Nature-Based Infrastructure: A powerful tool for women's empowerment in climate adaptation

This commentary by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) argues that nature-based infrastructure (NBI) can be a powerful tool for women's empowerment and climate adaptation. It highlights how women, particularly in the Global South, are disproportionately affected by climate change due to their reliance on natural resources and systemic barriers to resource control. The document advocates for gender-responsive NBI projects and valuations to ensure equitable benefits and leadership roles for women.

• Women face disproportionate burdens from climate change, especially in the Global South where they rely heavily on natural resources for food, water, and firewood. This increased labor intensity limits their opportunities for education, training, and income generation. Furthermore, traditional norms and land tenure systems often restrict women's access to and control over forests, fisheries, and land, and they remain underrepresented in environmental decision-making.
• Nature-based infrastructure (NBI) provides critical ecosystem services and can specifically benefit women by improving public health, reducing the time and risk associated with collecting water, and protecting livelihoods. For example, in the Saloum Delta in Senegal, a mangrove ecosystem supports over 100,000 people by filtering water, preventing erosion, and supporting fish stocks, with a projected value of CFA 3.589 billion (EUR 5.47 billion) over 40 years. Other examples include constructed wetlands in India for wastewater treatment and agroforestry in Belgium to increase crop yields.
• Integrating gender considerations into NBI projects and valuations makes climate adaptation more effective and sustainable. This includes implementing capacity-building strategies to establish women as experts and decision-makers, such as training on water management and afforestation in Indonesia. To achieve this, the IISD's NBI Global Resource Centre—supported by the GEF, MAVA Foundation, and UNIDO—aims to use gender-disaggregated data to analyze roles, risks, and access to training to ensure equitable benefits compared to traditional 'grey-built' infrastructure.

APA

Bechauf, R. (2021). Nature-Based Infrastructure: A powerful tool for women's empowerment in climate adaptation. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-09/nature-based-infrastructure-women-empowerment-climate-adaptation.pdf

Chicago

Bechauf, Ronja. Nature-Based Infrastructure: A powerful tool for women's empowerment in climate adaptation. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-09/nature-based-infrastructure-women-empowerment-climate-adaptation.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bechauf |first1=Ronja |title=Nature-Based Infrastructure: A powerful tool for women's empowerment in climate adaptation |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=September 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-09/nature-based-infrastructure-women-empowerment-climate-adaptation.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bechauf2021naturebased, author = {Bechauf, Ronja}, title = {{Nature-Based Infrastructure: A powerful tool for women's empowerment in climate adaptation}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2021-09/nature-based-infrastructure-women-empowerment-climate-adaptation.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }