WRDA Calls for Gender-Responsive Approach to Northern Ireland’s Fourth Carbon Budget
17 November 2025 - The Women’s Resource and Development Agency (WRDA) has submitted a response to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) consultation on Northern Ireland’s Fourth Carbon Budget, urging policymakers to adopt a gender-sensitive approach to climate action.
WRDA welcomes the proposed carbon budget and supports the target of a 77% average annual reduction in emissions, describing it as the minimum necessary to align with scientific advice and safeguard life for current and future generations.
However, WRDA stresses that climate change is not gender-neutral and warns that failing to address gendered impacts could deepen existing inequalities. Women, particularly those in rural and low-income communities, face disproportionate risks due to unequal access to resources, gendered divisions of labour, and their central role in unpaid care work.
Key recommendations from WRDA include:
Equity and Fairness: Ensure costs of decarbonisation do not fall on those least responsible for emissions. Prioritise support for low-income and rural women in subsidies for low-carbon heating, transport, and agriculture.
Valuing Care Work: Recognise and support unpaid care and community work that sustains resilience during crises.
Participatory Governance: Include women, youth, and community groups in decision-making processes.
Gender-Responsive Budgeting: Integrate gender considerations into climate finance to guarantee fair resource allocation.
Intersectionality: Address overlapping vulnerabilities related to class, rurality, disability, and ethnicity.
For further information, please contact:
Elaine Crory, Women’s Sector Lobbyist – elaine.crory@wrda.net
Meghan Hoyt, Policy Assistant – meghan.hoyt@wrda.net
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