Ten years ago, Joya Patiha, an Indonesian transgender woman of forty-three, began to observe that her income as a sex worker was being affected by the city of Bandung surrounded by mountains due to changing weather patterns.
In the West Java province, the rainy season was lasting longer, the winds were harsher, and in some very terrible years, Patiha lost up to 80% of her profits.
Disproportionate Impact on Indonesian Trans Women
Patiha and other trans women are disproportionately affected by extreme weather events linked to climate change, and they also suffer more when disasters happen.
The repercussions of climate change are especially dangerous for Indonesia, and trans women—who typically experience greater stigma and marginalization than trans males or other LGBTQ+ Indonesians—are also among those most severely affected by extreme weather.
This is due to the fact that many trans women, like Patiha, are excluded from the formal economy and must rely on their ability to recruit clients outside in order to survive in their jobs as buskers and sex workers.
Sherly Wijayanto, a transgender woman of 28 years old from Jakarta’s capital, was a busker for about seven years until the unpredictable weather forced her to look for alternative employment.
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Indonesian LGBTQ+ in Climate Crisis: Navigating Persecution
In addition to trying to adjust their precarious means of subsistence to the new climate reality, these women and the organizations that stand by them are also trying to increase public awareness of the difficulties that severe weather poses in a country made up of over 17,000 islands.
Even though gender-fluid groups have long been welcomed in Indonesia, persecution of LGBTQ+ people has increased due to the rise of conservative Islam in the world’s largest Muslim nation.
Climate change-related issues are sometimes attributed to LGBTQ+ people, claims Arif Budi Darmawan, a researcher at the Resilience Development Initiative in Bandung.
Plans intended to assist Indonesians in coping with the effects of climate change have excluded LGBTQ+ persons due to these kinds of prejudices, he said.
Although the Indonesian government has included provisions for vulnerable groups in its five-year plan to manage the impacts of climate change, trans persons are not included in the list. The plan outlines the country’s development objectives.
Some trans women are trying to figure things out on their own. Sanggar Seroja hosts conversations with different gay communities, fashion shows, and movie nights to promote awareness about climate change.
In order to learn how climate change influenced salaries, the frequency of illness, and changes in expenditure from 2021 to 2022, the researchers also polled 80 members of the trans community in Jakarta.
During the wet season, 72% of respondents reported higher expenses and nearly 93% reported a drop in income.
Unpredictable weather is another factor that contributes to “illness, debt, stress, conflicts with local residents, and heightened levels of violence,” according to the group’s coordinator, Rikky, who wanted to only have his first name used.
Similar to vocalist Wijayanto, Patiha has looked for different chances. She enrolled in an entrepreneurship program in 2021 with Yayasan Srikandi Pasundan, a Bandung-based non-governmental organization that empowers transgender women.
The non-profit provided mentorship, advice on launching a small business, and assistance with practical chores like product promotion.
That same year, Patiha started a cake-making company, hiring three trans pals as demand increased. Last December, she also began producing and retailing her own line of perfumes.
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