INVESTMENT PRIORITIES
Research & Monitoring, Evaluation, & Learning
Challenge
Given the magnitude and urgency of the climate crisis, learning from past and ongoing efforts to address the impacts of climate change on SRHR is critical. However, there are no universal guidelines for monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) frameworks or indicators for efforts to address climate change and SRHR. As a result, MEL efforts are often fragmented and incomplete, making it difficult to compare results across projects, measure progress towards national-level goals, and promote meaningful learning. Underinvestment in MEL also limits documentation of project results and opportunities for cross-learning across projects. These shortcomings are exacerbated by critical gaps in the research evidence related to the specific impacts of climate change on SRHR.
Opportunity to advance gender equality and SRHR
Robust, gender-responsive MEL within climate and SRHR programming would generate critical evidence about which interventions are effective and suitable for scaling. Clear, actionable guidance for participatory MEL in such programming would not only enable evidence to be translated across projects but also would enable funders and stakeholders to clearly track progress towards national and global development goals, like the Sustainable Development goals. Paired with expanded research and evidence generation, these data could support mobilization of additional interest and investment in this critical intersection.
Recommended investments
Develop a practical monitoring and evaluation approach and framework for tracking climate impacts and climate resilience for SRHR, using a participatory and inclusive design to move beyond traditional ‘count’ outcome metrics to also include process indicators that capture anticipatory and reactive programmatic or service-delivery approaches to climate resilience and adaptation.
Integrate both project-based outputs and ongoing monitoring and surveillance of the impact of climate change or climate-related disasters on SRH outcomes for girls and women.
Support new research, knowledge sharing, and closing of evidence gaps by investing in innovative data collection and research approaches which center community voices, used mixed methods and interdisciplinary approaches, and are nimble and adaptive to different contexts.
Facilitate harmonization of data across data sets (such as IPUMS DHS) and enable integration of other relevant datasets, such as historic climate disaster databases.
Use innovative technologies like drones to enable data collection and research during climate disasters by capturing aerial imagery or conducting surveys to assess the impact of the disaster on infrastructure, health facilities, and communities. This information can inform early warning systems, response efforts, and resource allocation, enabling more targeted and effective interventions.
Illustrative metrics of success
Participation of communities, including women, youth, and members of marginalized groups, in MEL efforts increases.
A cross-cutting MEL tool for climate and SRHR programming is developed and adopted by implementers.
Lessons learned from supported programming are documented fully and translated into actionable evidence.
Case Study
Context
In the Kingdom of Tonga, more women than men are projected to experience poverty as a result of climate change (Source: UN Women). Yet government stakeholders lacked nationally representative and sex-disaggregated statistics on the gender-environment nexus that could be used to document progress towards national and international goals.
Description of Climate-Gender-SRH Innovation
In 2022, the Tonga Statistics Department led the Gender and Environment Survey. They used UN Women’s Model Questionnaire for Measuring the Nexus between Gender and Environment, adapted for the Tongan context. The Model Questionnaire is designed to dovetail with a set of 100 gender-environment indicators aligned with key frameworks like the Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. The survey found that almost everyone in Tonga is at risk of experiencing an environmental disaster, and women generally have more limited coping capacities than men. Though the survey did not document aspects of SRH, it did document several key drivers related to adverse SRH outcomes; for example, more women than men reported traveling longer distances to fetch water and feeling unsafe when doing so (associated with greater risks of GBV), and more women than men reported eating less food as a result of experiencing a climate change-related disaster (associated with greater risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes). Ultimately, this survey generates much-needed evidence about climate-related risks that men and women face, utilizing an internationally-recognized indicator set to do so (Source: UN Women). UN Women and the Tongan Statistics Department also produced a brief documentary together to illustrate the importance of gender-environment data (Source: UN Women).
Key Partners
Tonga Statistics Department
UN Women
Ministry of Internal Affairs
Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communications
Ministry of Fisheries
Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forests
Tonga National Centre for Women and Children
Women and Children Crisis Centre Tonga