Mon Sep 23 21:00:00 UTC 2024: ## Women Bear the Brunt of Extreme Heat, But Innovative Insurance Offers a Lifeline

**New Delhi, India:** As climate change intensifies, women are disproportionately affected by extreme heat, suffering higher mortality rates and economic hardship. A new report from The Lancet revealed that women in wealthy European countries died at nearly twice the rate of men from extreme heat over the past two decades, highlighting a global trend.

While the world grapples with the implications of “global boiling,” as UN Secretary-General António Guterres aptly described the situation, funding for climate adaptation remains woefully inadequate. Despite the urgency, adaptation measures are often overlooked due to their perceived locality and low returns compared to emissions-reduction initiatives.

However, innovative solutions are emerging, driven by philanthropic organizations. This summer, a partnership between Climate Resilience for All, SEWA, and insurance companies Swiss Re and ICICI Lombard, with philanthropic support, introduced a low-cost heat-wave insurance scheme for 50,000 informal workers in India. The scheme has proven its efficacy, providing crucial financial support to women during extreme heat events.

“When they got INR400 [just under $5], they said it was like INR4,000, as it came at a critical time of life,” said Sarojben, a grassroots leader of SEWA, highlighting the impact of this seemingly small sum. The insurance enabled women to feed their families, pay for education, replace spoiled goods, and cover medical expenses.

Jess Ayers, CEO of Quadrature Climate Foundation, and Helen Mountford, President and CEO of ClimateWorks Foundation, emphasize the need for greater investment in such innovative solutions. They advocate for increased collaboration between philanthropic organizations, governments, and private sector actors to scale up these initiatives and counter the effects of rapidly rising temperatures.

The Adaptation and Resilience Funder Collaborative, launched at the UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, marks a significant step towards this goal, with an initial commitment of $50 million for adaptation measures. However, the authors acknowledge that this is merely a drop in the ocean compared to the vast funding gap.

“Building resilience to extreme heat is no easy feat, especially for the more than 500 million women in the informal economy,” state Ayers and Mountford. “Innovative solutions such as heat insurance do exist, but philanthropies, governments, and private investors must work together to scale them up faster.”

The article concludes with a compelling call to action, highlighting that bolstering women’s climate resilience is not just a matter of social justice, but also an essential step towards a more resilient and sustainable future for all.

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