A leaked draft opinion showing a majority of Supreme Court justices in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade has thrust sexual and reproductive health into the public spotlight. With this news, the climate movement's attention swings to a related story: the disproportionate effect of climate change on female health and wellbeing. Women are more vulnerable than men to the effects of climate change. Women make up a majority of the world's poor, and are more dependent on threatened natural resources. In addition, women rarely are afforded access to financial services and disaster information. They tend to be excluded from decision-making and resource allocation. All this works to undermine women’s ability to prepare for, and recover from, climate shocks and stresses.
Here are five ways climate change can affect women’s health and wellbeing: