Climate change-related weather emergencies, aging and inequalities among racialized older adults: An intersectional climate justice framework informed scoping review

As global aging accelerates alongside intensifying climate disruptions, older adults face growing exposure to extreme weather events that threaten their health and well-being. Yet, the experiences of racialized older adults, categorized as those who are non-White or non-Indigenous who often inhabit the intersection of social and ecological shaped by social marginalization, economic disadvantage, and other factors remain insufficiently understood. Guided by an Intersectional Climate Justice lens, this scoping review examined how racialized older adults across diverse contexts experience and respond to climate change-related weather emergencies. Using Arksey and O'Malley's approach, searches across 13 databases yielded 28 studies, most involving community-dwelling older adults. Findings show that racialized older adults face layered vulnerabilities shaped by age-related decline, chronic conditions, low income, limited education, and inadequate housing. These factors, combined with neighborhood disadvantage and environmental exposures, produce profound personal, psychosocial, and health impacts. The review highlights the need for equity-centered climate preparedness grounded in community resilience, care ethics, place-based practices, and meaningful participation of this group in environmental decision-making.