Gender in Health and Climate Security

Climate and health crises have increased in prominence as episodes of natural disasters and pandemics become more common. Such events demand robust, gender-inclusive and gender-responsive policies, especially where women are disproportionately impacted or left out of response planning. It is imperative that women meaningfully participate in their own community’s defense and security sectors in responding to health disasters or climate-related crises so that women’s expertise and real and symbolic presence underpin all humanitarian response and disaster recovery efforts.

Building the capacity of local law enforcement agencies to respond to both health and climate-related disasters is critical to Indo-Pacific security. By incorporating WPS principles, this event seeks to highlight the importance of women in climate change and health crisis responses and the role a gender perspective plays in the advancing women’s security and empowerment.

This workshop series, spanning two days of virtual sessions, as well as four days of hybrid virtual/in-person sessions, will enable meaningful and constructive discussions between security personnel and women’s civil society organizations (CSOs) working on issues related to health crises and climate change as they impact and threaten Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Over the course of the events, we will cover questions such as: What is climate security? What are the gendered climate security implications for both national/international security and human security? How are women’s and men’s health impacted differently during times of crises? What do international laws and regional frameworks say about gender in health and climate security? How can the security sector prepare for health and climate crises with a gender perspective in mind?

Participants: Security sector personnel and CSO representatives from Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Vanuatu

Dates / Locations:

• Virtual events January 30-31, 2024 (2 half days – via Zoom)

Purpose: The Gender in Health and Climate Security Workshop Series offers security sector personnel training and direct consultation with local women leaders on gender mainstreaming and gender responsive policies during health and climate crises and/or natural disasters. Additionally, through meaningful discussions between security sector personnel and women’s civil society organizations, this workshop series offers women’s groups greater access to assistance programs, resources, and strategic planning processes.

Virtual meeting (Zoom) details will be shared with registered participants shortly before the first virtual sessions.