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Women, Men, and Environmental Change

This article explores how gender roles and power relations between men and women influence natural resource use and the environment. It discusses the impact of environmental degradation on women and men, as well as gender-responsive policies and programs aimed at addressing these issues.

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Women, Men, and Environmental Change

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  1. Women, Men, and Environmental Change Justine Sass, MScPolicy Analyst, PRB © 2002 Population Reference Bureau

  2. Framework of Analysis Population Heal th Environment Humans

  3. Gender • Gender refers to the social roles that men and women play and the power relations between them

  4. How Gender Influences Natural Resource Use • Roles and Responsibilities • Access to and Control over Resources • Knowledge • Participation in Decisionmaking

  5. Roles and Responsibilities • Commercial vs. non-commercial tasks • Women’s additional domestic responsibilities • Male migration exacerbateswomen’s work burdens

  6. Access to and Control over Resources • Economic, social, institutional, and legal constraints • Poverty • Restrictive land rights • Limited access to supportive services, e.g., extension programs, training on innovative land management practices

  7. Knowledge • Knowledge based on gender roles and responsibilities • Gendered knowledge also varies by class, age, and ethnicity

  8. Participation in Decisionmaking • Women’s involvement in formulation, planning, and execution of policy law • Women’s participation often at local level • Failure to include women’s and men’s activities leads to policies that criminalize activities without changing behavior

  9. Framework of Analysis Population Heal th Environment Humans

  10. Impact of Environmental Degradation on Women and Men • More time and energy on tasks • Exposure to indoor pollutants • Decreased nutrition for families • Increased reproductive risks

  11. More Time and Energy on Tasks • Greater time, distances to travel for resources • Higher school drop-out rates • Higher calorie use • Compounded risk of malnutrition in resource-poor settings

  12. Exposure to Indoor Pollutants Source: S. Saksena et al., “Patterns of Daily Exposure to TSP and CO in the Gahrwal Himalaya,” AtmosphericEnvironment (26A, 1992): 212-34.

  13. Decreased Nutrition • Less nutritious foods that can be eaten raw or partially cooked • Partially cooked food that can prove toxic • Eating leftovers that can rot in tropical climates • Women and female children hit hardest

  14. Increased Reproductive Risks • Exposure to agricultural and industrial chemicals and organic pollutants increase morbidity and mortality • Pesticide exposure linked to stillbirths, perinatal deaths, birth defects, testicular cancer, and lower sperm counts

  15. Gender-responsive Policies and Programs • Collecting and analyzing sex-disaggregated data • Strengthening women’s involvement in environmental decisionmaking • Issuing gender policy declarations • Signing international agreements

  16. Collecting and Analyzing Sex-Disaggregated Data • Data that provide information on women’s and men’s resource use, access to resources, and participation in environmental decisionmaking • Examples: • Brazil: Jaú National Park • Tunisia: Five-Year Plan

  17. Strengthening Women’s Involvement in Decisionmaking “Advancing gender equality, through reversing the various social and economic handicaps that make women voiceless and powerless, may also be one of the best ways of saving the environment.” -Amartya Sen

  18. Issuing Gender Policy Declarations • Demonstrate government’s intent to address gender concerns • Provide reference document for technical staff • Provide the basis for action Examples: Uganda, Philippines; At the regional level: Meso-America

  19. Signing International Agreements • Influence government policies through international “peer pressure” • Advocates can use documents to approve actions/increase funding • Goals and benchmarks can serve to monitor progress and encourage action

  20. Opportunities to Mobilize Attention to the Issue • The 46th Session on the Commission on the Status of Women • Meeting of Women Leaders of the Environment in Helsinki, Finland • World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa

  21. Conclusions • There are a number of actions policymakers and planners can take to improve integration of gender concerns into environmental planning • Continued commitment is essential to achieving these goals

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