By Siri Lindstad
”I think there is ten times as much research on gender and literature as on gender and the environment. We have simply had big problems concerning the material side of life”, says Måns Andersson. He is a biologist, with a background in both political sciences and gender studies. At the moment, he is working together with eight colleagues on the research project Another Climate, which aims at exploring the role of gendered power structures in the climate change response as it occurs in Swedish municipalities. The project is based at Nordregio, the Nordic Center for Spatial Development, under the auspices of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
And no, Måns Andersson does not think gender will be a hot topic when the world’s leading climate experts gather in Copenhagen
in December. This can partly be blamed on Western gender researchers, he claims.
“Many of the so-called Third World feminists, starting with theoreticians such as Vandana Shiva, are very environmentally
oriented. They have realised long ago how important it is to take a gender perspective on environmental work, since the climate
changes will have a huge impact on women, particularly in the Third World. Here in the West, however, we have covered our
ears and only discussed the issues that suit us. This we have been able to do as a white, wealthy, well-educated, Western
middle class. We can always buy ourselves an umbrella”, Andersson says with an ironic smile.
Pioneering project
So perhaps it is not so significant when he next says that Another Climate is, as far as he knows, the largest research project
on gender and climate in Northern Europe. This is, after all, primarily a pioneering project. But with all of Sweden’s 256
municipalities as its field, it can be said to be extensive enough.
“In the first phase of the project, we have conducted a quantitative analysis of all of the municipalities and measured their
climate work against, for example, gender equality indices. Now, it is time for the qualitative part of the analysis, where
we will deepen the perspective and look at how climate responses actually function in relation to gender and gender equality”,
Andersson explains.
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| Måns Andersson |
It should be pointed out that a portion of the feminist movement – the so-called ecofeminists – has for a long time drawn
attention to the connection between gender and environmental thinking.
“But many gender researchers and others find ecofeminism problematic, since it easily ends up as a type of difference feminism,
which talks about “Mother Gaia” and the like. When that is discarded, there is a tendency for the rest of ecofeminism also
to be disregarded.”
The work of French sociologist Bruno Latour is important for the theoretical basis of the project, as is that of the so-called
neo-materialistic theoreticians, such as Donna Haraway and Stacy Alaimo. In addition, the researchers use so-called actor
network theories.
“Within these theories, the material aspects of the environment – roads, forests, and so on – are also included as acting
together with people. We study which structures within a municipality are decisive for there actually being proactive climate
work, be it attempting to reduce emissions, having an environmentally friendly transport policy, or something else.”
Gender does matter
“To start with, much of the analyses will focus on male and female representation,” Andersson says.
“We will probably also look at various types of masculinities, and at how these interact with traditions, natural resources,
industry and the like. We can already see that, for example, rural areas fall far behind in their climate efforts, while urban
municipalities are at the forefront.”
And the researchers have no doubt about gender is playing a part. Men consume more, drive cars more; they use public transport
less, recycle less, and so on.
“At the same time, we know that gender has a role when it comes to power. Men make their ways to positions that render power
and influence, and certain types of masculinities – and some femininities – make it easier to make one’s way to these positions.
Men tend to make decisions, and networks of male decision-makers have an impact on the way the work is organised. If the municipality
is to employ a consultant for planning the local transport, male networks influence the selection of the person who is to
identify the local needs, and this has an impact in the next round on what products are bought.”
Varying response
According to Måns Andersson, the attitude of the municipalities to the project Another Climate varies greatly.
“One might assume that most people would be somewhere in the middle of a scale, understanding something of what we are trying
to find out about gender, power and the environment. But it seems that either they understand nothing, or they have already
understood quite a lot.”
Read more about the project Another Climate.
