GGCA Gender and Climate Change Training Manual - Women's ...

variables strongly associated with project effectiveness. Furthermore, it was
found that the failure to take gender differences and inequalities into account
could result in failed projects (Narayan, 1995).
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Based on the information on its website, the CDM appears not to have
given any consideration to the gendered nature of technology. Women are
not highly visible in climate change technology decision making. In late 2008,
two of the 19 members of the UNFCCC Expert Group on Technology Transfer
were female and the executive board of the CDM consisted of 10 members,
nine of them male. While the participation of women on climate change
technology boards and committees will not in and of itself ensure attention to
gender equality, it is a necessary starting point. When there are only one or two
women on a board, they are unlikely to press for the inclusion of gender equality
issues for fear that this would receive little general support, but when a critical
mass of 30% or higher is reached, then it is more likely that such issues will be
raised. However, it should also be pointed out that not all women are necessarily
familiar with gender equality issues, thus efforts should be made to include female
board members who can explicitly address gender equality issues and represent
an empowerment approach.
6.3 What does climate change technology have to do with
gender?
Because technology is not gender-neutral, technology-based
strategies for both mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change sometimes
have different implications for women and men. These differences must
be recognized and integrated into our thinking about climate change. If
technologies are to be used by both men and women, they must be designed
to reflect the circumstances and preferences of both sexes. This is especially true
in the case of technologies aimed at tasks most frequently performed by women.
While the participation of women in decision making about technologies will
not guarantee gender sensitivity, it is an important aspect, and ultimately may
help to make the technologies more useful and productive for both men and
women.
There are many examples, especially in the agricultural sector, of
technologies designed specifically to reduce the heavy workloads of rural
women but developed without their input and which ultimately were not