Men and climate change: some thoughts on South Africa and Bangladesh

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article highlights the impacts of climate change on men from two countries from the Global South, namely Bangladesh and South Africa, as we reflect on climate change as a major consideration in work on the un/making of dominant and marginal masculinities. Climate change has a gender face, showing differential hazards for men and women linked to the structures of gender in society. A limited range of discourses about the impacts of climate change on men is however evident in the literature when attention is paid to masculinity and climate change, with much of the literature focused on women. In this paper, we draw attention to men and issues related to masculinities in the context of climate change discussions related to these two countries. The paper points to several climate-induced impediments such as drought, floods, salinity, lightning, high temperatures that challenge the fulfilment of men’s socially prescribed roles and responsibilities.