Gender and Climate Change by Joane Nagel

Nagel said her research makes the case for more gender parity in all areas that address climate change, such as science, policy and solutions. She gives examples ranging from the types of professions men and women typically enter to the militarized labs from the Cold War era that have transitioned to measuring climate conditions. The case studies in her book chronicle gender differences in climate change effects and describe some of the ways masculinity has played out in various institutions linked to climate change. 'Men might care about that, too, but women are on the front lines as environmental consumers and caregivers.' They're likely to think about inequality and climate justice issues: How will people be affected? How will climate change affect health? How will climate change affect living circumstances of people? When they're responsible for children, women ask, how will it affect future generations?' Nagel said. 'Women have responsibilities at home that make them sensitive to questions of health and well-being. Strategies that emphasize quick fixes that allow continued high carbon production tend to come from the types of professions that are imbalanced along gender lines, such as mostly men working in energy or transportation industries, she said. We need to address the sources of climate change as well as its consequences,' Nagel said. These kinds of solutions ignore the causes of climate change, which is carbon dioxide production. 'For instance, geoengineering approaches focus on ways to reduce sunlight or bury and sequester carbon.

Nagel said her research for the book points to how more women than men die in climate-related disasters around the world and how a male-centric approach to climate change policy too often focuses on treating the symptoms rather than addressing the root causes. 'In all areas of climate change science, policy and solutions, women and men should be equally represented at the table,' said Joane Nagel, university distinguished professor of sociology and author of 'Gender and Climate Change: Impacts, Science and Policy.' LAWRENCE - The world has long neglected to look at issues surrounding global climate change through a gendered lens, a University of Kansas professor argues in her new book.

Gender and Climate Change by Joane Nagel