Gender and social capital: The importance of gender differences for the maturity and effectiveness of natural resource management groups

Westermann, Olaf; Ashby, Jacqueline Anne; Pretty, Jules

doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2005.04.018

Cited by 225 publications

(201 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…women, business leaders). Studies elsewhere have shown that local-level cooperation, solidarity, conflict resolution and norms of reciprocity increase with women's participation (Molinas 1998;Westermann et al 2005). These representatives, we believe, would ideally be elected by the communities themselves.…”

Section: Poised For Engagement?mentioning

confidence: 87%

Poised for engagement? Local communities and Măcin Mountains National Park, Romania

Anthony¹,

Moldovan²

2008

International Journal of Biodiversity Science & Management

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SUMMARYBeliefs and attitudes of local people toward protected areas are increasingly being considered in conservation planning. Although park-people studies abound, relatively little is known about these relationships in Central and Eastern Europe. Romania's protected area management system currently involves considering aspirations of local communities. A questionnaire administered to 374 households was the main tool for assessing knowledge about, and attitudes towards, Macin Mountains National Park (MMNP). Only 20.1% of respondents had knowledge of MMNP activities, and 95.2% were unacquainted with the Consultative Council, which purportedly represents community interests in park affairs. A community attitude index (CAI) was constructed, aggregating responses to seven attitude-related questions. CAI values ranged from −7 to 7 with a mean of −0.50. Attitudes were primarily influenced by education level and whether households had members who fish. Most attitudes were neutral, largely due to lack of interaction with MMNP. Positive attitudes were mostly related to the intrinsic value of nature and its services. Negative attitudes were chiefly determined by perceived fuelwood shortages and/or higher prices, or introductions of potentially dangerous animals. These results have particular implications for involving local communities in MMNP management, and may be relevant for similar protected areas in Romania and elsewhere.

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Section: Poised For Engagement?mentioning

confidence: 87%

Poised for engagement? Local communities and Măcin Mountains National Park, Romania

Anthony¹,

Moldovan²

2008

International Journal of Biodiversity Science & Management

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“…Gender balance and participation in forest groups • Use complementary strengths (Watkins 2009) • Capacity to manage and resolve conflicts (Westermann et al 2005) • More likely to monitor forest resources and impose sanctions than male or female-dominated • Less likely to allow other groups to harvest from the forest than male or female-dominated • Tap into knowledge and services provided by external agencies • More likely to address topics of interest to families such as health, education and environment…”

Section: Women's Voices In Policy and Reform Processesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forests: Gender, property rights and access

Sun¹,

Mwangi²,

Meinzen-Dick³

et al. 2012

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“…More broadly, the gender composition of public bodies can infl uence how they function and the decisions they make. For example, research has linked the presence of women within government bodies to decreased corruption (Swamy et al 2001), and their presence within natural resource management groups to improved collaboration, solidarity, and confl ict resolution (Westermann, Ashby, and Prett y 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While this specifi c percentage has been debated, the generally agreed upon threshold of women's representation for eff ective participation is around one-quarter to one-third (Richardson et al 2011). In cases where this critical mass or threshold is not reached, women can, because of their minority representation, be subjected to marginalization and made to feel "invisible" in decision-making processes (Westermann et al 2005). In cases where critical mass is reached or surpassed, more supportive institutional environments are created in which women can overcome potential reticence and speak out on issues and concerns in the presence of supportive female colleagues (Agarwal 2010, 99).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In cases where critical mass is reached or surpassed, more supportive institutional environments are created in which women can overcome potential reticence and speak out on issues and concerns in the presence of supportive female colleagues (Agarwal 2010, 99). Through the enhanced representation of women, it is argued, natural resource management is improved through collaboration, group solidarity, and a genuine willingness among members to resolve confl icts (Westermann et al 2005(Westermann et al , 1795. Broome (2011), however, urges some caution by suggesting that critical mass alone will not lead to greater equity, or more informed management outcomes, in cases where societal inequalities pervade.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Gender, Critical Mass, and Natural Resource Co-Management in the Yukon

Staples

Natcher

2015

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Abstract:Building on the research of White (2008) and Natcher (2013), who identified a paucity of female representation on co-management boards across the Canadian North, the research reported here set out to understand the implications of this gender imbalance for the experiences of women serving on natural resource co-management boards in the Yukon. Broadly speaking, resource co-management boards include a range of different institutional arrangements in which resource users and government come together to share management responsibilities (Yandle 2003). We explored whether critical mass-defined as a specific number or percentage of women necessary to make their participation within an institution effective-is considered by board members themselves to be a critical factor for the way women participate in co-management deliberations. Through semi-structured interviews with current and former board and staff members, our findings indicate that: 1) a majority of board members feel that the representation of women on co-management boards is necessary to the overall effectiveness of board decision making; and 2) women who ser ved on boards with other female members experienced significantly fewer barriers to their participation than when they were the sole female representative. The intent of this article is to offer a practical application of critical mass theory and, more pragmatically, identify ways in which gender can be accounted for more effectively in co-management processes in Canada.

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Gender and social capital: The importance of gender differences for the maturity and effectiveness of natural resource management groups

Cited by 225 publications

References 25 publications

Poised for engagement? Local communities and Măcin Mountains National Park, Romania

Poised for engagement? Local communities and Măcin Mountains National Park, Romania

Forests: Gender, property rights and access

Gender, Critical Mass, and Natural Resource Co-Management in the Yukon

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