Improve Gender Equality Research Articles

Landscape multifunctionality in (and around) the Kafa Biosphere Reserve: a sociocultural and gender perspective

ABSTRACT In 2010, UNESCO listed the Kafa Biosphere Reserve (KBR) in southwest Ethiopia based on the concept of landscape multifunctionality and the need to reconcile local community values and needs with conservation pressures. Understanding the role of the local community in traditional resource management has received little attention by researchers however, as most studies focus on the biophysical characteristics of the KBR. In this qualitative study we present two case studies from fieldwork and secondary sources: the Shattos as guardians of the Kafa forest customs, values and wisdom through musical performance; and, deejjoo, a thanksgiving ritual ceremony associated with forest resource management. These cultural and spiritual beliefs and practices corresponded closely with local understandings of biology and ecology. Land use changes over the past 50 years have resulted in deforestation, land degradation and erosion of sociocultural values that traditionally sustained human-environment interactions. Based on these descriptions we also found a gap in the research of the effects of gender on both biosphere and traditional land management approaches: Who has access to resources? What is the division of labour? How are values are defined, and Who makes the rules and decisions? Gender matters because taken for granted assumptions about women’s roles and responsibilities as care givers can reinforce gender stereotypes. Our results provide insights into how increasing broader local community involvement in decision making could enhance environmental sustainability and improve gender equality.

Gender equality and the governance of long-term care policy: new comparative models and paradigms

AbstractThere is a long-established link between care policies and gender equality outcomes, and much modelling of welfare state typologies look at care provision as a distinguishing feature. However, to date, little research has been done which has systematically and critically examined those links by examining the policies and the way they operate, how and why they affect gender equality, and the governance of care policies in a comparative way. This paper draws on evidence from a recently completed comparative study looking at long-term care and gender equality. A CQA (Comparative Qualitative Analysis) approach was used to identify case studies, and further analysis carried out which focussed on: overall, how the policies and the way they operated to achieve gender equality; the governance and design of policies that led to good gender equality outcomes; the level of policy making; the role of the state, the family, the community and the nonstatutory civic sector in designing and delivering effective policies; and how context specific the ideas, actors and institutions supporting the policies were. Instead of using existing welfare typologies that were not driven by gender equality as the defining outcome variable, the author takes an inductive approach to policy analysis to compare policy outcomes according to gender equity outcomes. She devises two new models of long-term care policy: the Universal Model and the Partnership Model, both of which lead to improved gender equality in different ways. This paper concludes by noting the need to move beyond existing welfare state typologies in examining gender equality outcomes, which will result in new models as depicted here.

Feminist Pedagogy and the South African Curriculum: The case of Women and Food Security

There is a food security crisis in South Africa and black working-class women are the shock absorbers of this crisis. It follows that where food studies are included in the South African curriculum, the relationship between women and food security should be understood and critiqued by learners. Improvements in gender equality have also been identified as one of the primary drivers of improvements in food security. In this paper, the South African curriculum is analysed in terms of food studies, gender studies and the promotion of gender equality. Using the lens of feminist pedagogy, a set of qualitative indicators were developed to assess the content and praxis of the curriculum. While there is content which deals with gender and with food, these are presented separately. In the Geography and Agriculture curricula, there is a marked lack of focus on gender concerns. This article concludes that the curriculum could be reoriented to include an awareness and critique of the nexus of women and food and that more positive representations of women as active and powerful agents are needed in the South African Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS).

Gender in the making: An empirical approach to understand gender relations in the maker movement

In this paper we explore gender issues in the maker movement using four different methods of data analysis: standardised questionnaires, analysis of makerspaces’ social media, statistical analysis of machine use and the coding of interviews and focus groups. The objective is to give a voice to female makers and makerspace managers, looking at the maker movement from an inside perspective. The paper demonstrates how gendered stereotypes are still reproduced within the maker movement. Makerspaces still attract considerably more males than females and exhibit a primarily “male” culture, reflected in the interior design of places, or by the language and attitudes of their members. Females in makerspaces, however, often have a background in communications, arts or design, as opposed to the coding or engineering background of the males. Previous research has shown how machines and materials also take on gendered connotations. The “genderisation” of objects refers to an attributed gender-specific use of machines. An example here could be that 3D printing, which is more often used by female makers compared to male members of makerspaces. Our research also identifies promising approaches for tackling the issue of gender imbalance. The maker movement has significant potential to improve gender equality as younger generations bring societal change to makerspaces and break with stereotypes. One of the findings our paper puts forward is the lack of female role models, especially in leading positions. Our data suggest that the maker scene still has to develop a tradition in reflecting questions around gender stereotypes or their role in partly reproducing them. Hence, we argue that the maker community should be more attentive to this issue and should make a concerted effort to become more diverse. Overall, our case research did not reveal any explicit animosity to gender questions; on the contrary, male makers and most maker communities showed great interest in avoiding gender stereotyping. We suggest applying the Bechdel-Test as a simple tool for clarifying gender topics and encouraging self-reflection among makers. Overall, our paper aims to support makerspaces that want to make diversity part of their strategy for future growth.

Improving Gender Equality & Nutrition Data for Women and Children

Abstract Empowerment of women and girls is identified as an important nutrition-sensitive strategy to address malnutrition in low- and middle-income countries. Minimizing the data gaps and advancing knowledge of the relationship of gender equality and women's empowerment and nutrition is relevant to inform local women's groups and host country response to policy and advocacy. Good nutrition and gender equality are mutually reinforcing: improving nutrition is critical to achieving gender equality, and vice versa. Simpler tools to generate timelier and better quality data using gender equality indicators for nutrition program delivery and performance can guide program managers, partner and government access to program monitoring data at reduced cost, leading to strengthened gender responsive services and more effective and time-sensitive decision making. This innovation has developed a framework for measuring and linking gender and nutrition-related outcomes, as well as a predictive model incorporating potential links between gender inequality, increased nutritional needs, and inequitable access to nutrition and health services. Through identifying simple yet appropriate indicators and tools of gender equality, it has tested this model and tools in current nutrition program settings across sub Saharan Africa, to ensure that emerging nutrition experts understand and can apply these models and tools.

Climate change perceptions and challenges to adaptation among smallholder farmers in semi-arid Ghana: A gender analysis

Gender-sensitive climate change adaptation strategies can improve gender equality and women's development in agrarian communities. This study used both qualitative and quantitative research methods (focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and household surveys) to explore the perspectives of men and women on climate change, including climate change impacts on their farming activities and household well-being, and challenges faced in mitigating climate change impacts. The empirical data showed similarities in climate change perceptions between men and women, and rising temperatures, shortened cropping season, and increasing erratic rainfall as the main climatic stressors. Lack of money and inadequate access to labor among women and inadequate access to extension and old age/poor health among men were the major constraints to mitigating climate change impacts. Integrating gender needs in climate change adaptation planning and intervention development can help build resilient farm households.

Designing and implementing gender budgeting – a path to action

Gender inequality is an important and visible issue for OECD countries and the costs are borne at both social and economic levels. In line with the 2015 OECD Recommendation on Gender Equality in Public Life, gender budgeting ensures that gender equality considerations are taken systematically into account in tax and spending decisions. Effective implementation of gender budgeting has the potential to improve gender equality, ensure a sense of fairness and contribute to inclusive economic growth. This paper draws on the experiences of OECD countries and aims to provide insights into how the budget process can develop as a tool to support gender equality goals; the different ways in which gender budgeting can be implemented; and the factors that help provide an enabling environment for gender budgeting. Arising from this analysis, this paper proposes initial guidelines for designing and implementing gender budgeting to assist countries in putting in place an effective and sustainable approach. It also presents a first pass at a composite index for gender budgeting which assesses the extent to which OECD countries gender budgeting efforts are characterised by a strong strategic framework, effective tools of implementation and an enabling environment.

Feminist Active Commitment and Sexual Harassment Perception among Chinese Women: The Moderating Roles of Targets’ Gender Stereotypicality and Type of Harassment

In recent years, sexual harassment has become more acknowledged in many developed countries. However, in East Asian culture, it is a sensitive and controversial topic upon which few scholars have focused. The current research aimed to explore whether the relationship between feminist identity and perception of sexual harassment was affected by target’s traditional or nontraditional gender stereotypicality and types of sexual harassment (unwanted sexual attention or gender harassment) among Chinese working women. The participants were 424 heterosexual women, aged 18 to 71 years-old (mdn = 31), who completed surveys that assessed their feminist Active Commitment and perception of sexual harassment after reading a randomly assigned sexual harassment scenario. Women with higher scores on Active Commitment were more aware of both types of sexual harassment, and participants’ perception of unwanted sexual attention was significantly stronger than their perception of gender harassment. In addition, the types of targets and types of sexual harassment moderated the relationship between Active Commitment and the perception of sexual harassment. Our findings highlight the importance of feminist identity for the perception of sexual harassment and suggest that improving gender equality and feminist education is very important for enhancing the perception of sexual harassment.

Gender equality in marine sciences in Kiel, Germany: how project-funded measures can urge institutions to act

Abstract. In Kiel, in the north of Germany, marine research is rooted in a lively research community hosted mainly at Kiel University and the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre. While the ratio of women and men is more or less balanced on all qualification levels with mainly nonpermanent junior positions, women are generally underrepresented in leading research positions. The problem of gender imbalance and inequality has been well-known for a long time. Especially in the last decade, however, manifold efforts were initiated to improve gender equality on a political and institutional level as well as within the research community itself. In our article we focus on the gender equality activities of the two large externally funded marine sciences research alliances: the Cluster of Excellence “The Future Ocean” and the Collaborative Research Centre 754 “Climate–Biogeochemistry Interactions in the Tropical Ocean”. For about a decade they offered both financial provisions and a structural framework to tackle the problem of women's underrepresentation in science and came up with innovative measures. In the following case study, we not only introduce the situation of women in marine sciences in Kiel and the structural arrangement to improve gender equality in general, but we also discuss three specific measures developed within the two collaborative research projects in detail: (i) the mentoring program via:mento_ocean for female postdocs, (ii) hiring policies integrating a gender quota for recruiting postdoctoral researchers and (iii) a code of conduct. Based on these best-practice examples we can show that progress towards gender equality has been made despite some obstacles faced when implementing the measures. This was especially the case for attracting female researchers to work in Kiel marine sciences and bringing the relevance of the topic to the surface of debates within the community. Looking at gender equality activities from a managerial point of view, we conclude from the situation in Kiel, where external funding for both research alliances ended in 2019, that even time-bound activities can initiate change. Initiatives developed by the marine sciences community were taken up by other research groups and inspired new activities at the level of the institutions involved.

Women’s empowerment in the period of the rapid expansion of higher education in Turkey: developments and paradoxes of gender equality in the labour market

Turkey has experienced an expansion in its higher education sector over the last 15 years, fuelled by the cancellation of tuition fees, the establishment of at least one public university in each city, an increase in the number of foundation universities, and the abolition of the headscarf ban. Within this period, women have overtaken men in terms of higher education attainment. In this paper, we study whether this development has gone alongside improved gender equality in the labour force. We analyse household labour force survey data for the years 2005, 2008, 2011 and 2017 to track the changes in core SDG5-indicators for gender equality: labour force participation, gender segregation in employment, and the gender pay gap. Overall, we find that women with higher education still enter the labour force at a significantly higher rate than women without higher education. While both the occupational gender segregation and the gender wage gap persist among graduates, these gaps remain relatively small when compared to other countries. Our analysis shows that higher education has contributed significantly to the development of a somewhat more equal labour market outcomes for the most recent cohort, despite the nuanced and entrenched gender inequalities that are difficult to change.

Evaluating gender equality effects in research and innovation systems

Despite the fact that the topic of “women in research and innovation” has been on the agenda for decades and numerous measures have been implemented at both national and supranational levels to improve gender equality in research and innovation systems, it is still unclear which measures and under which conditions these measures are most effective. Even less research has been carried out on the effects of better representation of women in terms of research and innovation. This paper is based on the application of an innovative evaluation framework, which encompasses complexity and theory of change approaches and aims at exploring the link between interventions and their subsequent effects to two case studies. We discuss two major German flagship programmes aiming at increasing the participation of female researchers in the science system, the “Women Professorship Programme” and the “Pact for Research and Innovation”. Through the two programmes, we tested and validated the evaluation framework and its indicators. As part of the validation process, a theory of change has been developed for each of the programmes. The theory-based evaluation approach helped not only to identify gender equality impacts but also broader effects on research and innovation that might have otherwise remained undetected. We studied the effects of the two programmes on the number of women in leadership positions and analysed whether an increase in the proportion of women leaders influences publication patterns. Although linear linkages are challenging to establish due to the complexity of the process, the findings suggest that the flagship programmes have contributed not only to higher shares of women researchers but also to improved female publication and citation rates. There are clear benefits for Germany in terms of scientific results from the increased proportion of female researchers in research and innovation.

The Success of Women's Participation In Resolving Conflicts In Liberia

The Civil War that occurred in Liberia has been going on for a long time, where there are two rebel groups, they are: Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD) and Movement for Democracy in Liberia (MODEL). Both of these rebel groups have caused gender inequality in Liberia continuously, especially women who have been victims of this war. However, with the efforts and participation of women from Liberian society, the war was successfully reconciled without creating violence. This research is aimed at realizing that women are not only victims of gender inequality, but can also be 'agents of change' in creating peace and better change for the future of a country. This research will use qualitative research methods, that emphasize the observation and understanding of a social phenomenon, where data is collected through secondary data and literature review. This research will analyze the case using three concepts: Feminism, Gender Equality, and Peace. The research concluded that there have been several efforts that have been made by women to resolve conflicts in Liberia by creating and building peace sustainably so that peace can be stable for a long time. The efforts that have been made by Liberian women are by creating several organizations and affiliations, they are: Woman in the Peacebuilding Network (WIPNET), Mano River Women's Peace Network (MARWOPNET), Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia (AFELL). This long-term peace can improve gender equality in several sectors of Liberian society, such as the economy and political sectors that are getting better and more effective from year to year.

Pembebasan Jerat Feminisasi Kemiskinan

The phenomenon of feminization of poverty is not a new issue in the context of poverty. Indonesia in history and process has never been free from these problems. Feminization of poverty is the loss of opportunities and freedom of women in determining life choices, thus rendering them unable to obtain educational facilities, basic economics, employment, security protection, and political involvement. Many economic observers at first saw this problem as something always related to economic factors alone. In fact, this happens as a result of cultural poverty and structural poverty which ultimately limits women from accessing existing facilities and resources. Even though various legal foundations have been born to improve gender equality in order to overcome the feminization of poverty, the problem has not yet been solved, due to the community's values and mentality that are still gender biased. Therefore, the effort that must be taken to free the snares of feminization of poverty is to change the values in society and change the structure to be more open to women by providing non-discriminatory education and employment.

Reordering gender systems: can COVID-19 lead to improved gender equality and health?

COVID-19 has delivered a shock to existing gender systems that could recalibrate gender roles, with beneficial effects on population health. The economic arrangements, policy frameworks, and market forces that determine the distribution of paid and unpaid labour across society are powerful structural determinants of health.1 The way that paid and unpaid labour is inequitably divided between men and women is central to the perpetuation of gender inequalities across the globe, and the ways that such divisions can be shifted or disrupted offer critical opportunities to modify the gender-differentiated effects of COVID-19 on health.

A Study on the Gender Rights Protection System in Arts and Cultural Industry

본 연구는 미투 운동 이후 시작된 문화예술계 성 인권 보호 제도의 흐름을 점검하고 이에 대한 개선 방향을 제안하는 것을 목표로 한다. 그동안 정부에서는 ‘범정부 합동대책’, ‘문화예술계 성희롱·성폭력 특별조사단 권고’, ‘문화체육관광부 성희롱·성폭력 예방대책위원회의 1·2차 권고’, ‘문화비전 2030’를 발표하고, 이를 토대로 문화예술계의 성 인권 보호 제도를 설계했다. 이후 시행된 제도는 구체적으로 피해자 보호, 가해자 제재, 예방·방지책 마련, 법적 근거 및 제도 틀 개선의 4가지 범주로 분류할 수 있었다. 하지만 정부의 다각적인 노력에도 불구하고 현장에서는 제도의 실효성이 높지 않다는 비판이 끊임없이 제기됐다. 피해 당사자의 목소리로 말미암아 성평등 문화정책이 진척을 이룬지 2년이 흐른 지금, 현장에서 진정한 변화를 만들어내기 위해서는 현행 제도의 진단과 개선 방향에 관한 논의가 필요한 시점이다. 이를 위해 정부 발간자료 등을 기반으로 한 문헌 연구와 정책 기획·실행 단계의 주요 행위자 9명과의 인터뷰 내용을 바탕으로 한 면접 분석연구를 진행했다. 인터뷰 내용 분석에는 질적 연구 분석 프로그램인 MAXQDA를 활용했다. 연구 결과 제도의 범주별로 각각 5~10가지 문제점이 드러났다. 문제 해결을 위해 인터뷰이들이 제시한 개선 방향에서는 긴밀한 연관 관계가 확인됐다. 이는 성 인권 보호를 위한 제도가 유기적으로 연결되어야 효과를 낼 수 있음을 시사한다.This study aims to examine the system for gender rights in arts and cultural industry triggered by #Metoo movement and to suggest action plans to improve gender equality. Up until now, Korean government launched ‘Pan-governmental Counter Plan’, ‘Recommendation of the Special Center for Investigating Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence in Arts and Cultural Industries’ ‘the Primary and Secondary Supplemental Measures to Eradicate Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence in the Arts and Cultural Sector by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Korea’, and ‘2030 Cultural Vision’. Korean government has designed the system to protect gender rights using these proposals. Implemented policies can be grouped into 4 different categories; protecting victims, punishing abusers, implementing preventive measures, and reforming legal system. However, despite Korean government’s multilateral efforts, continuous criticism aroused as policies failed to witness actual impacts in the industry. Given the fact that 2 years have passed since the launch of gender equality policy in cultural sector, this is the right time to discuss the current status and ways to improve it. For above reasons, research was conducted on documents including, but not limited to, government publications and an analysis of interviews with 9 major stakeholders of policy planning and implementation. During the study, interviews were analyzed using the qualitative research program MAXQDA. As a result, 5~10 problems were revealed in each category of the system. Furthermore, meaningful correlation has been found in improvement areas suggested by the interviewees. This connection implies that the policy for gender rights in arts and cultural industry shall be developed organically in order for the system to work.

The Grandmothers’ Farewell to Childcare Provision under China’s Two-Child Policy: Evidence from Guangzhou Middle-Class Families

As China’s one-child policy is replaced by the two-child policy, young Chinese women and their spouses are increasingly concerned about who will take care of the ‘second child.’ Due to the absence of public childcare services and the rising cost of privatised care services in China, childcare provision mainly relies on families, such that working women’s choices of childbirth, childcare and employment are heavily constrained. To deal with structural barriers, young urban mothers mobilise grandmothers as joint caregivers. Based on interviews with Guangzhou middle-class families, this study examines the impact of childcare policy reform since 1978 on childbirth and childcare choices of women. It illustrates the longstanding contributions and struggles of women, particularly grandmothers, engaged in childcare. It also shows that intergenerational parenting involves a set of practices of intergenerational intimacy embedded in material conditions, practical acts of care, moral values and power dynamics. We argue that the liberation, to some extent, of young Chinese mothers from childcare is at the expense of considerable unpaid care work from grandmothers rather than being driven by increased public care services and improved gender equality in domestic labour. Given the significant stress and seriously constrained choices in later life that childcare imposes, grandmothers now become reluctant to help rear a second grandchild. This situation calls for changes in family policies to increase the supply of affordable and good-quality childcare services, enhance job security in the labour market, provide supportive services to grandmothers and, most importantly, prioritise the wellbeing of women and families over national goals.

Facilitating the self-determination of undergraduate women in physics: the role of external validation

ABSTRACT Background: The representation of women in physics majors is persistently low despite ongoing calls for reforms to improve gender equality. This article builds upon prior research by applying the sociocognitive construct of self-determination in analysing women’s experiences leading to their choice of physics study, along with factors affecting their behavioural persistence and physics identity. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to examine variables affecting women’s physics identities and persistence in pursuing their physics degrees. Factors were explored that impacted the self-determination of women in physics, that is, how their personal resources and socialisation facilitated regulatory behaviours to be successful in the major. Sample: Six women physics majors were recruited from a research university in the Northeast U.S., where all had participated in undergraduate physics research. Design and Methods: This qualitative cross-case study focused on undergraduate women to analyse factors that influenced their experiences in the major. Data collection focused on motivation and support, challenges they encountered, and how they overcame them. By examining these factors, common themes were identified regarding their recruitment and retention in physics, specifically in terms of social integration and external validation. Interview transcripts were analysed using a phenomenological approach to generate a set of integrated themes providing a theoretical explanation for physics major selection and persistence that incorporated aspects of competence, autonomy and social relatedness. Results: The support of faculty, research opportunities and peer socialisation were factors that contributed to the development of self-determination. Hindrances that impacted women’s undergraduate experiences included negative gender stereotypes, persistent self-doubt, minority status and unwelcoming classroom cultures. Self-determination was characterised by social integration, confidence, and individual and collective agency. Conclusion: A new explanatory framework for the persistence of women in undergraduate physics is proposed, suggesting self-determination is facilitated by external validation, which in turn moderates the impact of personal and social tensions.

Do female CEOs make a difference in firm operations? Evidence from Vietnam

AbstractThis paper examines the effect of gender in corporate leadership on the performance and risk of Vietnamese listed firms. We find that firms with female CEOs generate higher profitability than those with male CEOs. In addition, firms led by female CEOs experience less systematic and idiosyncratic risks as well as lower volatility in their returns on assets. These results are robust under different regression specifications. Our results support the hypothesis that women offer unique perspectives, experiences and work styles that benefit firms and that provide evidence for continuing government efforts to improve gender equality in Vietnam.

Women's Economic Empowerment in the Informal Sector

Women's empowerment program in Indonesia has essentially been started since 1978. In its development, this effort has resulted in improvement in various ways. Some examples of the improvement are the improvement in conditions, degrees, and quality of life of women in various strategic sectors such as education, employment, economy, health, and family planning participation. Improvement in the empowerment process does not necessarily change the pattern of gender relations between men and women. To improve gender equality in the economy, women's economic actors need to be empowered. The purpose of this study is to examine the appropriate empowerment model for women in the informal sector. This is a case study involving observation, interviews, and Focus Group Discussion. The results of the study showed that women in the informal sector are not yet independent even though they have obtained facilitation from the government. The absence of government’s assistance in managing business resulted in the limited empowerment activities carried out by the government. This research offers a model of economic empowerment for women towards independence in economic activities.

Women and sports development in Japan after 2000:

In 2014, after it was decided that Japan would host the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, discussions about utilizing sports to tackle social issues, referred to as Sport for Development and Peace (SDP), have increased. Additionally, Japanese policies on women’s participation in business have been reinforced since 2012, when the Japanese cabinet office included it as a key aspect of the nation’s growth strategy. With these trends in Japan, Japan’s Second Basic Sport Plan, established in 2017, included the first strategy for development of women and sports in Japan. Therefore, discussions of how sports can contribute to women’s participation in society have increased. While some previous research has focused on either sports policy or sports and women in general, few studies have been conducted on women and sports in Japanese policy development. Therefore, the present paper examines how the global movement for women and sports and the Japanese national growth strategy can influence women’s position in sports and the perception of gender in sports policy. The data are analyzed historically in an attempt to derive a perception of future directions in Japanese sports policy. The “Development plus sport” and “Sport plus development” models, which categorize development and sport initiatives into 2 categories, were applied in this study as an analytical framework. To understand the global women and sports movement, documents related to the UN, UNESCO, UN Women, IOC and IWG were analyzed. Official documents related to women and sports published by the Japanese government and the government budget concerning women and sports are also examined. The results indicated that the most significant improvement in the relationship between women and sports occurred when both the development and sports sectors were simultaneously interested in using sports to improve gender equality. Many of the previous Japanese sports policies had targeted only women. However, from a “Sport plus development” perspective, it is suggested that a gender and development (GAD) approach needs to be considered in sports policy development. This could result in changes to gendered division of labor, social and organizational structure, and regulation. From the “Development plus sport” perspective, compared to other countries, Japan has not actively used sports to contribute to gender equality in society. SDP projects related to gender that have already been implemented in other countries could be applied to gender issues in Japan.