GENDER EQUALITY
There is systemic inequality between women and men everywhere in the world. Universally, women continue to face limited access to and control over resources. Women are largely under-represented in decision-making processes that shape their lives and their societies. Gender inequality is reinforced every day through discriminatory attitudes, practices and structures. The inequality that women experience hinders the progress of half of any society and is a fundamental barrier to integral human development and social justice.
Gender equality is a systemic issue. We frequently observe gender-specific impacts across our areas of work. The lack of enforcement of rural women’s property rights makes it difficult for them to access land on which to grow food. Though women are often assigned the duty of caring for the health of a community, women are denied participation in decision-making on energy sources that may emit dangerous pollution. Women’s position in society is exploited by corporate supply chains as a source of cheap labor in poor working conditions. Women face structural barriers to accessing justice if they try to seek legal rectification for land grabbing or corporate abuse. Though we often see women at the heart of organising grassroots movements, rarely are they the spokespeople or representatives. Despite efforts by many movements and the international community to address this imbalance, their voices do not carry the same weight in front of government or corporate authorities as their male counterparts.
We know that these gender specific impacts must be addressed in the policies we advocate for to regulate corporations, and the solutions we propose for just and sustainable energy and food systems. These solutions must acknowledge the decision-making structures that disempower women, and try to actively reimagine participatory processes that ensure women are treated equally as actors within society. We are working with our partners and members to find methodologies to open conversations on gender equality in their diverse cultural and economic contexts, to challenge mentalities and unequal relationships. We celebrate women’s perspectives and amplify their voices in our media.
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Nicky Broeckhoven
broeckhoven(at)cidse.org
Blog
Publications
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International women’s day 2022
March 15, 2022Stories of hope and resistance from the CIDSE network Each year, International Women’s Day (IWD) is a moment to give […]
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New podcast: A journey through feminist agroecology
March 8, 2022On the occasion of International Women’s Day, CIDSE and the Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience (CAWR) from Coventry University […]
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News from CIDSE – January-February 2022
March 7, 2022Read our latest newsletter for an overview of our activities from January and February and find out what’s coming next! […]
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Agroecology: Our Land is Our Life
January 10, 2022New publication by the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), a member of the “Our Land is our Life […]
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News from CIDSE – November-December 2021
December 20, 2021Read our latest newsletter for an overview of our activities from November and December and find out what’s coming next! […]