What citizens can do

It is evident that climate change will not just jeopardise the environment in which we live, rather its impact will be observed in the overall activity of human society. Nevertheless, the most vulnerable and marginalised sections will experience the severest impact. Hence, these specific sections of population are in need of adaptation strategies in face of the change in climate patterns and resulting environmental problems.

Unfortunately, the poorest of the vulnerable countries will be the worst victims and the overall burden of adverse impacts of climate change will be disproportionate on the poor communities.

Bangladesh is already recognised as one of the most vulnerable countries existing under the threat of climate change. Bangladesh often experiences natural hazards; and most of the water-related hazards will be exacerbated alarmingly if climate change occurs in future.

Although the geophysical aspects of vulnerability to climate change for Bangladesh is better understood, there have only been a few studies which portray the vulnerabilities of the social and economic sectors to climate change.

The common hypothesis indicates that the anticipated geophysical implications of climate change would be disproportionate for the women and disadvantaged groups. Since climate change-induced risks are disproportionately borne by the socioeconomically and physically disadvantaged; and the women constitute a large percentage of the world’s poorest people, women will be most affected by these changes.

It is generally recognised that women living in poverty carry a disproportionate burden of climate change impacts, and because of their greater dependency on local natural resources, their domestic burdens will be increased.

Additionally, the response and coping abilities of men and women to such crisis situations vary to a large extent for status, roles, and positions in society; and gender-based inequalities imply that girls and women are typically at higher risk than boys and men. So, it is essential to integrate gender sensitivity into all mechanisms, policies and measures, and tools and guidelines within the climate debate and adaptation process.

Many environmental problems and development constraints could easily be avoided if the population growth rate is made slower and the population size was smaller. Sturdy attempts to promote women empowerment, upgrade social conditions, and ensure reproductive health rights would help reduce fertility rates and accelerate stability of the population. Therefore, addressing the unmet needs for family planning services will help curtail overall pressures on environmental resources.

Ironically, there still has been no study on family planning needs in the population and climate change hotspots in Bangladesh. Policymakers need to be continuously fed with evidence-based studies to bring in a shift in the current policy landscape of the country, and integrate reproductive health rights and family planning into adaptation programs and development plans.

NGOs, civil society organisations (CSOs), and academia should come forward with more evidence on how women’s reproductive health will be affected by climate change and what may prevent their access to reproductive health service facilities in the future.

Likewise, the gender-specific health impact of climate change on adolescents needs to be identified, along with recommended programs to implement. Advocacy, NGOs, CSOs, and academia are likely to play a major role in selecting adaptation options for Bangladesh, showing the importance of gender sensitivity, reproductive health rights, and family planning needs.

Engagement of these groups is essential, it can offer new opportunities for collaboration, widen the scope of interventions, and increase the potential for citizen’s engagement. From a broader perspective, such work by non-state actors could also contribute to a societal transition through positive feedback.