Transcript Gender Sensitive Climate Justice for Women Farm workers through

Role of S&T Communication
towards Gender Sensitive
Climate Smart Agriculture
Kinkini Dasgupta Misra
Scientist ‘F’
Vigyan Prasar
Department of Science and Technology
Flow of Talk
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Why gender sensitization is important?
Women’s contribution in natural resource based livelihood
Climate Change and Vulnerability of Women
Challenges
 Societal challenges
Educational challenges
Economic challenges
 Institutional Challenges
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Observed effects of Climate Change on women
Tackling Climate Change in Agriculture and Gender Issue
Few successful adaptation methods
S &T Communication strategies and Gender HarmonyVigyan Prasar’s Approach.
Why Gender Sensitization is important?
• Women play fundamental role in family
• Women play an essential role towards the food and nutrition
security of their families and communities
• Women work for 16-18 hours per day
• Play significant role of multitasking in productive and
household work.
• Play the stressful responsibility of family networking and
social and moral justice.
Women’s contribution in natural resourcebased livelihood
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Women form 2/3rd of the world’s workforce
Account for 70% of agricultural labour force in India
Along India’s coast more than half of fish workers are women
Half of India’s forest workers are women
Majority of tribal women are marginalised and victims of social
injustice.
Climate Change and Vulnerability of Women
• Because they constitute majority of the
world’s poor and are more dependent on
natural resources
• Majority of women work in agriculture and
food security
• Limited contribution in decision making.
• Confined sphere of influence and defined
boundaries
• No requisite resources are available which
makes them more vulnerable.
Challenges in Coping Capacity
Societal challenges
Educational challenges
Economic challenges
Institutional Challenges
Societal challenges
• Societal perceptions not supportive to their needs
• Women lack confidence to demand rights
• Women from low-income communities, rural and tribal
bear a heavier burden from the impacts of climate
change because they are more reliant upon natural
resources for survival
• Women are generally working in poor infrastructure
environment
• Lack decision making power in family
• Lack ownership of land and economic independence
• Gender equality within the family is a serious concern.
Educational Challenges
• Girl school drop-outs rate is high.
• Recent studies revealed that due to climate-related
disasters, the workload of women and girls increases and
such reasons tend to miss out educational opportunities
and career.
• Low education levels limit access to climate information,
knowledge and technology.
• Limited access to scientific information on adaptation
strategies
• Women often have unequal access to information and
resources.
Economic Challenges
• Represent fewer than 10% of all agricultural land owners.
• Lack independence sources of income.
• Even when they contribute to the family income, they are
not allowed to make financial decisions in the family
• Economic stresses have even forced some into unfamiliar
occupations. This often leads to exploitation
Institutional Challenges
• Women are under-represented in decision-making and
hence their voices are not reflected in policies and planning
• Need for full-fledged working group to address women
issues
• Lack of women-centric schemes for adaptation
• Lack of women employment
Observed effects of climate change on women
Agriculture:
• Women lose their crops due to climatic adversity like
droughts and floods, which affect food security.
• Due to climate change, women are exposed to health
hazards.
• Loss of livelihood forced women to search for other sources
of income.
• Families have lost their farms due to sea level rise and high
water salinity in Sunderban’s and other areas
Fishery:
• In areas on Uttar Karnataka women were dependent of shell
fish catch from the river.
• Catch decreased due to changing rainfall pattern and water
flow
• Trying to cope with the low income.
Forestry:
• Some trees on which the women depended for their
livelihood are dying due to change in climate.
• Women are trying to cope with the limited stock.
• There are regular disputes among women who collect the
leaves were included in adaptation and mitigation efforts.
Tackling Climate Change and Gender Issue in Agriculture
• The need for Gender sensitive response to the effects of Climate
Change in each policy.
• Women’s knowledge and social practices could be used to build
policies on adaptation and mitigation.
• Facility of dry season farming can make women in rural area
produce vegetables throughout the year for consumption and
sale.
• Stress on food and seed storage using traditional silos and
integrated pest management for food security.
• Emphasis on engaging women as key actors in many disasterresponse programmes and in early warning initiatives.
• Engaging female extension workers in coping with climate
change impacts in agriculture and promote climate-smart
agricultural practices
• Approaches to adaptation for development-oriented approach
that aims to build broader resilience to climate hazards.
Way Forward
• Since women are “victims”
they can be effective “agents of change”.
• Knowledge essential for women to overcome climate
adversities.
• There are available solutions to adverse impact of Climate
change which is needed to be translated to farm women and
make them accessible and affordable.
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Rights of rural women to be ensured in regards to food
security, non-discriminatory access to resources, and
equitable participation in decision-making processes.
Way Forward
• Women-centric schemes for adaptation
• Community level awareness
• Helping farm women to adapt to climate change will result
in:
– Resilient communities
– Food Security
– Increased incomes
– Reduce green house gas emissions from agriculture
Few adaptation methods coping with climate change
leaf colour chart to judge the nitrogen
content required for crops, Bihar
Village level grain bank in Sunderban,
West Bengal
Community Grain Bank in Andhra
Pradesh
Traditional paddy seeds are stored in earthen pots
at the Tentulipar community gene-seed-grain bank,
Odisha
S &T Communication Strategies and Gender
Harmony- Vigyan Prasar’s Approach
• Information, education and communication interventions
have to take note of the climate change and its adverse
effects on women engaged in various agricultural practices.
• The design and delivery of need – based communication
strategies to take note of the
– Efforts of institutions already active at the local level
– Preparedness of communities to comprehend scientific
information and technology that will be delivered
– Focus on women's perceptions about their rights
– Address the necessity of gender dimension in climate
policies
• Adopt climate resilient livelihoods, crop diversity
and adopt climate resilient crops
• Enablers of larger scale capacity building &
dissemination to sustain action
• Building a consortium of equal mandated
governmental and non governmental agencies
for single window operation
• Demonstration of climate change technology
through Community of Practitioners
• Induction of climate change adaptability through
field and skill based training programmes for
community and rural development centres
References
1.
Are there gender impacts from 'climate-smart' agriculture? Christine Jost,
Gopal Bhatta and Manon Verchot
2. Gender and Equity.
3. Christine Jost, Science Officer from Theme: Linking Knowledge with Action
4. Addressing Gender in Climate-Smart Smallholder Agriculture,
https://cgspace.cgiar.org/handle/10568/27836
5. Bogdanski Agriculture & Food Security 2012, 1:9
6. DOI: 10.1080/13552074.2013.802158, Gender & Development. S. Laurel
Weldon & Mala Htun, pages 231-247
7. DOI: 10.1080/13552070215911, Valerie Nelson, Kate Meadows, Terry Cannon,
John Morton & Adrienne Martin, pages 51-59
8. Climate change: Learning from gender analysis and women's experiences of
organising for sustainable development. Irene Dankelman, pages 21-29
9. Gender and Climate Hazards in Bangladesh. Terry Cannon, pages 45-50
10. UN WomenWatch: www.un.org/womenwatch
The UN Internet Gateway on Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women