Urban climate change and feminist political ecology

This chapter presents a socio-natural and feminist political ecology approach to adaptation efforts by urban areas. It addresses two questions, how do processes of social inclusion and exclusion reshape urban climate change adaptation; and how are these social inequalities shaped by and also shape the knowledge politics that emerge around adaptation questions? Challenges for urban areas may not map cleanly onto the kinds of responsibilities and actions that cities as municipal units have, making unpacking these politics vital. Examples from Nepal and the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance help illustrate how intersectional social relations and knowledge claims shape adaptation efforts. These politics are not inconvenient side effects, rather they in part constitute the types of knowledges used to assess needs, measures considered, the people who become involved in efforts, and the overall outcomes achieved. By focusing on how material relations are co-emergent with social political dynamics, this framing looks not only at risks from climate change, and also how to create new openings for deliberative politics around adjusting to a changing world.