Experts urge India to treat gender-related discourses in climate change as more than a mere checkbox

India needs to treat gender-related discourses in climate change as more than a mere checkbox — and move towards full-scale, just
inclusion.

India's emerging think tank Chintan Research Foundation (CRF) hosted a thought-provoking dialogue titled “Climate Futures Through a Gender Lens” on 16th October at the Academy of Fine Arts and Literature, New Delhi. The event convened leading voices from research, advocacy, and policy to explore how gender-responsive frameworks can reshape India’s climate and energy transitions.


Opening the session, Shishir Priyadarshi, President of CRF and former Director at the WTO, reflected, “Climate justice and gender justice are inseparable. For our policies to be truly sustainable, they must also be equitable, inclusive, and people-centric.”

Meheli Roy Choudhury from CRF underscored the urgency of examining the intersection between climate policy, energy transitions, and gender equity. She noted that while gender is enshrined within the Sustainable Development Goals, its translation into actionable frameworks remains limited — a gap CRF seeks to bridge through such dialogues.

The discussion also featured Kalyani Raj, President, All India Women’s Conference, and Dr. Mini Govindan, Senior Fellow, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), as keynote speakers.

Raj drew attention to the “double and triple burdens” women across social strata continue to face — from restricted access to finance and opportunities to systemic exclusion from capacity-building initiatives. She emphasised that equitable climate policies must integrate social inclusion and community resilience as central tenets of design, rather than as peripheral considerations.

Building on these insights, Dr. Govindan addressed the epistemic marginalisation of women within climate decision-making processes.
Drawing from her extensive field experience, she noted that centralised, top-down approaches often result in policy-practice gaps.

She argued for non-tokenistic, participatory frameworks that allow women’s voices to shape climate strategies meaningfully. India, she stressed, should lead the Global South in advancing a “just and inclusive” model of growth that challenges hegemonic development narratives.

Participants highlighted that India’s energy transition and climate adaptation policies must extend beyond technocratic and investment-led
approaches to include those who are most directly affected —particularly women, who are primary agents of change within their
communities.

The dialogue concluded with a collective recognition that gender-responsive design must move beyond checklists — it must be institutionalised through inclusive planning, gender budgeting, and clear accountability mechanisms.

The session sparked engaged participation from the audience, with reflections on pathways to strengthen gender-based resilience in the
context of India’s climate future.