Ecofeminism and Health

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This course will focus on the gendered perspectives of environmental sustainability and eco-efficient agriculture in order to assess aspects of food security and food systems including the equitable access to resources by male and female farmers. The course will present an overview of ecofeminism and gender analysis to understand patterns of land use conservation strategies and agricultural production efforts portrayed by rural communities’ and agricultural entrepreneurs (value chain analysis and agricultural market participation). Students will be presented with real case studies worldwide to document gender gaps in access to a large range of natural resources, including water, land, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture, livestock, and other assets. The adoption of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and particularly Goal 5 (Gender Equality) will be highlighted along with research streams on gender and agriculture during class exercises, visits and lectures. At the end of this class, students will be able to undertake a gender analysis and access helpful methods to inform their research and/or future applied work. An independent module about Food Systems and Food Environments will be part of the course, in order to provide students with some qualitative research skills and tools to conduct firsthand research on a variety of topics that include gender and resources allocation in relation to development challenges in various world regions.