21. Gender Equality Is Essential for Establishing a Climate Just World

I love stories. I could listen to the stories people tell me for hours and paint according pictures in my head. It is an honor for me when people open up to share their experiences, their emotions, share the beautiful and the dark sides of their lives. Over the centuries, humanity has built up a wealth of knowledge by telling stories that are not only beautiful, vast, and essential to our survival but also regionally and locally specific. While our ancestors could largely rely on traditional knowledge and were therefore conscious of when the rainy season would start, when it was time to move on, or when the water holes would be filled, this, unfortunately, is no longer the case today. Anthropogenic climate change has implications for both nature and humanity. The extent to which people are affected is determined not only by where they live, but also by their gender and the roles in which they find themselves. In this chapter, we look at the links between climate change and gender, and propose solutions ranging from gender justice and feminism to new leadership.