Climate–Poverty Connections: Opportunities for synergistic solutions at the intersection of planetary and human well-being

The Drawdown Lift fact sheet argues that climate mitigation and poverty alleviation are complementary. By analyzing 450 articles and reports, it identifies 28 climate solutions across five groups—Improving Agriculture and Agroforestry, Protecting and Restoring Ecosystems, Adopting Clean Cooking, Providing Clean Electricity, and Fostering Equality—that provide significant co-benefits for human well-being. These solutions target dimensions such as income, health, food security, and gender equality, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The report advocates for synergistic implementation and innovative finance to align climate goals with the needs of the most vulnerable populations.

• The report identifies 28 climate solutions categorized into five groups that provide direct and indirect human well-being (HWB) co-benefits for rural and underserved communities in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. These groups are: Improving Agriculture and Agroforestry, Protecting and Restoring Ecosystems, Adopting Clean Cooking, Providing Clean Electricity, and Fostering Equality.
• Climate solutions offer the most substantial co-benefits for the HWB dimensions of Income and Work, followed by Health, Food, Education, Gender Equality, and Energy, while Political Voice receives the least benefit.
• Specific solution groups provide targeted HWB benefits: Providing Clean Electricity strongly benefits Networks, while Fostering Equality contributes to Social Equity and Peace and Justice.
• The Drawdown Lift Human Well-Being Index, adapted from the Doughnut Economics framework, uses 31 indicators to evaluate 12 dimensions of HWB for every country.

APA

Y., J., M., P. C., P., P. K., & C., W. P. (2022). Climate–Poverty Connections: Opportunities for synergistic solutions at the intersection of planetary and human well-being. Project Drawdown. https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Drawdown%20Lift_Climate%20Poverty%20Connections%20FactSheet_March%202022.1.pdf

Chicago

Y., Jameel,, Patrone, C. M., Patterson, K. P., and West, P. C. Climate–Poverty Connections: Opportunities for synergistic solutions at the intersection of planetary and human well-being. Project Drawdown, 2022. https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Drawdown%20Lift_Climate%20Poverty%20Connections%20FactSheet_March%202022.1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Y. |first1=Jameel, |last2=M. |first2=Patrone, C. |last3=P. |first3=Patterson, K. |last4=C. |first4=West, P. |title=Climate–Poverty Connections: Opportunities for synergistic solutions at the intersection of planetary and human well-being |publisher=Project Drawdown |date=March 2022 |url=https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Drawdown%20Lift_Climate%20Poverty%20Connections%20FactSheet_March%202022.1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{y2022climatepoverty, author = {Y., Jameel, and M., Patrone, C. and P., Patterson, K. and C., West, P.}, title = {{Climate–Poverty Connections: Opportunities for synergistic solutions at the intersection of planetary and human well-being}}, institution = {Project Drawdown}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://drawdown.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Drawdown%20Lift_Climate%20Poverty%20Connections%20FactSheet_March%202022.1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }