Business asUnusual: The Potential for Gender Transformative Change in Development and Mountain Contexts

Organizational change in Canadian public institutions: The implementations of GBA+ in DND/CAF

“…Within the GM literature, this dynamic is reflected in the distinction some scholars have drawn in the implementation of GM as either integrationist or agenda‐setting (Jahan ). The latter approach demands transformative change within an institution’s culture, including norms and power dynamics, while the former, evident in the case of DND/CAF, seeks to design tools and measurements of success, but without necessitating a shift to the status quo (Verma : 188). This literature suggests that it is not the tool itself, but its implementation that determines its limited influence.…”

Masculinities and hydropower in India: A feminist political ecology perspective

“…Feminist scholars have questioned the effectiveness of gender toolkits to enable transformative change processes (Harcourt 1993;Resurreccion and Elmhirst 2008;Eyben 2010) and argued, that at best, toolkits serve to mask and ignore the profoundly political and patriarchal context of development per se; i.e. these approaches 'depoliticise' the deep-rootedness of inequalities by gender that exist across scale and context (Panda 2007;Eyben 2010;Brouwers 2013;Verma 2014;Milward et al 2015). Nonetheless, contrary to feminist critique and analysis, the overwhelming argument of the gender and development industry is that, if 'gender inequalities' can be 'simply' explained and to-do tools provided, gender can be mainstreamed anywhere and everywhere-and (in)equalities will be minimised.…”

“…Udas and Zwarteveen (2010, 87) noted that gender tools and approaches are mostly not possible to implement because of the deep-rootedness of masculinities, in this case, in the irrigation sector in Nepal: the contradictions between gender goals and policies and the aspirations of irrigation professionals, which are embedded in the incentive structure of a [masculine] bureaucracy…[how] the prevailing incentives and culture of the irrigation bureaucracy stand in the way of achieving any real progress in terms of gender goals. Indeed, scholars have long observed that most gender mainstreaming initiatives tend to evaporate, even as they are being implemented (Longwe 1997;Mukhopadhyay 2004;Ahmed 2005;Moser and Moser 2005;Theobald et al 2005;Parpart 2014;Verma 2014;Milward et al 2015). Some proximate causes include the lack of investment of adequate time and resources (Rao and Kelleher 2005;Verma 2014) or the lack of authority and power, gender experts hold within organisations-resulting often in a backlash on the very gender experts who are then labelled as 'not very effective' (Joshi 2011).…”

“…Indeed, scholars have long observed that most gender mainstreaming initiatives tend to evaporate, even as they are being implemented (Longwe 1997;Mukhopadhyay 2004;Ahmed 2005;Moser and Moser 2005;Theobald et al 2005;Parpart 2014;Verma 2014;Milward et al 2015). Some proximate causes include the lack of investment of adequate time and resources (Rao and Kelleher 2005;Verma 2014) or the lack of authority and power, gender experts hold within organisations-resulting often in a backlash on the very gender experts who are then labelled as 'not very effective' (Joshi 2011). However, beyond these proximate causes, are structural factors are at play: Eyben (2013) argues that organisations favour 'development artefacts', e.g.…”

Identifying Gender-Sensitive Agroforestry Options: Methodological Considerations From the Field

“…As recognized in the United Nations' newly adopted Sustainable Development Goals, the participation of women as agents of change and gender equality in policy development are now considered to be crucial for sustainable development (United Nations 2015: Goal 5). In mountain areas, Verma (2014) has called for the advancement of knowledge through rigorous gender research and analysis and for the promotion of policyand action-oriented research as important domains of gender-transformative change. More specifically, according to Wymann von Dach (2002), research for sustainable development in mountain areas should focus on women's and men's roles and responsibilities, including their access to and control over resources, education and knowledge, and involvement in decisionmaking.…”