Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development

This paper is based on a gender analysis of literature on impacts of climate change. It uses feminist political ecology as a theoretical lens and the women empowerment framework as a tool of analysis. Paper reveals that inequitable distribution of rights, power and resources, and the repressive cult...

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Main Author: Mukoni, Manuku
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: International Journal of Development and Sustainability 2016
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Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11408/868
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author Mukoni, Manuku
author_facet Mukoni, Manuku
author_sort Mukoni, Manuku
collection DSpace
description This paper is based on a gender analysis of literature on impacts of climate change. It uses feminist political ecology as a theoretical lens and the women empowerment framework as a tool of analysis. Paper reveals that inequitable distribution of rights, power and resources, and the repressive cultural gender roles and norms prohibit women’s full participation. Sustainable development can be realized if women empowerment is pivotal in developmental issues such as climate change. Women are not groomed to plan and make decisions concerning the interventions as these are imposed. They are brewed not to reflect on the strategies, thus failing to bring about women empowerment. Interventions used also focus on giving women increased access to practical gender needs such as education in the face of climate change. This paper argues that it is in addressing the strategic gender needs of women that empowerment can be realized. By focusing on practical gender needs of women, the strategies leave the structures of oppression and domination unchanged leading to their failure. The paper therefore calls for mitigation and adaptation strategies that ensure proactive empowerment of women. Potent empowerment strategies that focus on mobilization, conscientisation, participation and control must be invoked.
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spelling ir-11408-8682022-06-27T13:49:06Z Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development Mukoni, Manuku Gender, practical gender needs, strategic gender needs, climate change, sustainable development, women empowerment This paper is based on a gender analysis of literature on impacts of climate change. It uses feminist political ecology as a theoretical lens and the women empowerment framework as a tool of analysis. Paper reveals that inequitable distribution of rights, power and resources, and the repressive cultural gender roles and norms prohibit women’s full participation. Sustainable development can be realized if women empowerment is pivotal in developmental issues such as climate change. Women are not groomed to plan and make decisions concerning the interventions as these are imposed. They are brewed not to reflect on the strategies, thus failing to bring about women empowerment. Interventions used also focus on giving women increased access to practical gender needs such as education in the face of climate change. This paper argues that it is in addressing the strategic gender needs of women that empowerment can be realized. By focusing on practical gender needs of women, the strategies leave the structures of oppression and domination unchanged leading to their failure. The paper therefore calls for mitigation and adaptation strategies that ensure proactive empowerment of women. Potent empowerment strategies that focus on mobilization, conscientisation, participation and control must be invoked. 2016-04-16T14:51:30Z 2016-04-16T14:51:30Z 2013 Article 2186-8662 http://hdl.handle.net/11408/868 en International Journal of Development and Sustainability;Vol. 2 No. 2; p. 1334-1345 open International Journal of Development and Sustainability
spellingShingle Gender, practical gender needs, strategic gender needs, climate change, sustainable development, women empowerment
Mukoni, Manuku
Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title_full Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title_fullStr Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title_full_unstemmed Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title_short Rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
title_sort rethinking women empowerment at the crossroads of climate change and sustainable development
topic Gender, practical gender needs, strategic gender needs, climate change, sustainable development, women empowerment
url http://hdl.handle.net/11408/868
work_keys_str_mv AT mukonimanuku rethinkingwomenempowermentatthecrossroadsofclimatechangeandsustainabledevelopment