Investigating the Effects of Climate Change on Coastal Women in Aiyetoro Southwest Nigeria

Abstract

Planet Earth is amid a climate crisis occasioned by human activities that release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and natural processes that affect the planet's warming and cooling patterns. As a result, sea levels are rising, coral reefs are dying, and the pH of the world's oceans is decreasing; the planet is becoming progressively hotter, forest cover is reducing, and weather patterns are becoming increasingly erratic. These effects are experienced universally, but traditionally, vulnerable groups of the population are affected more severely. For instance, climate change exacerbates the vulnerabilities experienced by women from coastal communities. Mindful of the understanding that coastal women's experiences and vulnerability to climate change vary across communities, we sought to investigate the effects of climate change on coastal women using the women of Aiyetoro in Southwest Nigeria. Men and women from Aiyetoro (N=150) were interviewed to gather information on the effects of climate change on women in the community. Their responses were analyzed, showing that the women are aware of and have experienced extensive effects of climate change, including rising sea levels and temperatures, coastal erosion, ocean acidification, extreme weather events, deteriorating health and well-being, and death. This study adds to the existing pool of knowledge by highlighting how coastal women experience climate change and identifying avenues to engage them, teach them, and learn from them about their potential role in addressing the climate change crisis