood prevention. Financial and technical adaptations vary; women in Bangladesh rely on savings or loans for small businesses, while men in Ghana often sell assets. The findings emphasize that women often face adaptation barriers due to poverty and limited capital. Gender roles and associated socioeconomic factors distinctly shape climate resilience. Women often rely more on localized, food security-focused social networks, while men access broader, crop-oriented institutional networks, with cultural practices further restricting women’s social connectivity and network access.

3. Long summary

3.1 PICOS 

Population: Women

Concept: gender disaggregated perception and/or adaptation to climate change in agriculture

Context: No specific region

3.2 Risk of bias - Not assessed 

3.3 Publication bias - Not assessed

3.4 Findings 

Evidence on gendered perceptions of climate change is mixed. Some studies suggest men and women share similar views, while others indicate women show slightly higher concern and greater sensitivity to temperature changes. Many studies note that women, often with limited climate information, are more fatalistic about climate change, sometimes viewing it as divine will. In China, women attribute climate change to human actions, whereas in Ghana, Malawi, and Bangladesh, both genders frequently cite deforestation and overpopulation. Female farmers generally express greater concerns over crop losses, reduced productivity, and environmental threats, while men more frequently report flood occurrences, with women focusing on flood impacts and prevention.

Gender roles significantly shape perceptions of climate change, leading men and women to experience and interpret impacts differently. For example, in India, men typically observe effects on activities they manage, like hunting and livestock health, while women are more attuned to changes affecting forest food plants, medicinal plants, and horticulture due to their responsibilities in these areas. In Ghana, women perceive reductions in food production more than men because of their role in securing food supplies. Similarly, in Uganda, women note prolonged droughts, saline water, and wetland changes for fuel cultivation, while men focus on soil fertility decline. These differences suggest that specific gender roles within communities lead to distinct climate change perceptions, even among people living in the same area. Climate change perception among farmers also varies by age, social status, and ethnicity, influencing adaptation behaviors. Older and poorer farmers in India and Mexico are more certain about climate impacts, while concerns about climate change strongly drive adaptation efforts, especially among women.

Some of the climate change adaptation strategies adopted and variation by gender:

Technical adaptation: The adoption of improved crop varieties and livestock breeds varies by gender and location, with women favoring fast-maturing crops and men often prioritizing drought-resistant varieties. Gendered differences also affect adoption rates, with women in Bangladesh adopting diverse agriculture more than men, whereas men in Ghana lead in diversification efforts.

Financial adaptation: In response to climate change, men in Ghana and Kenya typically sell assets like livestock to cope with drought, while women rely more on borrowing or savings. Asset sale strategies also vary by climate impact and gender, with male-headed households selling assets during drought and female-headed households amid pest infestations. Women in Bangladesh and Malawi frequently join savings schemes and take loans for small businesses, whereas in India, more men take loans, borrow from neighbors, and use savings for adaptation.

Structural Adaptation: Structural adaptation strategies typically fall to men, such as flood prevention and drainage, while women often adopt water harvesting, pen reinforcement, and fire control measures, sometimes increasing their labor, as seen in Sudan.

Managerial Adaptation: Farmers, regardless of gender, widely adopt managerial adaptation strategies, with variations by gender; women in Tanzania focus on cropping and fertilization, men on conservation and feed improvement, and in Ghana, men prioritize fish farming, while women emphasize seasonal forecasting and post-harvest tech.

Socio-cultural adaptation: Key socio-cultural adaptation strategies include changes in food habits, gender roles, farming systems, and education. In Ghana and Eritrea, women reduced meal size and used wild plants during drought, while in Mali, women took on livestock rearing as men shifted to migration or sharecropping due to climate challenges.

Livelihood Adaptation: Farmers adapt to climate change by diversifying income through non-farm activities, with gender differences in preferred strategies. In Malawi, men leaned towards fisheries and agriculture-related activities, while women engaged more in petty businesses. Additionally, men in some regions pursued exclusive livelihoods like fishing or carpentry, while women focused on small-scale businesses, labor, and forest-based livelihoods.

Migration as adaptation: Migration as an adaptation strategy to climate change is primarily undertaken by men, though women also migrate for non-farm work, with some regions seeing higher female migration. Seasonal migration patterns vary, with men shifting pastures during droughts and women adopting circular migration for fishing. Migration can lead to positive outcomes, such as female empowerment through remittances, but also negatively impacts women left behind, increasing their workload and leading to female-headed households in certain regions.

3.5 Sensitivity analysis - Not assessed

4. AMSTAR 2 assessment of the review

5. Count of references to the following words

1. Key finding

Overall
Women in rural and agrarian communities adapt to climate change through diverse strategies such as livelihood diversification, altered crop practices, reliance on microcredit, migration, indigenous knowledge use, and income generation through trade and livestock rearing. However, systemic gender barriers limit their access to resources, impacting their resilience and adaptation effectiveness.

2. Short summary
Women in rural and agrarian communities employ diverse strategies to adapt to climate change impacts. In India, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Mali, women turn to alternative livelihoods like making handicrafts, engaging in petty trade, livestock rearing, and forest-based activities when traditional agriculture becomes unsustainable due to environmental stressors. For instance, women in Bangladesh took up soil-cutting for income after Cyclone Aila, and Vietnamese women increasingly engage in waged labor due to water scarcity. In places where male migration shifts family roles, women assume greater adaptation responsibilities despite facing limited access to land, credit, and resources.

Women’s access to financial resources, often restricted, drives reliance on loans, microcredit, and savings to fund adaptation efforts, while education and training enhance adaptation abilities, especially where women receive support from NGOs. Local ecological knowledge is also critical; women in the Fijian Islands and Torres Strait use indigenous knowledge to manage food security and predict weather. Across regions, women reduce their own consumption to prioritize family needs in times of food scarcity, and they leverage diverse adaptation methods to support household resilience despite significant barriers posed by gender norms and financial limitations.

3. Long summary

3.1 PICOS 

PCC: Population/concept/context framework

Population - Women

Concept - Adaptation strategies in response to climate-related disasters 

Context - No specific geography

3.2 Risk of bias - Not assessed

3.3 Publication bias - Not assessed

3.4 Findings 

The review identifies a number of adaptation strategies taken up by women in the context of climate change, especially in rural and agrarian settings. These include:

Income source diversification: In India’s Katper village, women make rope from cotton waste due to declining incomes from fishing and gardening caused by climate change. After Cyclone Aila in 2009, Bangladeshi women in Khulna turned to soil-cutting for income. In Vietnam and Mali, women shifted to livestock raising and firewood collection as water scarcity hampers farming, while worsening droughts in Mali have led women to adopt forest-based livelihoods. Male migration has also prompted women to pursue off-farm income.

Livelihood diversification: In Bangladesh, women diversify their livelihoods by cultivating varied crops, albeit with lower adoption rates than men due to societal barriers. Vietnamese women often shift to waged labor instead of agriculture. In Nepal, decreased crop production due to warming leads women to rely on day labor. In northeastern Nigeria, both men and women adopt off-farm activities to manage food security amid drought. In India, coastal flooding in Gujarat and annual storms push women to shift away from traditional livelihoods like fishing, while in Uttarakhand and Mali, they take up wage labor and forest-based livelihoods to adapt 

Altered cultivation/crop management/crop diversification: In agrarian societies, adaptation is vital, though gender norms limit women's roles in agricultural adaptation. While men control agricultural output, some societies allow or require limited female participation. Female-headed households employ adaptive strategies, like flood-resistant rice in India, drought-resistant crops in Nepal, and charcoal production in Mali. Nigerian women adopt intercropping and crop rotation at lower rates than men, while Bangladeshi women use salt-tolerant and mangrove farming, mixed cropping, and floating gardens for flood resilience. Vietnamese women adapt with drought-resistant rice, irrigation adjustments, and modified planting times to address water scarcity.

Personal loan/Microcredit/Borrowing money: Climate change adaptation is costly, and women, with fewer resources than men, face financial barriers that limit effective adaptation. Women often rely on microcredit, loans, or intermediaries. In Bangladesh, women leverage NGO loans for family support, while female-headed Nigerian households access agricultural loans. In Vietnam, women secure low-interest loans or start small businesses to offset declining rice yields. In Gujarat, India, women transitioned from farming to lobster rearing, funded by loans after a climate event.

Saving money and Property selling: During crises, women’s property is often sold before men’s, and their limited capacity to save reduces their coping ability. In Bangladesh, women in char areas engage in diverse income-generating activities to build savings, which supports family adaptation during events like floods (Naz et al.). Similarly, rural Vietnamese women prioritize saving in advance to prepare for climate-related challenges.

Migration: In regions like Uttarakhand, Gujarat, and coastal Bangladesh, male outmigration grants women greater decision-making power over adaptation and income diversification despite lacking land ownership. However, they face challenges in accessing irrigation water, credit, labor, and handling increased workloads. In water-scarce Vietnam, women, especially those with lower education, turn to local or seasonal wage labor during dry periods. In drought-prone Nigeria, female-headed households often migrate or send children for off-farm work to reduce consumption pressures.

Education/Training: In Bangladesh, flood-affected rural women receive NGO training to diversify livelihoods, while urban women emphasize children’s education as a preventive measure. In drought-prone regions of India, organizations provide training to help women adapt to climate impacts. Education level significantly influences households’ adaptation capabilities by enhancing analytical skills for resilience strategies. Women in Mali prioritize education as a long-term strategy, aiming for their children to secure paid work and reduce dependence on natural resources.

Use of local indigenous knowledge: Women’s reliance on natural resources and ecological knowledge strengthens their role in climate adaptation. Their expertise enables them to gather and disseminate ecosystem information crucial for resilience. In the Fijian islands, intergenerational knowledge sharing from past disasters informs future adaptation strategies. In the Torres Strait Islands, women, known as "aunties," use local materials and predict weather patterns to enhance food security and self-sufficiency. Similarly, women in Bangladesh employ indigenous knowledge for climate hazard management, while women in Uttarakhand, India, utilize natural indicators to predict weather events, safeguarding family food security.

Petty trade, livestock rearing, home-made product selling: Women in regions like Uttarakhand, Gujarat, and Bangladesh adapt to climate stresses by engaging in handicrafts, trade, and livestock rearing for income and family nutrition. In food-scarce rural areas, women often reduce their own consumption to prioritize family needs. Here, staying hungry becomes a way of adapting to climate stresses. 

3.5 Sensitivity analysis - Not assessed

4. AMSTAR 2 assessment of the review

5. Count of references to the following words 

1. Key finding

Overall
This paper focused on identifying the means to tackle climate change as it explored the key role women could play in developing and enhancing innovation. It also revealed that women tend to adopt innovations that have proven to be efficient.

Women and girls-related
The systematic review showed that more women within the technological innovation process promised greater productivity and better results. More women in science would contribute to accelerating the development of the necessary technological innovation to counter climate change and promote continued awareness about it. More female board members in large companies and public institutions would contribute to not only appropriate climate change policies, but also to a move away from “gadget” technologies that fail to effectively fight rising global temperatures.

2. Short summary

The objective of this paper was to explore the role of women within innovation processes and therefore respond to the following research question: “What can women contribute in the fight against climate change?”. Having more women involved in innovation processes contributes to an improved development and diffusion of these innovations. The literature revealed that public policies aimed at promoting and financing the development of technologies to counter climate change did not necessarily lead to the development of patents whose applications directly served this cause. So, adding or giving more places to women in companies and private and public R&D institutions should as a result contribute not only to the development of more patents, but also patents that directly assist anti-climate change strategies. The literature claimed that more places for women in this kind of male-dominated context could lead not only to higher research productivity, but to greater research diversity in terms of topics or studies as well, most notably from new or different viewpoints.

3. Long summary

3.1 PICOS 

Papers were selected that focussed on innovations to combat climate change, and used the keywords innovation and climate change identified in their title or abstract, or as keywords provided by the authors. Since the term innovation is broad, they created subcategories that were associated with its construct, and referred to subcategories related to the innovation process and the key components of innovation such as knowledge, creativity, adoption, idea selection, patents, R&D, and diffusion.

In a second step, using the same approach, they identified papers related to gender, innovation, and climate change.

3.2 Risk of bias - Not assessed

3.3 Publication bias - Not assessed

3.4 Findings

Women faced more social constraints than men in adopting new technologies, often showing ambivalence toward their use. While social class played a greater role than gender in shaping adoption patterns, some scholars noted that women saw technology as a pathway to career opportunities, especially when it carried social value or earned respect. Women with more androgynous traits tended to express greater comfort with technologies like computers. Educated and skilled women farmers were more likely to adopt new agricultural technologies, whereas those bound by traditional roles and limited education were often excluded from decision-making on the farm.

3.5 Sensitivity analysis - Not assessed

4. AMSTAR 2 assessment of the review

5. Count of references to the following words