Rural Women at the Frontline of Climate Change: A Review of Livelihood Disruptions and Educational Challenge

Abstract

As climate change continues to worsen, developing countries are even more at risk, particularly rural poor women. The aim of this paper is to understand how climate change affects the environment, and in turn how it affects the educational opportunities of women, particularly rural women. Rural women, in particular, are a large part of the informal sector and are unpaid. Most of the rural women are unpaid agricultural workers. For many rural women, even owning land is a financial barrier to negotiating and exerting economic self-determination. Drought, flooding, and irregular rainfall are the most extreme and most visible consequences of climate change. Rural women are already burdened with unpaid labor and food insecurity so climate change does not create additional burdens as they have already been impacted the most. Due to climate change, the environment is impacted, and as a result, so are the livelihoods of people. This covers issues such as family migration, child labor, and child marriage. Sadly, this leads to girls being less likely to attend and receive an education which is considered unimportant in many developing countries. This research seeks to understand the links between economic and educational marginalization in the rural, climate-changed affected areas of the world. Aside from the persistent structural and policy gaps, this research examines the coping strategies of women in rural areas impacted by climate change. These strategies include the use of informal local systems, community-based initiatives, and a broader range of economic activities.