Gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions

Backgrounder

Rural women participating in Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in Africa can generate numerous benefits, both at the individual and community levels. Nature-based Solutions, as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, involve actions aimed at protecting, sustainably managing, and restoring both natural and modified ecosystems. These actions are designed to tackle societal challenges in an effective and adaptable manner, ensuring benefits for both human well-being and biodiversity.

Understanding NbS

Nature-based Solutions (NbS) help individuals and communities respond to challenges as varied as climate change mitigation and adaptation*, water and food security, disaster risk reduction, and social and economic development. NbS take advantage of natural processes and ecosystems to address these challenges effectively, with benefits for the environment and humans. Examples include restoring wetlands to filter out water pollutants, planting trees to reduce soil erosion and greenhouse gas emissions, and creating urban green spaces to enhance air quality and provide recreational areas.

The appeal of NbS lies in their multifunctionality*—they not only address societal challenges but also contribute to conserving biodiversity and enhancing ecosystem services,* through recognizing the interconnectedness of human and natural systems.

What is gender-responsive NbS?

Gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions (NbS) not only prioritize ecological sustainability and community well-being, but also champion gender equality. They actively acknowledge and address the diverse needs, challenges, aspirations, and perspectives of individuals across all genders. By fostering broad participation and representation, including the voices of marginalized women, men, and youth, gender-responsive NbS ensure that solutions are inclusive and equitable, while harnessing the collective wisdom and experiences of diverse communities.

Rural women often play central roles in managing natural resources and are particularly vital in sustaining livelihoods and enhancing the resilience of rural communities worldwide. Their unique knowledge and experiences are critical in crafting effective, sustainable, gender-responsive NbS.

In essence, gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions (NbS) strive to ensure that all community members, particularly women and gender-diverse individuals, actively participate in and benefit from the design, implementation, and evaluation of these solutions. This approach requires creating spaces where diverse gender perspectives are heard and respected, and where solutions emerge from a rich tapestry of community insights and experiences.

Why is this subject important to listeners?

• Climate vulnerability* and resilience: Many African countries are on the front lines of climate change, facing severe impacts such as droughts, floods, and changing rainfall patterns. Gender-responsive NbS offers tangible ways to adapt to these changes while ensuring that adaptation strategies are equitable and address the needs of all community members, and in particular, all genders.
• Agriculture and livelihoods: In Sub Saharan Africa, a significant portion of the population depends on agriculture and natural resources for their livelihoods. Women, in particular, play a crucial role in these sectors, but often have poorer access to resources, information, and decision-making. Discussing gender-responsive NbS on the radio can highlight the importance of including women in discussions and decision-making about sustainable practices, leading to more resilient communities and improved livelihoods for all.
• Empowerment and equality: Gender equality is a critical issue across many Sub Saharan Africa societies. Gender-responsive NbS not only address environmental challenges but also offer pathways to empower women and promote equality by recognizing and equally valuing the specific roles and knowledge of women in environmental management and climate adaptation.
• Education and awareness: Radio is a powerful tool for education and raising awareness in rural and remote areas, where access to other forms of media might be limited. Discussing gender-responsive NbS can inform and inspire listeners about innovative solutions to environmental challenges that are equitable, gender-responsive, and inclusive.
• Community engagement: Engaging communities in dialogues about gender-responsive NbS through radio can foster a sense of ownership and participation in environmental and climate adaptation initiatives. It encourages all community members, including women, to share their experiences, ideas, and solutions.

 

Key information about inclusive and gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions

By ensuring that women are actively involved in the various phases of NbS design and implementation—from identifying problems to planning to implementation and evaluation—projects and processes become more inclusive and effective. The following sections look at how each step of the project can be enhanced through women’s active participation and leadership.

Identifying the problem

Engage a diverse sample of community members, including women and marginalized groups, from the beginning to ensure that their unique perspectives, knowledge, skills, and experiences are taken into account. Because women are often primary natural resource managers in rural areas, they can offer valuable insights into issues that might not be immediately apparent to others, such as specific water quality concerns or a decline in plant species vital for a family’s daily food or medical needs.

Designing

When women actively participate in designing NbS activities, it increases the likelihood that the outcomes will address a broad spectrum of community needs and perspectives, including social, economic, and environmental aspects. Women’s participation ensures that the solutions are well-rounded and benefit the entire community. For example, when projects involve physical labour such as planting trees or constructing terraces, women should participate in planning to ensure that planned activities accommodate the physical strengths and limitations of both men and women. This includes considering their daily schedules, responsibilities, and specific needs, and ensuring that there are tools and methods that are suitable for all participants.

Implementation

As NbS activities and processes move from the design to the implementation stage, maintaining gender balance in leadership roles and labour responsibilities can help ensure equitable access to benefits, including employment, economic benefits, environmental and biodiversity benefits, and social empowerment. Maintaining this balance may challenge traditional gender roles by providing training and resources to women in areas typically dominated by men, such as technical aspects of forestry or engineering related to water conservation activities.

Monitoring and evaluation

For NbS activities to be gender-responsive, women must play key roles in monitoring and evaluating. This involves not only tracking progress against environmental targets, but also ensuring that the projects continue to meet the social needs of the community. Women can provide feedback not only about environmental targets, but on how projects impact daily life, suggest adjustments, and help measure outcomes related to gender equality and empowerment.

Assessment of success or failure

Defining success or failure from a gender-responsive perspective involves looking beyond traditional metrics such as the number of trees planted or hectares of land restored. It also includes tracking improvements in women’s income levels, reductions in time spent on unpaid care tasks due to better resource management, and increased participation of women in decision-making processes at local and other levels.

Assessing success or failure is an opportunity to define lessons learned, and to share those with other community members or neighbouring communities. It’s important to include women to any sharing opportunities, so that they can consider if or how they will adopt similar solutions.

Feedback and adaptation

NbS activities and processes should have systems in place to ensure continuous feedback and adaptation, allowing them to effectively adjust to emerging challenges and opportunities. This step can ensure these practices are sustained, and even integrated into local, regional, and national policy frameworks and action plans. Women’s continuing input is crucial here, as it can lead to refining practices to better suit the evolving needs of everyone in the community as well as the environment.

Capacity-building and education

Empowering women through education and capacity-building in environmental management, leadership, and technical skills helps ensure that knowledge is retained within the community and passed down to future generations. This is critical for sustaining NbS benefits over the long-term and fostering community resilience.

To summarize, engaging rural women in NbS not only improves project outcomes but also promotes gender equality, ensuring that environmental solutions advance social justice and community well-being. This approach is vital for ensuring that sustainable development benefits all members of the community.

Applying gender-responsive NbS in various contexts:

Agroforestry: When implementing agroforestry practices, it’s crucial to consider how different tasks are gendered. For instance, women might primarily be involved in harvesting fruits and nuts, while men might focus on timber production. Gender-responsive NbS could provide targeted training and resources to women to enhance their knowledge and skills in sustainable harvesting and marketing strategies, ensuring their activities are as profitable and sustainable as men’s activities.

Reforestation: Gender-responsive reforestation NbS would ensure that the species selected for planting reflect the usage patterns and preferences of both men and women. For instance, women might prefer species that provide fruits, nuts, or medicinal herbs that they commonly use, while men might prioritize timber species. Engaging both men and women in planning and decision-making would not only ensure a diversity of plant species (enhancing biodiversity), but also maximize the ecological and economic benefits for everyone in the community.

Restoration of mangrove forests: A gender-responsive NbS for mangrove restoration would include consultations with both men and women from local communities during the design phase. Women, who might traditionally gather shellfish from mangroves, and men, who might traditionally fish in nearby waters, would have different insights into the ecosystem’s health and how its restoration could improve their livelihoods. A gender-responsive NbS process would ensure that both women’s and men’s perspectives shape the solution’s goals and methods, leading to outcomes that are beneficial and equitable for the entire community. Women and men could also be engaged in different monitoring and evaluation activities, given their different activities in the mangrove forests.

Water management systems: In many rural areas, women are primarily responsible for water collection and management. A gender-responsive NbS that focused on restoring watersheds or wetlands would involve women in the designing stages to ensure that access points are conveniently located and that water quality meets domestic needs. It would also educate both men and women on sustainable water use and involve them in water governance, helping improve overall community resilience to water-related challenges.

Examples of gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions

Reforestation in Nepal

Problem addressed:  Deforestation and lack of women’s participation in decision-making. 

Solution implemented: In Nepal, a community-based reforestation project funded by the International Union for Conservation of Nature actively involved women in decision-making roles. This included providing them with training in nursery management and afforestation techniques.

Outcome: This initiative not only improved forest cover but also empowered women by giving them control over resources and decisions, thereby addressing both environmental and gender equality issues.

For more information on the importance of women’s involvement in forest landscape restoration, check out the article from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN): https://www.iucn.org/news/forests/202108/strategies-help-rural-women-protect-forests

Water management in Jordan

Problem addressed: Inequitable water distribution and lack of women’s participation in water management.

Solution implemented: In Jordan, a project funded by UN Women focused on sustainable water management practices. This included forming water user associations where women were encouraged to participate as members and leaders.

Outcome: The inclusion of women ensured that water distribution practices considered the needs of all household members, including women, promoting both equity and sustainability in water management.

For more information on strategies to help rural women protect forests and their contributions to forest conservation, check out the UN Women brief: https://wrd.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/UNWomen-RuralWOmenJordan-Brief-WEB.pdf

Female tree heroes in Uganda

Problem addressed: Land degradation, deforestation, and gender inequality in land management.

Solution Implemented: The Women Empowerment in Sustainable Land Management (WESLAM) project in eastern Uganda’s Bugiri and Mayuge districts aims to mitigate land degradation and deforestation through sustainable agriculture and reforestation. Funded by the Swedish Postcode Lottery, WESLAM addresses the severe loss of forests, which has led to soil degradation and increased poverty, particularly affecting women.

Outcome: The project empowers women by involving them in sustainable practices such as beekeeping and cultivating mushrooms, which are alternative sources of income that reduce their dependence on activities that contribute to deforestation. Through a collaborative forest management approach, local farmers gain sustainable access to forest reserves, improving both their livelihoods and the environment.

For more information on the WESLAM project and its impact, visit the Vi Agroforestry website: https://viagroforestry.org/projects/weslam/

Challenges

Rural women face several unique challenges that can prevent them from being effectively engaged in the design and implementation of Nature-based Solutions. These barriers often stem from socio-economic, cultural, and structural inequalities that restrict their participation and benefits. Addressing these challenges is crucial to ensuring that NbS are gender-responsive and beneficial to the whole community. Here are some of the main challenges faced by rural women:

1. Limited access to resources: Rural women often have poorer access than men to essential resources such as land, water, finance, and technology. This can restrict their ability to participate in and benefit from NbS initiatives in areas such as agroforestry or sustainable agriculture, which often require land ownership and the ability to invest in new technologies.
2. Cultural and social norms: In many societies, traditional gender roles restrict women’s participation in decision-making processes both in their household and within their communities, as well as assigning responsibility for all domestic tasks to women. These roles may prevent women from participating in community meetings, contributing to planning processes, or taking on leadership roles in NbS.
3. Lack of education and training: Rural women often have fewer opportunities for formal education and vocational training. This could limit their understanding of NbS practices, reducing their capacity to engage effectively.
4. Economic constraints: Economic dependency disproportionately impacts women, limiting the time they can commit to NbS activities. Because women are typically responsible for all childcare and household chores, they are often reliant on their spouses for financial support. Without financial independence, it can be challenging for women to participate in longer-term projects that don’t provide immediate economic returns.
5. Inadequate representation and participation: Even when women participate in NbS initiatives, their involvement is often limited to providing labour rather than planning and leadership. This underrepresentation in planning, management, and decision-making means that women’s specific needs and insights may not be adequately reflected in projects.
6. Lack of access to markets: Women in rural areas often face significant barriers accessing and benefiting from markets. This can be due to lack of transportation, lack of market information, or because of social norms that restrict their movement or economic activities. Without market access, it’s difficult for women to sell products from NbS activities or to obtain necessary materials.
7. Lack of support networks: Women often lack networks that can provide support, mentorship, and access to opportunities in environmental projects. This can limit their development as leaders and innovators in NbS.
8. Lack of data: The lack of gender-disaggregated data makes it difficult to understand the specific vulnerabilities and needs of the community. This can make it difficult to make decisions an design an NbS that benefits everyone.
9. Intersectionality: It is important to recognize that people experience mutually reinforcing and compounded barriers to equality related to gender, race, ethnicity, age, ability, language, sexual orientation, socio-economic status and other factors. Those with disabilities or who are displaced are often not included in decision-making processes, and so women with these intersectional identities, including those from minority ethnic groups, may be less likely to participate in NbS processes.

 

Benefits of rural women engaging in gender-responsive NbS in Africa

• Income generation: Nature-based Solutions often involve sustainable agriculture, agroforestry, and other eco-friendly livelihood activities. By participating in these initiatives, rural women can generate income for themselves and their families.
• Food security: NbS practices like sustainable agriculture or agroecology can enhance food and nutritional security by promoting a diverse combination of resilient food crops. Rural women play a central role in these activities, thereby contributing to improved local food production and family nutrition.
• Environmental conservation: Rural women are often the natural resource managers in their communities. Their active involvement in Nature-based Solutions can lead to better conservation and management of natural resources, including soil, water, and biodiversity.
• Mitigation and adaptation to climate change: Nature-based Solutions are often designed to enhance resilience to climate change. By adopting climate-smart agricultural practices and managing resources sustainably, rural women can help their communities better mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
• Community well-being: Nature-based Solutions typically have positive effects on overall community well-being. For instance, access to green spaces in urban areas, sustainable water management, conservation of forests, and improved air quality contribute to better physical and mental health. By being involved in such initiatives, women can contribute to the overall health and well-being of their communities.
• Empowerment and gender equality: In many societies, rural women have traditionally faced barriers to accessing resources and decision-making processes. Participating in gender-responsive Nature-based Solutions can empower women by providing opportunities to develop skills, take leadership roles, and be actively involved in community decision-making.
• Biodiversity conservation: Nature-based Solutions emphasize the importance of biodiversity. Through their involvement in sustainable agricultural practices and habitat preservation, women can play a crucial role in conserving biodiversity.
• Cultural preservation: Many Nature-based Solutions are rooted in traditional and indigenous knowledge. As custodians of cultural knowledge, rural women can contribute to preserving and promoting traditional practices that are ecologically sustainable.
• Social cohesion: Participating in Nature-based Solutions can strengthen community bonds as people work together towards common goals. Through collaboration and community engagement, rural women can contribute to building social cohesion and resilience.
• Education and capacity-building: Involvement in Nature-based Solutions often requires education and capacity-building. By gaining knowledge and skills in sustainable practices, rural women can become agents of change in their communities, passing on valuable information to others in the community, and to future generations.

 

Women as transformative agents

Empowering rural women politically and economically, both through their involvement in gender-responsive NbS activities and otherwise, can lead to transformative change, reducing poverty, strengthening food security, and enhancing climate resilience. According to the United Nations, it has been estimated that granting women in rural areas equal access to resources, education, and markets as men could result in increased agricultural production and alleviate hunger for up to 150 million people.

Engaging rural women in Nature-based Solutions in Africa has the potential to create a positive and sustainable impact on various aspects of community life, from economic development to environmental conservation and social well-being.

Definitions:

Climate change adaptation: The process of adjusting to actual or expected climate change and its effects. For humans, adaptation seeks to moderate or avoid harm, or to take advantage of opportunities. For the environment, human intervention may help the ecosystem adjust and thrive despite expected climate impacts.

Climate change mitigation: The actions taken to reduce or prevent the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere to limit the extent of climate change. Mitigation strategies can include transitioning to renewable energy sources, increasing energy efficiency, and protecting or restoring forests that absorb carbon dioxide.

Ecosystem services: These are the benefits that humans receive from natural ecosystems. These include provisioning services like food, water, and raw materials; regulating services such as climate regulation, flood control, and water purification; supporting services like nutrient cycling and soil formation; and cultural services which provide recreational, aesthetic, and spiritual benefits.

Multifunctionality: Refers to the ability of something to serve multiple purposes or functions. In agriculture, an example of multifunctionality is a farm that produces food, offers educational tours, and serves as a habitat for local wildlife.

Vulnerability: The degree to which a system, community, or individual is susceptible to, and unable to cope with, adverse effects of climate change. Vulnerability is influenced by factors such as exposure to hazards, sensitivity to impacts, and the capacity to adapt or respond.