gencap

Gender and Climate Adaptation Policy

Making climate and development policies more gender responsive

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Alternative Futures

Alternative Futures

Alternative Futures is a development research and communication group working on creative and meaningful policy, social and technological alternatives and innovations for development and social change. We look at change in a holistic manner, even while working on various specialized issues such as climate change. We especially focus on innovative efforts for sustainable development, social transformation and democratic, transparent and accountable governance in all sectors of society. We believe that these changes can come about only through engagement with wider society – citizens, corporations, consumers, civil society groups, youth and others. We thus seek to create an expanding community of willing change-makers who can help us all move towards an alternative future that is more humane, just and sustainable. 

Alternative Futures is inspired by the vision of a society based on the principles of ecological sustainability, social justice, spirituality and cultural pluralism.

Our work on climate change focuses on policy and governance through research, advocacy and capacity-building in India and South Asia. Some of our recent work includes developing a research paper on gender and adaptation in the specific agro-climatic region of the East Brahmaputra Basin (Assam/Arunachal Pradesh) and preparing hands-on training manuals on ‘Gender, Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security’ in English, Hindi, Nepali and Bangla for the Indo-Gangetic belt in Nepal, India and Bangladesh. Based on these training manuals, over 1500 Panchayat women leaders in Bihar have been trained. The manual is being used by the Nepal government to roll out a similar training of women in Nepal. 

AF’s pilot research on gender and adaptation during 2009-10 identified key gender concerns in India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change. The report, ‘Engendering the Climate for Change: Policies and Practices for Gender-responsive Adaptation’, was released by senior government officials and finds reference in some of the State-level Action Plans on Climate Change. 

We work on issues of climate change with many donors, partners and networks that include Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), CGIAR CCAFS programme, ICIMOD, Heinrich Boll Foundation, Christian Aid, Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA), Hyderabad, Centre for Budgets and Governance Accountability (CBGA), Central Himalayan Environment Association (CHEA), Nainital and Development Research Communication and Services Centre (DRCSC), Kolkata. We are a member organisation of several networks including Wada Na Todo, New Delhi and Climate Action Network, South Asia (CAN-SA), Dhaka.

 For more information check our official website: http://www.alternativefutures.org.in/