Paper short abstract:

The authors are eager to share the intersection of culture, climate change, & gender-specific needs post-natural disasters in the Philippines & Southeast Asia. By conceptualising the term "Normalisation of Inconvenience" it reflects the lack of gender-specific & sustainable climate change policies.

Paper long abstract:

In 2021, Typhoon Rai (locally named as “Odette”), a Category-5 typhoon was the strongest and costliest typhoon, just eight years after Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda). Siargao Islands, a thriving tourist destination, was considered as one of the most damaged and affected areas with 217,000 individuals displaced mostly living in and below the poverty line, 1,700 of which were pregnant women as hospitals and health centres were severely damaged, while 30 protection centres for women and children were no longer functioning (UNFPA, 2022). Following our initial findings, climate change policies and disaster response and risk mitigation practices overlook gender-specific needs of women in the rapid response stage due that women assume unpaid labour in both household and community work. The study has now progressed in examining how the “Normalisation of Inconvenience” in other parts of the Philippines which extends in other Southeast Asian countries and its lack of gender-specific climate change policies. Through qualitative research methodologies, this study poses the question on how the “Normalisation of Inconvenience” reflect the region’s climate change policies and post-natural disaster initiatives affect the mobility and economic well-being of women. Lastly, the authors conceptualises the term “Normalisation of Inconvenience” reflecting the intertwining of natural disasters as a frequent life experience exemplifying the lack of demanding sustainable climate change policies.

Keywords: Typhoon Rai, Natural Disasters, Climate Change, Vulnerabilities, Women, Informal Sector, Poverty Line, Siargao, Philippines, Southeast Asia