The research interest of the thesis is to gain a better analytical understanding of the constituting conditions and the intersectional relevance of gender for the adaptive capacities in the context of climate change. How is gender constituted and how does it become relevant for adaptive capacities to climate change? What role do other structural inequalities, symbolic representations and identity constructions as well as processes of subjection play? Based on socio-ecological perspectives and feminist theories an analytical framework is developed in a first step. In a second step the framework is applied to the city of Motozintla de Mendoza in Chiapas, Mexiko and an empirical case study is conducted. With its results the study represents an elaborated and innovative contribution to the social science vulnerability and adaptation research. At the same time it can provide fruitful incentives for research on inequalities in socio-ecological contexts and for critical feminist theory.