Why Gender in Wildlife Conservation? Notes from the Peruvian Amazon

Abstract

The connections between gender and wildlife use are diverse and depend on particular economic, cultural and ethnic contexts. Challenging the common exclusion of women from wildlife conservation, this article shows the important role played by gender even in situations where women are not direct users of wildlife. Women productive and reproduc- tive unpaid work and their participation in decision-making have a direct impact in wildlife use by: 1) making male labour available to hunt or fish at times when seasonal demand for labour in agriculture peaks and 2) reducing monetary cost of family reproduction and generating alternative sources of income and supporting food production, all which might reduce pressure on wildlife. Gender also shapes different perceptions and attitudes related to wildlife, and when embedded in par- ticular ethnic views, gender also affect use of natural spaces and wildlife species. Using interdisciplinary and applied an- thropology perspectives, findings from field research conducted in the North Eastern Peruvian Amazon are used to define the role of gender in wildlife use and derive some implications for conservation interventions in this region.