Nordic states

Citation:

Arora-Jonsson, Seema, and Mia Ågren. 2019. “Bringing Diversity to Nature: Politicizing Gender, Race and Class in Environmental Organizations?” Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space 2: 874–98.

Authors: Seema Arora-Jonsson, Mia Ågren

Abstract:

Environmental organizations play an important role in mainstream debates on nature and in shaping our environments. At a time when environmental NGOs are turning to questions of gender-equality and ethnic diversity, we analyze their possibilities to do so. We argue that attempts at ethnic and cultural diversity in environmental organizations cannot be understood without insight into the conceptualizations of nature and the environment that underpin thinking within the organization. Serious attempts at diversity entail confronting some of the core values on nature-cultures driving the organization as well as understanding the dimensions of power such as class, gender, and race that structure its practices. We study what nature means for one such organization, the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, and the ways in which thinking about nature dictates organizational practice and sets the boundaries of their work with diversity in their projects on outdoor recreation. We base our analysis on official documents and interviews, analyze how “diversity” and “gender-equality” are represented in the material and reflect on the interconnections as well as the different trajectories taken by the two issues. Our study shows that the organization’s understanding of nature is a central and yet undiscussed determinant of their work with diversity that closes down as much as it opens up the space for greater inclusion of minorities. We argue that for environmental organizations wanting to diversity membership, a discussion of what nature means for people and their relationships to each other and nature is vital to any such efforts.

Keywords: diversity, gender, class, environmental organizations, whiteness, environmental justice

Topics: Class, Environment, Ethnicity, Gender, Gender Equality/Inequality, NGOs, Race Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2019

Citation:

Authors: Charlotte Wagnsson, Eva-Karin Olsson, Isabella Nilsen

Abstract:

Gender differences have been observed regarding many political and social issues, yet we lack comprehensive evidence on differences in perceptions on a wide range of security issues increasingly important to voters: military threats, criminality, and terrorism. Previous research suggests that when women are highly politically mobilized, as they are in Sweden, gender differences in political opinion are large. On the other hand, Swedish politicians have worked hard to reduce gender stereotypical thinking. This prompts the question: Are there gender differences in attitudes on security issues in Sweden, and if so, in what ways do the attitudes differ? This study is based on comprehensive data from focus groups and a large-scale survey. The results show that women were more prone to respond with an “ethic of care,” across security issues. Women were more inclined to understand security problems as structural, explained by macho culture, segregation, and injustice. Women tend to support preventive measures that provide individuals with opportunities to choose “the right path,” such as education and economic investment in deprived areas. When asked about national security, women believe more in diplomacy and dialogue. In general, women are less inclined to support various repressive solutions.

Keywords: crime, law & social control, politics/state/nationalism, violence, war & conflict

Topics: Gender, Gender Analysis, Gendered Discourses, Political Participation, Security Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2020

Citation:

Avraam, Silvia and Daria Popova. 2020. “Do Welfare State Taxes and Transfers Reduce Gender Income Inequality? Evidence from Eight European Countries.” Working Paper EM 09/20, EuroMod at the Institute for Social and Economic Research, Essex.

Authors: Silvia Avraam, Daria Popova

Abstract:

We complement the institutional literature on gender and the welfare state by examining how taxes and transfers affect the incomes of men and women. Using microsimulation and intra-household income splitting rules, we measure the differences in the level and composition of individual disposable incomes of men and women in eight European countries covering various welfare regime types. We quantify the extent to which taxes and transfers are able to close the gender gap in earnings, as well as which policy instruments contribute most to reducing the gap. We find that with the exception of old- age pensions, taxes and transfers – both contributory and means-tested – significantly reduce gender income inequality but cannot compensate for high gender earnings gaps. The equalizing effect of benefits is higher than that of taxes but varies significantly not only across countries but also across groups with different demographic characteristics. 

Keywords: gender inequality, income distribution, welfare state, social policy, Europe

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Households Regions: Europe, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, Western Europe Countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Romania, Spain, United Kingdom

Year: 2020

Citation:

 Carlsson-Kanyama, Annika, and Anna-Lisa Lindén. 2007. “Energy Efficiency in Residences—Challenges for Women and Men in the North.” Energy Policy 35 (4): 2163–72.

Authors: Annika Carlsson-Kanyama, Anna-Lisa Lindén

Abstract:

In a Northern country such as Sweden, energy use in the home may be reduced by 20% through changes in behaviour. However, little is known about how households respond to policy instruments encouraging such change or to what degree this in turn may affect the workload of women and men in such communities. The current study presents findings from interviews with 30 households in Sweden that participated in intervention measures aimed at reducing energy use in the home and explores how the sexes divided the new household chores and their opinions regarding these. The empirical findings are analysed against a theoretical framework of behavioural change. Results from the interviews indicate that lower indoor temperature and fewer hot baths had a greater impact on women than on men. When electricity charges varied, the workload of women increased as they washed clothes and dishes at night and at weekends when electricity was cheaper. Women also refrained from using clothes’ driers resulting in more time spent completing this chore. Based on these results we argue that a gender perspective in future intervention programmes in Northern communities may be useful as residential energy conservation in its present form affects the timing and types of household chores with resulting increased workload for women. How energy policy should change requires further analysis.

Keywords: Gender, energy efficiency, housing

Topics: Gender, Gender Roles, Gender Analysis, Households, Infrastructure, Energy Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2007

Citation:

Persson, Alma, and Fia Sundevall. 2019. "Conscripting Women: Gender, Soldiering, and Military Service in Sweden 1965-2018." Women's History Review 28 (7): 1039-56.

Authors: Alma Persson, Fia Sundevall

Abstract:

This article explores how women, men, and gender equality in the military have been debated, made sense of, regulated, and dealt with in Swedish contemporary history. It takes its empirical point of departure in 1965, when the issue of military conscription for women was first raised in Sweden, and ends with the implementation of so called gender-neutral conscription in 2018. The study is based on a wide range of sources, collected through a combination of extensive archival work, ethnographic studies, and interviews. The analysis shows how men have been the standard against which women were measured throughout the period studied. Women service members were simultaneously perceived both as a problem and as a solution to a range of problems in the organisation. Women’s ‘different’ bodies were considered problematic, while staff shortages and demands for specific personnel qualities rendered the ‘woman soldier’ a solution, in particular in relation to international missions.

Keywords: conscription, national service, gender equality, military employment, military officers, Swedish Armed Forces

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Military Forces & Armed Groups Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2019

Citation:

Ekholm, Sara. 2020. "Swedish Mothers' and Fathers' Worries about Climate Change: A Gendered Story." Journal of Risk Research 23 (3): 288-96.

Author: Sara Ekholm

Abstract:

The present study considers whether parenthood has an impact on the worries that women and men have about climate change for the next generation and examines whether there are differences between the worries of mothers and fathers. The empirical material is based on a questionnaire-based survey that was administered in 2011 to a random selection of 3500 individuals in Sweden, with a response rate of 31%. The results indicate that parenthood, regardless of the parent’s gender, increases an individual’s worries about the impact of climate change on the next generation. Fathers are significantly more worried about climate change than men who are not parents; however, mothers do not worry significantly more than women who are not parents. In general, regardless of parenthood status, women worry about climate change more than men.

Keywords: motherhood, fatherhood, climate change, worry, Gender

Topics: Environment, Climate Change, Gender Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2020

Citation:

Cohen, Marjorie Griffin. 2017. Climate Change and Gender in Rich Countries: Work, Public Policy and Action. Abingdon: Routledge.

Author: Marjorie Griffin Cohen

Annotation:

Topics: Economies, Environment, Climate Change, Gender, Livelihoods Regions: Americas, North America, Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, Oceania Countries: Australia, Canada, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States of America

Year: 2017

Citation:

Brink, Ebba, and Christine Wamsler. 2019. "Citizen Engagement in Climate Adaptation Surveyed: The Role of Values, Worldviews, Gender and Place." Journal of Cleaner Production 209: 1342-53.

Authors: Ebba Brink, Christine Wamsler

Abstract:

Local governments' limited mandate and capacity to adequately deal with increasing climate risk and impacts means that citizen engagement is becoming increasingly important for adapting to hazards such as floods and storms. Stronger collaborative approaches are urgently needed. At the same time, there is little research and hardly any empirical evidence on what inspires adaptation engagement in different citizen groups. Against this background, this paper examines the external/material (e.g., resources, hazards, public support) and internal aspects (e.g., values and worldviews) that shape people's engagement in and for adaptation. Based on a survey of Swedish citizens at risk from severe climate events, we show that engagement is a gendered process, which is mediated by personal values, worldviews and placedaspects rarely considered in public adaptation. While a high level of diverse citizen action is often related to past experiences of hazards, motivation to adapt goes beyond the idea of acting out of rational self-interest. Economic considerations (e.g., low cost) are not the only motivation to adapt; the potential of an adaptation action to contribute to green, thriving surroundings and mitigate global climate change was found nearly as (and among female respondents, more) motivating. Women were also found to be more motivated to engage in adaptation if this supports other community members at risk. At the same time, past adaptation action could not be linked to motivation to adapt, and was found to be negatively correlated with communitarian and ecological values or worldviews. This confirms that motivation to adapt does not automatically translate into action, and indicates a ‘mitigationeadaptation gap’ in people's climate awareness, which can lead to ineffective climate responses. Given these findings, we discuss alternative approaches to support increased citizen engagement and more effective and transformative climate action. We end with a call for public adaptation and risk communication that takes greater account of inner/subjective dimensions.

Keywords: climate change adaptation, citizen participation, disaster risk reduction, ecosystem-based adaptation, inner dimensions, willingness to adapt

Topics: Environment, Climate Change, Gender, Women Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2019

Citation:

Skjelsbæk, Inger, and Torunn Lise Tryggestad. 2020. "Pro-Gender Norms in Norwegian Peace Engagement: Balancing Experiences, Values, and Interests." Foreign Policy Analysis 16 (2): 181-98.

Authors: Inger Skjelsbæk, Torunn Lise Tryggestad

Abstract:

The national self-image of Norway is as a gender-equal and peace-promoting nation. Norwegian gender equality policies grew out of a strong social and political civil society engagement from below combined with equal rights laws as well as quota systems implemented from above by the state. In this paper, we explore the intersection of pro-gender norms and peace engagement in Norwegian foreign policy. While gender mainstreaming has been on the agenda of Norwegian development cooperation for decades, the introduction of pro gender norms in peace engagement is a more recent phenomenon. How are gender equality norms and concerns understood and promoted by Norwegian peace facilitators in practice. And how are pro-gender experiences, values, and norms balanced in Norwegian peace engagement?

Topics: Gender, Feminist Foreign Policy, Gender Mainstreaming, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Peace Processes Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Norway

Year: 2020

Citation:

Rosamond, Annika Bergman. 2020. “Swedish Feminist Foreign Policy and ‘Gender Cosmopolitanism.’” Foreign Policy Analysis 16 (2): 217–35.

Author: Annika Bergman Rosamond

Abstract:

Gender justice and equality have risen to prominence in the constitution of foreign and security policy. This article locates the analysis of feminist foreign policy (FFP) within the wider context of Sweden’s state feminist tradition as well as its pursuit of “gender cosmopolitanism” in global politics. Both “gender cosmopolitanism” and Sweden’s state feminist tradition provided fertile ground for the formal adoption of FFP in 2014. The article employs poststructural discursive techniques that enable the identification of the statist feminist and cosmopolitan foundations of feminist foreign policy. More specifically, the article provides a discursive analysis of the ethical and feminist ambitions, normative contents, and pitfalls of FFP. Though FFP is grounded in other-regarding cosmopolitan care for vulnerable women and girls beyond borders, it exhibits a range of pitfalls and inconsistencies, such as equating gender with women and, at times, privileging results-oriented strategies over thoroughgoing gender analysis of structural injustices such as gendered violence. The article ends with a discussion of Sweden’s attempts to translate the feminist and cosmopolitan contents of FFP commitments into policy practice, with a focus on the eradication of gender-based violence.

Topics: Feminisms, Gender, Gender-Based Violence, Feminist Foreign Policy, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality Regions: Europe, Nordic states, Northern Europe Countries: Sweden

Year: 2020