Gender equality must be central to our climate change planning
Published: Friday, February 20, 2026
The impact of environmental breakdown, and the strategies to mitigate against it, are being felt differently by women and marginalised communities. This must be considered when planning for climate change, the National Women’s Council (NWC) said today (Friday, 20th February) in response to the preliminary findings for Ireland by Astrid Puentes Riaño, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.
NWC welcomed, in particular, the Special Rapporteur's call for much greater engagement with women and marginalised communities, including low-income households, Travellers, and migrants, in current environmental and climate change policies.
Energy poverty, water and air pollution have profound implications for women. Lone parent families headed by women in the rental sector are the group most impacted by energy poverty. The gender pension gap of 35% puts older women at increased risk of housing insecurity and energy poverty, which has serious implications in a country with a high winter mortality rate. Air pollution causes 1700 deaths every year and is linked to poor pregnancy outcomes. And yet, air pollution levels outside Dublin’s maternity hospitals are consistently above WHO guidelines.
Corrinne Hasson, NWC’s Executive Director said
“Despite hard evidence that climate change affects women differently, attention to gender is entirely absent from Ireland’s climate policies and strategies. We have seen firsthand over recent weeks the consequences of delayed climate action from the Government from flooding, which has destroyed homes and businesses and revealed how vulnerable our transport infrastructure is to climate change. Women are least able to recoup losses from extreme weather events like these, which will only intensify in the future due to our warming climate. It is therefore crucial that women are informing and designing our response to the climate emergency. NWC calls on the Government to use key opportunities such as the forthcoming Social Climate Plan, for meaningful co-creation and ensure their implementation as a priority.”
Some groups, such as the Traveller community and inner-city communities experience more environmental injustice. Halting sites can have insufficient water, sewage, and rubbish collection facilities. Travellers living in trailers are disproportionately impacted by energy poverty. Similarly, a lack of green space is directly linked to poorer physical and mental health, and research shows a correlation between high rates of deprivation and a lack of access to green spaces and tree cover.
Vanessa Conroy, Policy and Engagement Officer for NWC, said
“Despite the evidence that many Travellers and inner-city communities do not have access to a clean or healthy environment, Travellers are scarcely mentioned in Ireland’s climate plans and policies. And Ireland’s current mental health policy makes no reference to the mental health impacts of climate change, which are heightened for women and other communities. It is high time government considered these communities when making climate policy.”
The National Women’s Council attended a meeting with Astrid Puentes Riaño, the UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment and welcomed her preliminary recommendations for Ireland.