Focusing on gender equity will ensure insurers and other organisations make better decisions to navigate the challenges of climate change, enabling more women in capital allocation roles to develop climate risk solutions, Aon says.

Recruiting, retention, and promotion of female employees is “mission-critical” to climate action, and gender equity is an essential component of effective climate action, Aon co-head of Catastrophe Analytics in the Americas Liz Henderson says.

“Progress towards net zero will be impeded and opportunities left unrealised if we don’t bring a diverse team of experts to the table,” she said.

By placing equity at the fore, Ms Henderson says companies will be able to make better business decisions as they rethink their approach to capital distribution, address underserved markets and build organisational resilience.

A collaborative study by Women+ in Climate Tech reveals the negative effects of climate change disproportionately impact women, as well as communities of colour and lower incomes, due to cultural, educational and resource inequities – and that this reduces corporate resilience.

“It is critical for women's voices to be part of the solution,” it says, recommending investing in women-owned businesses.

“In short, this inequity magnifies climate risk,” Women+ in Climate Tech Co-Founder Helen Bertelli said. “Conversely, women’s influence over energy use, food production, transportation and other areas offers profound opportunity for emissions reductions and resilience building.”

Innovation that increases gender equity can produce significant bottom line impacts and should be “top of mind in the efforts against climate change,” Ms Bertelli said.