Mainstreaming Gender Equity, Gender-Responsive Policies, and Social Inclusion for Sustainable and Climate Resilient Rural and Urban Adaptation

Entry requirements

Please use this Research Proposal, Personal statement and CV writing guide when preparing an application.

Months of entry

Anytime

Course content

Project Context

Climate change intensifies gender inequalities, disproportionately impacting women, girls, and marginalized groups through displacement, resource insecurity, and heightened risks of gender-based violence. Despite global frameworks like the Paris Agreement (UNFCCC, 2015) and the Gender Action Plan (UNFCCC, 2017), implementation remains fragmented. For example, 80% of climate-displaced populations are women, yet less than 0.04% of climate finance targets gender equality (IFAD, 2024; van Daalen et al., 2024). Even in high-income nations like the UK, intersectional vulnerabilities—such as energy poverty in female-led households—are overlooked in urban climate strategies (Debnath et al., 2024). These systemic inequities underscore the urgency of reorienting resilience efforts through a gender-responsive lens.

Gaps in Policy and Theory
While 96% of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) reference gender issues, few translate this into actionable strategies addressing women’s needs in agriculture or disaster response (Grown et al., 2024). Only 43% of developing countries integrate gender-responsive budgeting, and critical intersectional risks (e.g., rural women’s limited access to climate-smart technologies) are sidelined in policy design (IFAD, 2024; Jerneck, 2017). Theoretically, feminist political ecology and intersectionality frameworks are underutilized in climate adaptation research, leading to a disconnect between high-level gender-climate linkages (e.g., IPCC reports) and practical guidance for policymakers. For instance, the IPCC’s gender insights are rarely distilled into tools for grassroots actors, perpetuating gaps in knowledge translation (Debnath et al., 2024).

Gaps in Practice
Practically, maladaptation persists as technical solutions (e.g., flood barriers) prioritize infrastructure over equity, exacerbating women’s caregiving burdens (Jerneck, 2017). Only seven countries report sex-disaggregated disaster data (UNDRR, 2021), and monitoring frameworks fail to track localized gender disparities, leaving initiatives like cash transfers inconsistently implemented. Social norms further restrict women’s agency: 48% of agricultural workers are women, yet they face systemic barriers in adopting climate-resilient practices (IFAD, 2024). In the UK, urban heatwave plans neglect gendered mobility constraints, while global climate governance remains male-dominated, with women comprising just 27% of COP delegations (van Daalen et al., 2024). These gaps highlight the need for accountability mechanisms and participatory approaches to align practice with equity goals.

Study Context

This research prioritizes regions where intersecting vulnerabilities—such as:

· Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, where systemic inequities intersect with high climate vulnerability. In Niger and Chad (ND-GAIN vulnerability scores: 67% and 27% readiness), women’s agricultural roles are overlooked despite comprising nearly half the workforce (IFAD, 2024). Afghanistan (GGGI score: 43%) and Yemen (GII score: 82%) reflect extreme gender disparities, while cultural norms in Bangladesh restrict women’s agency during floods (Debnath et al., 2024). Political marginalization in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia (GGGI political empowerment scores <20%) further weakens gender-responsive climate governance. Data gaps in Nigeria and Myanmar hinder recovery programs addressing women’s post-disaster burdens.

· Small Island Developing States (SIDS) like Vanuatu and Haiti, where climate-induced displacement heightens risks of gender-based violence and disrupts livelihoods.

· High-Income Countries, including the UK, US, and Australia, where green job initiatives neglect gender disparities in STEM fields (Grown et al., 2024), and marginalized groups (e.g., Indigenous women, migrants) face exclusion from climate planning despite high gender equality indices.

The broader research questions include:

1. How do gender-responsive budgeting mechanisms in climate policies affect women’s adaptive capacities in agrarian economies (e.g., Niger, Bangladesh) compared to urban contexts (e.g., UK cities)?

2. What role do cultural norms play in limiting women’s agency during climate disasters in South Asia and SIDS, and how can participatory frameworks address these barriers?

3. How does women’s political representation in climate governance correlate with the inclusion of care infrastructure and health equity in adaptation plans?

4. Why do technical climate solutions (e.g., flood barriers, renewable energy projects) in high-income countries often exclude marginalized groups, and how can co-design processes mitigate maladaptation?

5. How can gender-disaggregated data collection improve post-disaster recovery programs for women, and what tools are needed to standardize such metrics globally?

6. What structural reforms are needed in global climate finance to prioritize women-led adaptation initiatives in LMICs and SIDS?

7. How do climate-induced migration and displacement in SIDS exacerbate gender-based violence, and what resilience strategies can protect vulnerable populations?

8. Why do green job initiatives in STEM fields fail to address gender disparities, and how can reskilling programs enhance women’s economic resilience?

The scope of this study can be narrowed down to a specific area of interest based on the researcher’s focus, while the proposal outlines broader research questions to ensure a comprehensive understanding of gender-responsive climate adaptation. This flexibility allows the study to maintain a clear theoretical and policy foundation while enabling the researcher to concentrate on a particular geographical region, sector, or policy framework.

Research Team and Environment

The PhD student(s) will conduct their research in affiliation with ThinkLab (https://thinklab.salford.ac.uk), a leading research lab dedicated to developing innovative theoretical, technological, and policy solutions for complex social challenges, with a strong focus on disaster resilience and climate adaptation. As part of this dynamic environment, the student will have the opportunity to collaborate with fellow PhD researchers, engage with an international research community, and contribute to impactful, interdisciplinary projects that drive real-world climate and disaster resilience solutions.

Fees and funding

This programme is self-funded.

To enquire about University of Salford funding schemes – including the Widening Participation Scholarship – visit this website.