Inclusive by design: Why gender and intersectionality matter in disaster risk reduction

As climate change accelerates and disasters grow more frequent and intense, the urgency of building resilience has never been greater. Yet, many disaster risk reduction (DRR) efforts still overlook a fundamental angle: people experience disaster risk differently.

Women, girls, persons with disabilities, older people, ethnic minorities and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and other (LGBTQI+) individuals often face greater impacts, not because they are inherently vulnerable, but because of persistent structural barriers. These include limited access to information, restricted mobility and fewer resources to prepare for or recover from disasters.

Disasters are not gender-neutral

Disasters expose and magnify existing inequalities. Gender roles and social and cultural norms influence who is most at risk, how people are affected and who can access support. In many communities, women manage caregiving, food security and water collection –tasks made more dangerous by floods, droughts or displacement. Yet, despite their front-line roles, women are often excluded from disaster planning and decision-making.

Intersecting factors such as gender, age, disability, ethnicity, class and sexual orientation also shape disaster risks. Women already face barriers, but for a woman with a disability in a remote area, these challenges multiply – leaving her less likely to receive timely warnings or evacuate safely. LGBTQI+ individuals may be turned away from shelters or face discrimination in aid distribution. Recognizing and addressing these layered risks is essential to building inclusive resilience.

SUPER women: Driving inclusive disaster preparedness in Nepal

Recognizing these challenges, UN Women’s “Strengthening Urban Preparedness, Earthquake Preparedness and Response” (SUPER) project offers a compelling example of gender-transformative DRR in Nepal. Working alongside the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and UNICEF, UN Women and Handicap International (HI) supported local governments in Sudurpaschim, Karnali and Lumbini Provinces to integrate Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) into disaster planning.

Over 260 local officials and civil society actors were trained in GEDSI principles in Lumbini, Karnali and Sudurpaschim Provinces in 2024 and 2025. Women’s rights organizations helped design inclusive contingency plans that included protection measures for persons with disabilities, LGBTQI+ communities and women at risk of gender-based violence. Findings from vulnerability assessments were used to redesign evacuation routes in high-risk zones, demonstrating how GEDSI-informed planning improves safety for those most at risk.

Building resilience through gender data

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030) and its Gender Action Plan, adopted in 2024, recognize women’s vital role in building resilience. Yet, a gap persists – driven by underinvestment in gender-responsive planning, scarce sex-disaggregated data, and the exclusion of women and marginalized groups from DRR governance.

To address this, UN Women has supported governments to collect sex-, age- and disability-disaggregated (SADD) data through Gender and Environment Surveys (GES) in Cambodia, Mongolia, Samoa and Tonga. These surveys reveal gender disparities in preparedness, mental health impacts, and access to early warning systems and trusted information sources.

As a result, national disaster management offices now have clearer insights into how gender affects responses to early warnings. GES findings are shaping the way Tongan ministries collaborate to implement the Disaster Risk Management Policy and deliver joint trainings on gender and protection in humanitarian responses to reduce the vulnerability of those most affected and respond to their needs during disasters. 

From data to action

These findings show that SADD data are essential for designing systems that truly protect those most at risk. Addressing gender and intersectionality in DRR is not just fair, it is strategic. When those most affected help shape protective systems, resilience improves for all.