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Anne Jerneck

Anne Jerneck

Professor, Docent

Anne Jerneck

Taking gender seriously in climate change adaptation and sustainability science research : views from feminist debates and sub-Saharan small-scale agriculture

Author

  • Anne Jerneck

Summary, in English

People, places, and production contributing the least to climate change will suffer the most. This calls for adaptation as a key climate change response. But adaptation is surrounded by problems. Finance is uncertain and fragmented, mainstreaming into development is complicated, and technical solutions often overshadow existing social relations and institutions. From a gender perspective, and as a critical research initiative to support the building of sustainability science as an umbrella field, this article raises three pertinent questions on adaptation in the global South: what is its purpose, how can development inform it, and what institutions in terms of rights and responsibilities are core to it? Focusing on sub-Saharan small-scale agriculture, three main points emerge. Regarding the purpose, adaptation should be a transformative pathway out of poverty, ill-health, and food insecurity. Regarding development, adaptation can learn from how development theory, policy, and practice have addressed women, gender, and environment in varied settings and debates. Regarding core institutions, adaptation must address gender regimes that regulate access to, use of, and control over resources, especially those defining land distribution, labour division, and strategic decision-making power. To conclude, I propose gender-informed research questions for further inquiry.

Department/s

  • LUCSUS (Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies)

Publishing year

2018-03

Language

English

Pages

403-416

Publication/Series

Sustainability Science

Volume

13

Issue

2

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Springer

Topic

  • Gender Studies
  • Human Geography

Keywords

  • Development
  • Distribution
  • Empowerment
  • Environment
  • Inequality
  • Poverty

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1862-4065