The newly published Gender Equality 2026 Status Report by United Nations Women (UN Women) and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) reveals with striking data the effects of the crisis on women and girls and the extent to which women can participate in climate decisions.
Approximately 2.9 billion women and girls worldwide live in countries with high or very high exposure to climate change and geophysical disasters.
1 billion women and girls live in moderate-risk areas.
The number of women and girls living in low or very low risk countries and regions is 224.9 million. This corresponds to 5.5 percent of all women and girls.
Rising temperatures are becoming a life threat, especially for older women. The share of elderly women among those who will die in the summer 2022 heat waves in Europe is disproportionately high.
Equal participation is a must
Overcoming these problems requires women's equal participation in decision-making processes. Women's representation in international climate negotiations appears to have increased in recent years. While 31 percent of the delegates at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP14) in 2008 were women, this rate increased to 40 percent at COP30 in 2025. In ministries, the picture did not change at the same pace. By 2026, only 27 percent of environmental ministers in the world will be women. This rate drops to 12 percent for ministers responsible for energy, natural resources, fuel and mining. On the other hand, women play an important role in the fight against climate change. In 2026, women environmental rights defenders were involved in one quarter of the environmental struggles in the world. In other words, the decisions that drive climate transformation are made without women's voices being sufficiently heard.
A matter of justice
Gaye Tuğrulöz, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Social Climate Association, says the following on the subject: "The climate crisis does not affect everyone in the same way. Women and girls are affected much more severely by this crisis. But what we really see is that those who are most affected by the crisis and those who have the authority to make decisions for the solution are not the same people. We have seen this many times in our From Participation to Power project; when young women come together, they turn the problems they experience into concrete policy suggestions in a short time and put these suggestions directly on the table with local governments. So, the problem is not that women cannot produce solutions, but the products they produce." "As the Social Climate Association, we see this not as a deficiency, but as an issue of justice that needs to be solved. Women should be the founders of climate policies, not the subject of them."
Milliyet-UN Women cooperation
Milliyet continues its series of articles addressing the multidimensional effects of the climate crisis with the United Nations Women (UN Women), of which it is a member of the global media association Media Compact. The series will continue until the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) to be held in Antalya, hosted by Turkey, between 9-20 November.
The voice of young people on the road to COP31
The From Participation to Power project is being implemented within the scope of the civil society program implemented by UN Women with the financial support of the European Union. The project aims to strengthen young women's participation in democratic decision-making processes and support them as civil and political actors shaping public policies and social transformation. COP31 Presidency Youth Climate Champion Sally Higgins met with UN Women Turkey Country Director Maryse Guimond as part of her visit to Türkiye. Higgins, a farmer in the small town of Allora in the Australian state of Queensland, describes what she sees in her area as follows: "During natural disasters, I have seen women where I live hold everything together. They play a critical role in our recovery and rebuilding process. This is true in many places. Young women do not wait for a seat at the table, they are already doing this work and they need to be where decisions are made. Not just because it is the right thing, but because it will bring better policies and stronger social results."
