The report argues that reproductive health care, including family planning, and gender relations could influence the future course of climate change and affect how humanity adapts to rising seas, worsening storms and severe droughts. Women, especially impoverished women in developing countries, bear the disproportionate burden of climate change, but have so far been overlooked in the debate about how to address problems of climate change, the report concludes.

By 2030, towns and cities will be home to almost 5 billion people. The urban population of Africa and Asia will double in less than a generation. This unprecedented shift could enhance development and promote sustainability – or it could deepen poverty and accelerate environmental degradation. Women's empowerment and well-being are the pillars of sustainable cities.