45675DR TAMARA NAIR is a research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam
School of International Studies (RSIS) at Nanyang
Technological University, focusing on the biopolitics of
hunger in Southeast Asia and the Women, Peace and
Security agenda.Companies, governments and NGOs need to
demonstrate a change in behaviours that have
for so long ignored the reality of women’s
contributions and constraints. WOCAN’s “the
W+ Standard” is used to show the results of
initiatives that bring benefits to women, by
measuring, quantifying and verifying these
through a transparent process. WOCAN also
conducts leadership training for women (and male supporters)
as well as training for gender-integrated planning. Gurung
explains: “As the interests of consumers about the sources of
their food and other purchased items grows, there are new
opportunities to make the public aware of the conditions women
farmers face. The use of a certification system such as the W+
that labels products produced in ways beneficial to women
farmers – a kind of ‘fair trade’ for women – could drive consumer
demand, while generating new resources and premiums that go
directly into the hands of women farmers.”(^) http://www.wplus.org | http://www.wocan.org
above left A woman carries
cattle feed for her livestock
near the Thar Desert in
Jaisalmer, India
left Women dry fish near
Mui Ne in Vietnam. Improving
women's access to resources
could increase production by
20 to 30 percent
also have to have significant global implications in terms
of confronting and working to counteract climate change.
Such an approach would be the most cost-effective and
“green” way to help women, and help the planet.
Ideas continue to be raised and discussed, but they require
the necessary political will and financial backing. One such
idea is to use a form of biomimicry to prevent food insecurity,
empower women and protect the planet simultaneously.
Studies of how the human body reacts in hot environments
might provide some insights into creative designs that could
do this. One such technology is called the Evaptainer, a device
that uses evaporative cooling to keep food from rotting,
without the use of electricity, working in the same way that
the human body cools itself through perspiration.
My colleague, Christopher Lim, and I have proposed
that a similar mechanism be introduced in rural Southeast
Asia through the development of cottage industries to
mass-produce these low-cost containers, creating jobs to
supplement agricultural work. This could help empower
women farmers by offering them much-needed income as a
means of establishing better economic security. The benefit
of these measures could allow us to secure a sustainable
source of green energy, focusing on rural development and
capacity building, and effectively narrowing the gender gap in
sustainable climate-smart agriculture.
To this end, any worthwhile attempt at strengthening the
resilience of communities in the face of climate change and
food security needs to reach out to women. In this regard,
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
has established a regional commission to protect women’s
interests. The ASEAN Commission on the Rights of Women
and Children (ACWC), established in 2010, implemented
a four-year work plan, which concluded in 2016, studying
the social impacts of climate change on women and
children, among other areas. These types of platforms are
working tirelessly to bring the issue to light, and implement
programmes of change. The work plan for 2016-2020 is
currently in progress.
Beyond being mothers, wives, daughters and sisters,
women have a significant role in feeding the world’s projected
nine billion by 2050. A better understanding of the role of
women in food production is desperately needed. The women
of Asia have time and again revealed their resilience, especially
in times of crisis. It is time to harness that strength. ag
CHANGING THE STANDARD