A/HRC/42/26 extreme weather events and desertification were identified as particular threats which impacted women and girls more severely. 36. Climate change had particularly negative implications for the livelihoods of women. Through less frequent rainfall and steadily increasing temperatures, it adversely affected the agricultural sector, in which women played a key role, inter alia by planting, gathering and selling food. That in turn threatened food production and nutrition, with particular impacts on rural women and children. 37. Several speakers underlined the role of women as agents of change due to their experience and knowledge of the environment. Their skills could be used in climate change mitigation and adaptation, disaster prevention and reduction, and post-disaster management strategies. Women’s knowledge related to natural resources management was, in fact, demonstrated to be indispensable in combating climate change. Increased efforts were needed to include and amplify the voices of indigenous women and their participation in decision-making about, planning for and implementation of climate action. 38. Special attention should be paid to how disasters exacerbated pre-existing vulnerabilities. Enhanced efforts were needed to prevent gender-based violence, including in the context of disasters, especially for women and girls subject to multiple discrimination. The need for gender-responsive strategies to respond to the climate change crisis and for gender-mainstreaming in disaster management plans and policies was therefore underscored. Collection of disaggregated data related to gender and gender-based assessments of programmes and projects that could inform climate policy-making was essential. 39. Small island States were particularly vulnerable to the social, cultural and economic impacts of climate change. A gender-responsive approach was called for in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of national environmental policies. That was considered essential for addressing the negative effects of climate change on those communities, in particular its disproportionate effect on women and girls. 40. Speakers called for women’s empowerment through, inter alia, resource mobilization, education and awareness-raising, as well as enhanced public policies. Capacity-building and the integration of gender perspectives into climate-smart agriculture initiatives, climate-smart urban development and disaster preparedness were some of the measures mentioned in that regard. Increased empowerment could also be attained by improving women’s access to modern technology. Climate change threatened natural resources, including access to potable water. Technology could help to address such challenges, which would ease the burden on women and girls, inter alia in relation to procuring potable water. 41. To ensure the full, equal and meaningful participation of women, some speakers called for increased international cooperation and assistance to build the resilience and adaptive capacities of women and girls. Climate change projects that included genderresponsive components should be prioritized. Speakers were committed to supporting and promoting the human rights of women and girls, including by developing their resilience and capacity for adaptation to the challenges imposed by climate change. The Security Council could take a systemic approach in considering climate change as a cause of and a multiplier in conflict situations. 42. In its special report on the impact of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change noted that climate-resilient development pathways must promote equity and participation in decision-making to enable the transformational adaptation needed for a 1.5°C warmer world. 5 A rights-based approach was needed, inter alia, to integrate gender equality considerations into the nationally determined contributions of States and to implement the gender action plan of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Equal participation of women in decision-making was essential for effective climate action. 5 8 Available from www.ipcc.ch/sr15/.