Government’s plan fails to harness the potential of women & communities to lead climate transition
Published: Wednesday, April 16, 2025
In response to the publication of the Government’s Climate Action Plan 2025, Feminist Communities for Climate Justice (FCCJ), a joint project by the National Women’s Council and Community Work Ireland, today (16th April 2025) expressed its disappointment at the 4 month delay and said that the plan fails to harness the potential of tackling social inequality and climate change together, particularly for groups who are most likely to be affected by the climate crisis, including women and marginalised communities.
The plan is neither gender-proofed nor climate-justice proofed. The word ‘women’ appears just twice in the Plan in relation to international climate cooperation but does not plan for the domestic impact of climate change on women and girls.There is no mention of Travellers, even though they are one of the groups most likely to experience energy poverty.
Project Officer of the FCCJ Vanessa Conroy said,
“The impacts of the climate crisis for present and future generations are getting more serious by the day. Meeting our legally binding carbon emissions reductions targets by 2030 and 2050 will require a transformation of Ireland’s economy and public services that will have implications for people’s day-to-day lives and livelihoods. There is no sector of society that will not be affected but the impacts will not be felt evenly – and those in our society who are already marginalised may in fact be further impacted by poorly designed climate policies.”
She continued,
“At a time when energy costs are rising, and people on low-incomes - especially women, migrants, lone parents, disabled people and Travellers - are struggling to keep up with the rising cost of living, tackling energy poverty with targeted and increased funding for retrofitting would improve the health and wellbeing of thousands of vulnerable households. However, the number of homes that will be retrofitted under the (fully grant-aided) Warmer Homes scheme and the Social Housing retrofitting programme is still too small, and approvals are taking too long to be processed. This needs to change.”
Vanessa Conroy said,
“ FCCJ is also concerned that climate policy continues to be developed without a robust evidence base in relation to social inequality. FCCJ has recommended for example, that the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications collect detailed data on gender, disability, and ethnicity in key areas like energy, transport, and health to ensure that all climate policies and investments can be properly gender, poverty and equality-proofed.”
FCCJ supports climate policies that put people and planet first, that are transformative in creating a fairer, cleaner, more prosperous and more equal future in which all women, communities, workers, and counties are lifted. This is what a truly just transition should look like.