Cyclone Michaung wreaks havoc in Southern India

Cyclone Michaung wreaks havoc in Southern India as it intensifies into a severe storm. Warmer oceans are the primary reason for the storm which is closely linked to Arctic Sea ice... READ MORE

Confirmed: 2023 set to be the warmest year on record

The WMO provisional State of the Global Climate report confirms that 2023 is set to be the warmest year on record, regardless of the final two months of... READ MORE

Colossal Antarctic iceberg, five times larger than New York City, breaks free and drifts away from region

On November 24th, scientists from the Bristish Antarctic Survey (BAS) were astonished to observe an iceberg measuring around 4,000 square kilometers (more than twice the size of Greater London) drifting away from the... READ MORE

World surpasses critical warming threshold for the first time

On November 17th, global temperatures reached 2.07°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time on record.... READ MORE

Unexpected disintegration of ice shelves in North Greenland

Alarm bells ringing as rapid disintegration and weakening of ice shelves in North Greenland is observed!... READ MORE

COUNTDOWN

CO2 Budget Depletion

UN SUSTAINABILITY DEVELOPMENT GOALS

SDG 5 - GENDER EQUALITY

 

The Arctic’s central role in the global climate system amplifies gender inequalities. In the North American Arctic, Indigenous women and girls comprise 70-90% of trafficking victims and are often left to face challenges securing food, water and fuel. Men face a disproportionally high suicide rate, stemming in part from a loss of identity due to climate change.  Climate-driven disruption of gender roles parallels and increase in gender-based violence and inequitable mortality rates.  

GLOBAL

The climate crisis is not “gender neutral.” Across the world, women depend more on, yet have less access to, natural resources. In many regions, women bear a disproportionate responsibility for securing food, water, and fuel. 

Women and girls experience the greatest impacts of climate change, which amplifies existing gender inequalities and poses unique threats to their livelihoods, health, and safety. Arctic change will amplify current gender impacts because of its central role in the global climate system. 

 Women traditionally also care for family members, most notably elderly relatives and children, which increases their exposure to rapid-onset extreme weather such as floods and tropical cyclones. When women wear traditional clothing, such as saris and burqas, their mobility is further limited, hampering evacuation from disasters like floods. In terms of mortality, elderly women are particularly vulnerable to heatwaves, with mortality rates reaching twice that of elderly males (Steen et al., 2018). This is critical as, by 2100, 99 percent of all weather-related fatalities will be linked to heatwaves (Forzieri et al., 2017).  

 Additionally, displacement and conflict due to extreme weather and heat stress often contribute to spikes in gender-based violence. In the year after Hurricane Katrina (2006), gender-based violence among internally displaced people in the state of Mississippi increased from 4.6 to 16.3 per 100,000 population per day – and remained above-baseline at 10.1 in 2007. Increased mutilation of female genitals occurred during drought in Kenya (Esho et al., 2021).  

ARCTIC

Bold climate action is needed to curb gender inequality and vulnerabilities throughout the Arctic. In the Canadian and US Arctic, 70-90 percent of trafficking victims are Indigenous women and girls (Sweet, 2014). Loss of identity and self-esteem, exacerbated by climate change-induced disruption of traditional roles, are found to contribute to alcoholism and higher suicide rates among men, along with spikes in violence against women and children, human trafficking, and prostitution. 

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ARCTIC RISK INDICATORS

The following gauges show up-to-date data regarding key indicators in the Arctic. These indicators clearly point to the crisis at hand.

Greenland rate of ice loss
13 million l/s
on average
13 million tonnes/s
on average
Arctic Sea Ice Extent
1,314,000 km²
below 1981-2010 average on 06-Dec-2023
507,335 mi²
below 1981-2010 average on 06-Dec-2023
Arctic Amplification
4 times
faster than global average
Arctic 66N+ Wildfire emissions
25,092.70 megatonnes CO₂e
CO₂e emissions in 2023 so far
Arctic Air Quality (PM2.5)
1.22 microgram per cubic meter
on 07-Dec-2023
Global mean Sea Level
3.4mm/year
since 1993