While there is a substantive body of gender analysis documenting the gendered impacts of climate change for women and girls, understanding of the ways in which men and boys’ impact and are impacted by climate change remains limited. Environmental disasters caused by climate change also negatively affect boys and men in gendered ways that are, Executive summary in general, different from girls and women, and which can contribute to increased vulnerabilities and risks for women and girls. These differences reflect concepts of masculinity and the influence of associated social norms and processes of gender socialization on the attitudes, values and behaviours of men and boys.

Achieving progress towards Climate Justice is therefore closely and inherently linked to gender justice. Addressing the root causes of the climate emergency will require the engagement of men and boys as actors who are also vulnerable to climate change impacts as actors with agency to bring about transformative change by working alongside women activist allies.

CARE’s EMB model is based on the guiding principle that male engagement to challenge gender inequality involves working with men and boys to shift beliefs, behaviours and practices at household and community levels in support of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. Engagement with men and boys contributes to processes of gender transformative change by reducing barriers women and girls face to building agency, addressing inequitable power relations and ensuring that changes in power dynamics and social structures are sustained. CARE’s work with men and boys is also broadly categorised in terms of three levels of male engagement whereby men and boys are engaged as participants, supporters and allies and champions of gender equality.