Impacts of climate change on vulnerable populations
Climate change has resulted in negative impacts upon rural communities, notably in the Global South. These impacts expose vulnerabilities that exist on individual and societal levels, necessitating the consideration of adaptive capacity in the face of climate change, as well as the role of government in responding to hazards and encouraging resilience and sustainability (Atkinson, 2023). Climate change causes direct effects — including death and destruction through the impact of extreme events, such as floods, wildfires, and hurricanes/typhoons — and indirect effects, like the disruption of plant and animal species, and individual trauma (Bell et al., 2013).
Around the world, climate change affects rural communities that heavily depend on their agriculture and natural resources for their livelihood. Increased frequency and severity of climate events disproportionately affects women, as well as rural, dry-land, and island communities. Vulnerable populations may have limited financial resources and/or cultural, language, or citizenship barriers that restrict their access to health care, social services, and safe, nutritious food (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2023).
Specifically, this section details the impacts of climate change on agriculture-dependent rural communities, along with elders, women, persons with albinism (PWA), and cultural practices.
- Impacts on rural communities
Climate change is expected to worsen disaster risk and the severity of weather events in the developing world. While climate change has affected and will continue to affect all of civilisation, the most serious impacts are frequently seen in vulnerable areas, including rural places, with indigenous and disadvantaged populations being exposed to heightened inequality (Bell, 2013).
Climate change has intensified agricultural drought, which has altered rural areas in ways that threaten food security. Drought has implications beyond agriculture, necessitating water planning (Kiem, 2013). Because of climate change, some areas have seen more frequent and larger floods. Floods are especially damaging in rural areas from a business perspective because the business location and employees are both more likely to be affected by the event. In addition, forest-based work has been affected by climate change, due to fluctuations in rain and temperature, the threat of forest fires, and the incidence of pests, with non-wood products being more vulnerable (Ofoegbu, 2017).
- Impacts on the elderly
The older adults are affected throughout all phases of a disaster and are less able to respond proactively to the impacts of calamitous situations caused by climate-induced disasters in the Global South (Yadav & Barve, 2017). Elderly individuals in developing regions often lack the resources to cope with extreme weather events, leaving them vulnerable to poor living conditions and the aftermath of disasters like floods or droughts. Factors such as limited income, mobility constraints, disabilities, and frailty increase their susceptibility to heat- and cold-related illnesses. Additionally, physiological changes associated with aging make them more prone to dehydration and vulnerable to viral and bacterial infections.
- Impacts on women
Amongst the vulnerable populations, women are severely impacted by climatic change and variations, with the most affected being rural women, who are primarily reliant on agriculture. Rural women consider agriculture their only security for sustaining their already poverty-stricken livelihoods, families, and communities. Food hierarchies are likely to make women (possibly pregnant or breastfeeding) and children susceptible to the increased risks of malnutrition and water shortages during and after disasters. In addition, in the aftermath of disasters, women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities find it difficult to bounce back because of income inequality and financial dependence (Ayeb-Karlsson et al., 2020).
- Impacts on persons with albinism
The well-being and health of persons with albinism (PWA) have been disproportionately affected by changes in temperatures as a result of climatic changes and variations (Astle et al., 2023). In addition, discrimination against and the marginalisation of PWA still persists, even though PWA are protected by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) (Astle et al., 2023). Consequently, the devastating effects of climate change and its variations unprecedently impact these and other people living with disabilities, increasing their poverty and unemployment (Stein & Stein, 2022).
- Impacts on cultural practices
Vulnerable populations affected by climate change experience devastating damages to the core of their lifestyles, including the loss of culture (traditional practices, indigenous knowledge) and friendships, through death and dislocation (Harvey, 2019). These effects lead to the loss of traditional practices and ways of living.
The loss of cultural practices can lead to reduced social cohesion and society-wide mental health challenges, because an individual’s culture is closely linked with their sense of identity and belonging to a community. However, cultural heritage is intimately tied to, and reliant on, humans’ interactions with their natural environment (Ngcamu, 2023).
