Households

Gendered Waters: The Participation of Women in the ‘One Million Cisterns’ Rainwater Harvesting Program in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region

Citation:

de Moraes, Andrea Ferreira Jacques, and Cecilia Rocha. 2013. “Gendered Waters: The Participation of Women in the ‘One Million Cisterns’ Rainwater Harvesting Program in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region.” Journal of Cleaner Production 60 (December): 163–9.

Authors: Andrea Ferreira Jacques de Moraes, Cecilia Rocha

Abstract:

Women, especially in developing countries, are often responsible for managing water at the household level. However, they are rarely represented in bodies that decide on water management, and they hardly play a role in the implementation of projects to increase water access. While the need for enhanced gender equity in water management is acknowledged in the international development discourse, the complexities of implementing it are poorly understood. This article presents a qualitative case study of women participation in the Program ‘One Million Cisterns’ in the Brazilian Semi-Arid region, to illustrate the promise and the challenges of bringing about women's participation and empowering. The case study shows that women not only derived significant material benefits from the program (access to water), they also acquired roles and responsibilities - as cistern builders and as members of local water commissions - that traditionally had been reserved for men. Key for this transformational process, we argue, was the role played by local feminist NGOs and social movements who helped rural women create new spaces for social inclusion in water development.

Keywords: water management, gender and development, Latin America, Brazil, women and water, gender inequality, Rainwater harvesting

Topics: Development, Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equity, Governance, Households, Infrastructure, Water & Sanitation, Livelihoods, NGOs Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Brazil

Year: 2013

Community Organized Household Water Increases Not Only Rural Incomes, but Also Men’s Work

Citation:

Crow, Ben, Brent Swallow, and Isabella Asamba. 2012. “Community Organized Household Water Increases Not Only Rural Incomes, but Also Men’s Work.” World Development 40 (3): 528–41.

Authors: Ben Crow, Brent Swallow, Isabella Asamba

Keywords: Gender, collective action, water management, impact assessment, Lake Victoria, Kenya

Annotation:

Summary
This paper explores community-organized, household water supply in seven communities in western Kenya. We compare water use, labor use, income and the conditions for collective action in three sets of communities: two have protected springs and piped homestead connections; two have protected springs but no homestead connection; and three draw potentially contaminated water from unprotected springs.
 
We find that piped water reduces the work of women and girls, and facilitates home garden and livestock production. Together these changes lead to increased household incomes. Women recognize clear time-benefits. Men, however, experience extra work.
 
No overall pattern emerges regarding the preconditions for collective action.

Topics: Development, Gender, Gender Roles, Households, Infrastructure, Water & Sanitation, Livelihoods Regions: Africa, East Africa Countries: Kenya

Year: 2012

Access to Water in a Nairobi Slum: Women's Work and Institutional Learning

Citation:

Crow, Ben, and Edmond Odaba. 2010. “Access to Water in a Nairobi Slum: Women’s Work and Institutional Learning.” Water International 35 (6): 733–47. 

Authors: Ben Crow, Edmond Odaba

Abstract:

This paper describes the ways that households, and particularly women, experience water scarcity in a large informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya, through heavy expenditures of time and money, considerable investments in water storage and routinized sequences of deferred household tasks. It then delineates three phases of adaptive water and social engineering undertaken in several informal settlements by the Nairobi Water Company in an ongoing attempt to construct effective municipal institutions and infrastructure to improve residential access to water and loosen the grip that informal vendors may have on the market for water in these localities.

Keywords: slums, water supply, water markets, institutions, deliberative democracy, household water storage, Kenya, Gender

Topics: Environment, Gender, Women, Governance, Households, Infrastructure, Water & Sanitation Regions: Africa, East Africa Countries: Kenya

Year: 2010

What Is the Role of Mothers in Transit-Oriented Development? The Case of Osaka–Kyoto–Kobe, Japan

Citation:

Waygood, E. Owen D. 2011. “What Is the Role of Mothers in Transit-Oriented Development? The Case of Osaka–Kyoto–Kobe, Japan.” In Women’s Issues in Transportation: Summary of the 4th International Conference, Vol. 2: Technical Papers, 163-78. Washington, DC: Transportation Research Board of the National Academies.

Author: E. Owen D. Waygood

Abstract:

The majority of mothers in Japan are not employed outside the home, but their role in chauffeuring and accompanying children on their trips is much less than in Western societies. Cultural expectations and the built environment in the Osaka region of Japan contribute to children as young as 10 and 11 traveling without adult accompaniment for the majority of trips. This independent travel in turn reduces the chauffeuring burden on parents. The chauffeuring of children in the United States and other Western countries is conducted mostly by mothers, but the role of mothers in the travel context of their children’s travel has not been investigated for Japan. Children ages 10 and 11, from nine different schools in varying neighborhoods, were surveyed about their travel by using a child-friendly diary. The survey results show that parents accompanied children for less than 15% of their trips on weekdays, whereas data from the United States indicate that children are accompanied by a parent on more than 65% of weekday trips they make. The average daily travel time was 40 min for children in Japan versus 72 min for their American counterparts, despite a similar number of trips per day. The paper further examines children’s trips with the accompaniment of parents, by sex of parent, by time of day and mode, and by destination. The influence of various built environment measurements and car ownership on accompaniment and the accumulated time burden on parents is also examined. This research contributes to land use planning through examining the built environment and mobility management through discussion on cultural values.

Topics: Age, Youth, Gender, Households, Infrastructure, Transportation Regions: Asia, East Asia Countries: Japan

Year: 2011

Food (In)Security, Human (In)Security, Women’s (In)Security: State Policies and Local Experiences in Rural Rwanda

Citation:

Nzayisenga, Marie Jeanne, Camilla Orjuela, and Isabell Schierenbeck. 2016. “Food (In)Security, Human (In)Security, Women’s (In)Security: State Policies and Local Experiences in Rural Rwanda.” African Security 9 (4): 278-98.

Authors: Marie Jeanne Nzayisenga, Camilla Orjuela, Isabell Schierenbeck

Abstract:

Despite the growing importance of the concept [of] human security, security studies in Africa remain largely focused on the threat of direct violence and the role of state actors. This article broadens the security agenda by focusing on food security and discusses how women in rural Rwanda experience and view food security. In making individual women the referent of security, the article exposes the gap between national level reforms, which aim to and have been deemed successful to combat poverty and increase food production, and the experiences of women who report a decline in food availability and increased problems in accessing food in the wake of reforms and who often struggle against hunger in a disadvantaged position within their households and local power structures. Building on 51 interviews with women in western Rwanda conducted in 2013 and 2014, the article illustrates how the human security perspective with a sensitivity to gender relations and positions is important for gaining a fuller picture of the security of individuals. 

Keywords: agricultural reforms, food security, human security, Rwanda, women's security

Topics: Agriculture, Development, Economies, Poverty, Food Security, Gender, Women, Gendered Power Relations, Health, Households, Security, Human Security Regions: Africa, Central Africa, East Africa Countries: Rwanda

Year: 2016

When “Bright Futures” Fade: Paradoxes of Women’s Empowerment in Rwanda

Citation:

Berry, Marie E. 2015. "When 'Bright Futures' Fade: Paradoxes of Women’s Empowerment in Rwanda." Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 41 (1): 1-27.

Author: Marie E. Berry

Annotation:

Summary:
"Recent qualitative work has challenged many of the impressive development indicators that the Government of Rwanda has presented to the international donor community. This article continues in this mold, employing qualitative methods and a bottom-up perspective to illustrate three paradoxes of development efforts that have emerged within different social institutions—including the family, the education system, and the labor market. Each of these paradoxes serves as an example of how efforts to promote women have failed to fundamentally transform ordinary women’s lives. In the first, patriarchal processes conflate adulthood with marriage, denying unwed women the same rights as their married counterparts and thus reinforcing women’s dependence on men. In the second, well-intentioned education policies promoting girls have unintended effects, which ultimately create new forms of oppression for women. Finally, the ambitious development enterprise led by the government is only made possible through the repression of some of its citizens, which essentially entrenches their poverty even more deeply. Combined, these three paradoxes suggest that the very efforts intended to remedy women’s subordination have indirectly reinforced it in particular ways. This article joins a tradition of feminist scholarship that cautions against an easy reading of efforts to promote social change" (Berry 2015, 3). 
 

Topics: Democracy / Democratization, Development, Education, Gender, Women, Gender Roles, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Governance, Households, Peacebuilding, Peace Processes, Post-Conflict, Post-Conflict Reconstruction Regions: Africa, Central Africa, East Africa Countries: Rwanda

Year: 2015

Women, Travel and the Idea of 'Sustainable Transport'

Citation:

Root, Amanda, Laurie Schintler, and Kenneth Button. 2000. "Women, Travel and the Idea of 'Sustainable Transport.'" Transport Reviews 20 (3): 369-83.

Authors: Amanda Root, Laurie Schintler, Kenneth Button

Abstract:

Women form an increasingly large proportion of both the populations of the US and of European countries. This, together with the changing role of women in modern society, has important potential implications for transport policy. Looked at from the micro level, women have different travel patterns from men, reflecting factors such as lower labour force participation, lower income levels, their traditional role in the family, the decision-making structure within households, the current age distribution and physical vulnerability. The situation is changing and this will have implications on transport demands. The female population is also, on average, getting older. Traditional travel modelling spends much time on modal attributes, such as speed and cost, but for many women this may not be the central issue. Security is often important. Standard traffic models only implicitly allow for gender (e.g. travel time is valued different from work and non-work trips). With the increased complexity of life styles and the growth in multi-purpose trips by women, the conventional approach to travel time valuation may need to be rethought. This paper looks at some of the emerging issues regarding women and travel and puts them in the context of the emerging ideas concerning sustainable transport.

Topics: Age, Environment, Gender, Women, Households, Infrastructure, Transportation

Year: 2000

Land to the Tiller? Gender Relations and Land Reforms

Citation:

Jacobs, Susie. 1997. “Land to the Tiller? Gender Relations and Land Reforms.” Society in Transition 28 (1-4): 82-100.

Author: Susie Jacobs

Abstract:

This paper examines the gendered effects of different types of land tenure in land reform programmes, comparing individual household/family allocation with that in cooperatives/collectives. Summarising African, Asian and Latin American cases, it takes a broad perspective.

The results of land reforms along individual household lines are strikingly similar. All programmes assign land to household heads, usually husbands, following the populist stereotype of ‘undifferentiated peasant family farms’. This factor disadvantages wives, although others such as increased food security are beneficial. Many (not all) wives gain in terms of material comfort but may lose power within households, and come to have access to land only through men.

Cooperatives/collectives have become highly unpopular, due to a variety of factors, e.g. the experience of forced collectivisation; patronage-mongering and (for some husbands/fathers), fear of loss of control over female labour and sexuality. Despite real problems, some advantages exist for women within them; these include their greater visibility as cooperative/collective members who receive work points.

State support is necessary for a gender-aware land reform, but—as the Bodghaya struggle in Bihar highlights—so is ‘grassroots’ organisation that includes gender issues in more than a tokenistic fashion.

Topics: Gender, Gender Roles, Gendered Power Relations, Land Tenure, Households, Rights, Human Rights, Land Rights, Property Rights, Women's Rights, Security, Food Security

Year: 1997

Gender in Road Construction: Experience in the Papua New Guinea Highlands

Citation:

Widana, Anura. 2018. “Gender in Road Construction: Experience in the Papua New Guinea Highlands.” Open Access Library Journal 5 (12). 

Author: Anura Widana

Abstract:

This article presents experiences in engaging women in road construction work in Papua New Guinea (PNG) Highlands. Providing labour for road construction is a new experience and a demand for tribal women in the highlands region. Women have never before worked on paid road construction works. However, similar to men, women also need cash to pay for goods purchased for the household. Although several road construction activities are in progress in a number of Pacific countries including PNG, there is less evidence reported on the engagement of women. This article initially begins a discussion on gender role in a patriarchy society and gender engagement in road construction program. The article highlights the need for and the process of getting women engaged in road construction works. Women engagement in road construction has been zero in the early years of road construction program which has been increased to 13% of the work force in late 2017. This massive increase is attributable to various strategies adopted by the project staff. The women’s new role in road construction, benefits accrued to both men and women and, recommendation to increase women participation in road construction is discussed. The paper is based mainly on the extensive knowledge gained by the author in working on road construction projects in the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Highlands. Where possible, the findings are supported by previous research.

Keywords: Papua New Guinea, Highland Region, Gender, road construction

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Patriarchy, Households, Infrastructure, Transportation, Livelihoods Regions: Oceania Countries: Papua New Guinea

Year: 2018

Reproductions of Global Security: Accounting for the Private Security Household

Citation:

Chisholm, Amanda, and Maya Eichler. 2018. “Reproductions of Global Security: Accounting for the Private Security Household.” International Feminist Journal of Politics 20 (4): 563–82.

Authors: Amanda Chisholm, Maya Eichler

Abstract:

This article shows how private security households exist at the nexus of two foundational logics of contemporary warfare—militarism and neoliberalism. The celebration of neoliberalism and normalization of militarism allow the private security industry to draw upon the labor of eager contractors and their supportive spouses. This article develops a feminist analysis of the role of the private security household in global security assemblages. In what ways are households connected to the outsourcing of security work to Private Military and Security Companies (PMSCs), and how are these connections gendered? Through interviews with female spouses of former UK Special Air Services soldiers, now private security contractors, we demonstrate how the household is both silenced and yet indispensable to how PMSCs operate and how liberal states conduct war. These spouses supported the transition from military service to private security work, managed the household, and planned their careers or sacrificed them to accommodate their husband’s security work. Their gendered labor was conditioned by former military life but animated by neoliberal market logics. For the most part, the women we interviewed normalized the militarized values of their husband’s work and celebrated the freedom and financial rewards this type of security work brought. 

Keywords: private security, households, female spouses, women's labor, private military and security companies

Topics: Feminisms, Households, Livelihoods, Military Forces & Armed Groups, Private Military & Security, Militarism, Security

Year: 2018

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