Gender and Environmental Sustainability in the Asia Pacific Region

3 ~ 6 December 2019

Background

“For sustainable development to become a reality in the region, it is incumbent on policymakers to address the pivotal linkages between gender and the environment in their development agendas.”[1]

Even though the relationship between human society and the environment seems to be gender-neutral at first glance, on closer inspection, you realize it affects women and men differently. When it comes to environmental conservation, men and women are likely to interact differently with the environment and they have different roles in the family and community. This will, in turn, provide different opportunities for men and women in protecting the environment. For example, women are responsible for water and waste management in most households. Yet, due to their restricted participation in the policy making processes, decisions about water and waste management system do not properly reflect women’s needs and perspectives.

Gender equity is essential in addressing major sustainable development challenges including the prevention of environmental degradation. As a result of decades of women’s environmental movements, the international community focuses more and more on the importance of gender-and-environment issues. However, women are not only regarded as effective change-makers for environmental protection and sustainable development but their knowledge and contributions have been often undervalued. In addition, progress has been slow on women’s participation and representation in national and local environmental policies, programmes, and projects. Therefore, understanding the links between gender and environment and taking responsive actions at all levels can accelerate positive dynamics in promoting 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

In this regard, it would be essential to include gender dimensions in addressing environmental degradation issues. Thus, in order to have more inclusive and environmentally sustainable policies for the Asia and the Pacific region, it is important to understand the roles and capacities of women and to promote equal participation in the policy making processes. This capacity building workshop will provide participants with opportunity to enhance the understanding of the linkage between gender and environmental sustainability. In addition, the workshop will help participants to make and develop specific gender-responsive practices, policies, and programmes that can help tackle environment challenges in their countries.

[1] Delivered by Shamshad Akhtar, the former Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), at High-level side event on “Gender, the Environment and Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific”, the First Asia-Pacific Ministerial Summit on the Environment in Bangkok, Thailand

Event Objectives

The training workshop will:

Learning Objectives

After the workshop, participants will be able to:

• Understand the importance of gender in environmental conservation and sustainable development and discuss how environmental sustainability relates to gender issues and vice versa;

• Become familiar with knowledge, tools, and methods used to integrate gender into environmental policies and illustrate how gender perspectives can support better environmental outcomes;

• Apply UNITAR-developed CityShare methodology and make specific action plans for implementation of national or local gender-responsive environmental policies;

• Expand networks and identify partners with expertise to assist governments to improve their practices.

Content and Structure

The contents of this training workshop are as follows:

• Module 1: Gender and Environment (Overview)

• Module 2: Approach to Integrate Gender into Environmental Sector

• Module 3: Gender Mainstreaming in Environmental Policy Cycle – Identification, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation

• Module 4: Engaging in Action Plan

Methodology

The workshop will be composed of the followings:

• Lectures and presentations

• Group discussion and exercises

• UNITAR CityShare methodology

• Action plan presentation

• Study visit

Target Audience

This workshop is open to government officials and personnel from non-profit and civil sectors in Asia and the Pacific region who work on environmental policies and projects or who wish to integrate gender perspective into their environmental legislation, policies or programmes.

Event detail