Climate change is a volcano erupting before our eyes, its force reshaping the air we breathe, the water we depend on, the food we grow, and the health we carry… The little bubbles of comfort, denial, and delay we built around ourselves those illusions that we could ignore it, are cracking. And yet, as always, the damage is not shared equally. Those already living at the edges of survival bear the heaviest weight, often quietly, while the world debates numbers. In 2024, the world recorded its hottest year in history. For the first time, the 1.5°C threshold above pre-industrial levels was crossed, even if only temporarily (World Meteorological Organization [WMO], 2025). The WMO warns there is now a 70% chance that global temperatures between 2025 and 2029 will exceed this threshold again (WMO, 2025). These numbers are not abstract they are felt. Burning skin during heatwaves. Homes swept away in floods. Crops ruined, and with them, hunger. More than 150 climate-related disasters displaced over 800,000 people worldwide in 2024 alone (UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction [UNDRR], 2025). Climate change is here and the weight of it is also too much to bear. And yet, even within this backdrop, the burden is uneven. Dalit, Adivasi, migrant, disabled, queer, and trans communities face the deepest cuts. They battle not only rising temperatures but systemic exclusion that denies safety, shelter, relief (Agarwal, 2021; EarthDay.org, 2024). LGBTQ+ people are 120% more likely to experience homelessness, and many face discrimination in shelters, leaving them exposed exactly when protection is most critical (Centre for American Progress, 2020; PBS, 2023). Transmasculine communities in the Indian subcontinent already invisible in many official records face intensified vulnerabilities. Heatwaves make chest binding dangerous. Floods amplify the risk of harassment in public spaces. Relief programs often erase them from data altogether due to rigid cisgender heterosexual structures in design. These are not marginal inconveniences they are matters of survival, and their invisibility compounds the harm. In 2011, the Census of India for the first time recognized the ‘third gender’ category, recording a total of 487,803 individuals identifying as transgender across the country. (Social Justice Ministry India). This data, however, is likely an undercount, as many transgender individuals may have identified as male or female due to societal pressures or personal choice. The actual number is believed to be significantly higher.
In 2023, the Transmen Collective carried out first research on effect of climate change on transmasculine people in India, Invisible in the Storm: Climate Change and the Lived Realities of Transmasculine People in India, revealing a deeply unequal burden. Almost half of participants reported trouble accessing gender-affirming and general healthcare during extreme events. 51% felt that heatwaves made binding riskier, 64% faced disruptions to livelihoods, and 62% experienced mental health challenges, often characterized by anticipatory anxiety, grief, and helplessness the feeling of watching disasters repeat with no one to intervene. The research also reflected these struggles are compounded by layers of marginalization caste, class, disability, rural-urban divides that intensify vulnerability yet remain invisible, ignored both by official systems and by mainstream climate justice conversations. When disasters strike, the fragility of existing infrastructure mobile networks failing, roads blocked, electricity cut can mean that even the most basic care or support disappears, leaving communities to fend for themselves.
The solutions co-exist, grounded in lived experience and can be designed to survive both when systems work and when they fail. Access to hormones, mental health support, and essential care can continue uninterrupted. When the infrastructure is intact, telehealth platforms and e-pharmacy deliveries allow care to flow smoothly; when networks fail, offline hormone stockpiles, SMS or phone-call helplines, and peer-to-peer support become lifelines, ensuring that care survives not just on paper, but also in our lived realities. Shelters which are meant to protect often replicate exclusion, yet training staff in gender-affirming practices and mobilizing peer volunteers can ensure safety and dignity. Technological solutions like digital ID cards, QR-coded passes, reporting apps supports access when systems are functional, while printed cards, SMS or USSD-based reporting, and human navigators bridge the gaps when the infrastructure collapses. Even the documentation of lived realities becomes a tool of resilience: oral histories, testimonies, and multimedia narratives shared via digital platforms, podcasts, or exhibitions amplify experiences; when digital channels fail, local radio, printed stories, or community notice boards ensure that voices remain visible and policy can be informed. Predictive analysis, too, is part of survival forecasts to curb the anticipatory anxieties and grief from the India Meteorological Department, the National Disaster Management Authority, and global monitoring systems allow communities to anticipate heatwaves, floods, or cyclones. Alerts via SMS, radio, or community boards give people crucial time to safeguard care, livelihoods, and shelter, turning anticipation into action.
Together, social and technological approaches can weave a safety net that blends community knowledge, peer networks, and digital support systems, making resilience tangible. Yet, they cannot replace systemic responsibility. Governments must embed gender-diverse needs into disaster planning, fund inclusive infrastructure, and legislate protections for marginalized communities. For transmasculine people, whose burdens under climate change include disrupted healthcare, unsafe shelters, interrupted livelihoods, and mental strain from anticipatory anxiety & grief, resilience requires more than coping it requires recognition. When policy, technology, and community-led strategies work in tandem, they can transform invisible struggles into visible priorities, ensuring that dignity and survival are not left to chance in a warming world.
Bio:
Jamal is a writer, technologist, and community-builder with over a decade of experience in technology, systems design, and grassroots leadership. He is the Co-Founder of the Transmen Collective and CEO of NavHill Foundation, where he leads inclusive, data-driven initiatives centering marginalised people’s rights, wellbeing, and climate justice. His journey spans corporate, nonprofit, and grassroots spaces, including Wells Fargo, ETASHA Society and TWEET Foundation, where he advanced digital systems and advocacy for queer and marginalized communities. Through essays, research, and reflective narratives, Jamal amplifies underrepresented voices, bridging advocacy with creativity to build more inclusive and compassionate futures.
