"Everywhere is blacked out," photographer Taiwo Aina-Adeokun told CG about the smoky, sooty conditions she observed in kitchen settings — spaces to which her identity as a female photojournalist helped gain her access, she said. "At the fish smoking area, her eyes were always watery."
Last month, researcher Lindsay Stark told CG about new findings that show global outbreaks — including those exacerbated by climate shifts and land use change — may increase the risks of gender-based violence, or GBV. Last week, Stark appeared on WBUR's Here & Now to discuss the research amid the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
While the outbreak remains a major concern, the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have downsized their estimations of suspected Ebola deaths in the region. As of June 4, the CDC noted fewer than 70 confirmed deaths.
U.N. Women released a statement in late May underscoring concerns that the effects of this outbreak may be disproportionately felt by women, who are often overrepresented in administering care for sick family and community members, increasing risks of infection. The agency also pointed to the potential for increased risks of GBV. Read more...
In December, CG covered the efforts of drag artist and environmental activist Pattie Gonia to hike 100 miles and raise more than $1 million in support of equitable access to nature. Last week, the popular performer shared a video on social media, publicly addressing the lawsuit that the billion-dollar outdoor apparel brand Patagonia has filed against them.
The performer, whose non-performance name is Wyn Wiley, created the drag persona back in 2018. Wiley filed a trademark application in September 2025 to use "Pattie Gonia" in association with clothing and activism. Patagonia, long positioned as an environmentally forward brand, sued Wiley for trademark infringement in January. Read more...
In one of the photos from a new collection documenting the impacts of crude oil and black carbon pollution — or soot — in Nigerian communities, viewers can see 40-year-old Anthonia Akonasu perched over the fish she is smoking to sell in the Makoko settlement in Lagos. The photo's caption says that smoking fish has been Akonasu's main source of income for nearly 15 years.
That duration points to how long Akonasu, who is married to a fisherman and has six children, may have been exposed to soot-laden air and surfaces.
"Everywhere is blacked out," photographer Taiwo Aina-Adeokun told CG via Zoom about the smoky conditions she observed in kitchen settings — spaces to which her identity as a female photojournalist helped gain her access, she said. "At the fish smoking area, her eyes were always watery."
In 2025 and 2026, Aina-Adeokun documented the effects of black carbon and crude oil pollution across Lagos and Rivers States. Read more...
A month before the ruling from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that temporarily blocked legal access to the provision of mifepristone via telemedicine, mail delivery, and pharmacy dispensing this spring, a new publication gestured toward a future when abortion pills might be accessible over the counter.
"[Over-the-counter] medication abortion has the potential to improve access to abortion care in the U.S., as well as in other countries where the medications are not currently available over the counter," Kari White, a co-author of the study and the Executive and Scientific Director at the Texas-based Resound Research for Reproductive Health, told CG.
The study, published in April in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, indicated that medication abortion facilitated by mifepristone and misoprostol — two drugs that can be used to end a pregnancy — "likely meets the U.S. Food and Drug Administration criteria for over-the-counter sale."
Now, that's far from decreeing the medications officially approved for over-the-counter, or OTC, status and non-prescription sales at pharmacies, supermarkets, and convenience stores. But it could be a step toward improving reproductive autonomy — and the resilience of reproductive care to the intensifying extreme weather events that can disrupt access.
Hear more from four of the study's co-authors and leaders in sexual and reproductive health and rights — including a personal story from Emma Hernández of We Testify. Read more...
Accounting for the needs and contributions of women, girls, and gender-diverse people has been largely absent from state-level climate emergency planning and strategies in the U.S. Now, California Senate Bill 10 — or SB 10 — seeks to change that.
The bill, introduced by State Senator Steve Padilla of San Diego last month, aims to strengthen emergency preparedness and protections for vulnerable communities by explicitly accounting for and providing guidance on how climate shocks and extreme weather events can affect different groups, including women, girls, and LGBTQ+ people. Read more...
This digest was curated and reported by Gracie Leavitt. It was written and edited by Gracie Leavitt and Kirsten Krueger.
One goal at Climate, Gendered is to bring a spotlight to the reality that proliferating pollution, increasing temperatures, rising seas, extreme weather, habitat loss, and more can uniquely and disproportionately impact girls, women, trans communities, and nonbinary people — especially those from communities of color, Indigenous people, disabled people, immigrants and displaced people, people experiencing poverty, and residents of low- and middle-income countries. We're also interested in the climate crises and concerns that can disproportionately affect men and boys.
This work cannot be done alone or in silos. We appreciate your feedback and observations. And please feel encouraged to share one way you noticed this week that climate and gender connect — and share CG with a friend.
"Being a queer [or] trans activist and an environmental activist puts you in a greater sense of danger because both agendas are heavily under attack," Diego De Leon, Advocacy Chair at Out for Sustainability, told CG.
"While every family is different, mothers are disproportionately the default parent, meaning climate disruptions can add to the mental load, logistical challenges, and economic pressures many women already face," Laura Schifter, a Senior Fellow at the D.C.-based Aspen Institute, told CG.
"Incineration inevitably has an impact on the environment," Selma Benkhelifa of Progress Lawyers Network told CG about the U.S. government's previous plan to burn a cache of contraceptives instead of distributing them. "But the worst thing is depriving millions of women of access to contraception."
"This research project would not have happened had we not had buy-in and trust from the farmers we worked with," Emily Selland told CG about an effort in Senegal that showed integration of native fish into watery rice fields might curb schistosomiasis risks, which may be affected by climate shifts.
