Women, who are disproportionately affected by climate change, bring to the climate finance arena unique perspectives, knowledge, and skills that are essential for effective climate action. Women climate leaders inspire and empower others, challenge traditional gender roles, and drive transformative change toward a more sustainable and just future. The inclusion of women’s expertise, concerns, and insights in adaptation and mitigation policy making can thus enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of resource allocation, ensuring that financial resources are directed toward sustainable and socially inclusive projects. Studies have shown that companies and organizations with more women on their leadership teams are more likely to support pro-environmental corporate actions, achieve better financial performance, and generate higher returns on investments than those with fewer women. 

In this paper, we aim to equip climate finance providers with a comprehensive approach to the following:

• Analyzing the gaps in women’s climate leadership across three domains — state/public institutions, markets/private sector, and civil society;

• Identifying cross-cutting barriers, reflecting formal and informal or “invisible” power, that prevent women from accessing and thriving in leadership spaces; and

• Assessing existing and potential policy and programmatic responses that could promote women’s leadership.