Maximising positive impacts of climate finance by linking biodiversity conservation, the promotion of gender equality, and climate change adaptation

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The purpose of my PhD is twofold:1. To identify how climate finance can be used to maximise the impact on biodiversity conservation and the promotion of gender equality.Hypothesis: Climate finance, in certain circumstances, can be used to co-benefit biodiversity conservation and the promotion of gender equality.2. To analyse how the integration of biodiversity conservation and gender equality into climate finance can create a positive feedback loop, contributing to climate changeadaptation and mitigation.Hypothesis: Using climate finance to promote biodiversity conservation and gender equality results in a positive impact on climate change adaptation and mitigation.The use of climate finance to co-benefit other development goals, which do not fit directly under climate action, remains underexplored (Aguilar et al., 2015 Cela et al., 2013). Theco-benefits of climate finance on other SDGs could conversely generate a positive feedback loop, contributing to the implementation of climate change adaptation andmitigation actions (OECD, 2013 Mant et al., 2014).The role of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the adaptation and mitigation of climate change is well established (The World Bank, 2009 European Commission, 2009).Hitherto, there is a particular gap in the literature on the positive effects that climate finance could have on biodiversity conservation (SDG 15), even though examples of existing tradeoffsbetween climate change action and biodiversity conservation has been documented (Nelson, 2008). There is a need to determine conditions under which climate financing can provide additional benefits to biodiversity conservation (The Federal Environment Ministry, 2017). The existing scholarship also largely overlooks the potential benefits of empowering and integrating underrepresented groups (especially women, SDG 5) in programmes aimedat fighting climate change and biodiversity loss (Adams, 2014). Early research and awareness raising on the linkages between gender and climate change predominantly framed women in terms of their vulnerability to climate impacts (OECD, 2015 Claire International, 2010 Neumayer & Plumper, 2007). This framing made the link between women and climate change adaptation more relevant to policymakers than the link of women to areas such as mitigation and technology. Consequently, decisions that reference gender are the lowest for mitigation issues, with no guiding mandate for gender-sensitive mitigation actions (Aguilar et al., 2015b). The frequent exclusion of women fromclimate actions also constitutes an economic inefficiency, as their local knowledge and expertise could be used to implement climate change action and biodiversity conservation (United Nations, 2009).The proposed PhD aims precisely at addressing these gaps.