Intersectional Rights in Climate Justice

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz occupied multiple marginalized positions—as a woman, as Indigenous Mexican, as a religious figure constrained by institutional authority—yet she articulated a philosophy celebrating human dignity and intellectual rights across all identities. This concept recognizes that climate justice cannot be separated from struggles for gender equality, racial justice, and economic fairness. Vulnerable populations—Indigenous communities, women farmers, low-income workers, Global South nations—face the worst climate impacts while bearing least responsibility for emissions. Following Sor Juana's integrated vision of justice, we must address how climate change intersects with existing inequalities rather than treating environmental protection as separate from human rights. Climate solutions that ignore these interconnections perpetuate injustice. True climate justice requires centering the voices and agency of those most affected, recognizing their knowledge systems and leadership as essential to global responsibility.