Care in crisis: Picturing care work and climate change in the Philippines

As climate change exacerbates socioeconomic vulnerabilities, women, often carers, emerge as "invisible safety nets" sustaining family and community resilience. Set in a coastal town in Batangas, Philippines, the study explores how carers experience and navigate unpaid care work amid climate adaptation. Guided by feminist participatory action research, the study used photovoice, where 13 participants documented their experiences through photography and writing, then collaboratively interpreted their stories. For Filipino caregivers, climate change intensifies unpaid care work. Climate-related disruptions fracture their sense of wholeness, adding layers of grief and uncertainty to their responsibilities. They take on multifaceted roles across their family, community, and environments, as educators, providers, stewards, and leaders. In navigating intensifying care demands, they rely on community solidarity and spirituality, which serve as vital sources of strength, purpose, and hope in their collective efforts to adapt to climate change. By recognising unpaid care work in climate adaptation and providing carers with a platform to voice their lived experiences, the study hopes to advocate for climate change policies and programs that respond to unpaid care dynamics, reward women’s contribution, reduce unpaid care work, and advocate for redistribution of and male involvement in care work within families and communities.