In the context of the “global land grab,” both international institutions and activists look for ways to protect the land rights of rural peoples. However, in her recent IFJP article, Andrea M. Collins points out that we also need to think about how women are uniquely impacted by land use changes – and neither institutions nor activists have it fully figured out…
At the World Economic Forum this week in Davos, we have heard what has become an annual refrain: the underrepresentation of women in business is a missed opportunity for both the economy and society. UN Women agreed, arguing this week that if our globalized economy is to bring equitable progress for all, investing in women’s economic empowerment is a must. Women’s economic empowerment is also increasingly recognised as an important part of peacebuilding by the United Nations. In last year’s Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security (WPS). The UN Secretary-General rightly called women’s economic disempowerment “both a cause and an effect of conflict”.
This claim is backed up by decades of feminist research into the gendered political economies of war…
Read MoreColombia’s 2016 peace agreements between the government and the FARC-EP guerrillas are the most progressive in history in terms of their inclusion of women. The accords pay special attention to violence suffered by women in the armed conflict, use gender-inclusive language, encourage women’s political participation, and guarantee land rights. But feminist peace organizations in Colombia envision an even more comprehensive peace – one that focuses not only on the inclusion of women, but on tackling some of the deep roots of Colombia’s conflict that the peace accords leave untouched. These include deep-seated patriarchy, militarism, and free market hegemony.
Read MoreIf you are interested in the role of women or gender in international relations, you should have no trouble finding a recent book on the topic. But what if your interest is simply the history of international relations? Pick up a recent account of the Cold War or the biography of a famous diplomat and chances are you will not find a single reference to the role of gender.
In spite of much evidence to the contrary, many diplomatic historians still seem to believe that if they are dealing with the political history of international relations, gender is irrelevant. True, many feminist scholars focus on women’s historical exclusion from politics (and their fight for inclusion), which – viewed superficially – might seem like support for that stance. If the political arena excluded women, there are simply no women to consider when writing political history, right?