Resources on the ENVIRONMENT
Section k


"Through their management and use of natural resources, women provide sustenance to their families and communities. As consumers and producers, caretakers and educators, women play an important role in promoting sustainable development through their concern for the quality and sustainability of life for present and future generations."
Beijing Platform for Action.

Websites and Electronic Resources

http://www.iisd.ca/linkages/index.htm
Linkages website provided by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) is an electronic clearinghouse for information invaluable to any policy maker or activist working in the field of environment and/or development. This website is an ocean of multimedia resources broken down into regional work and sectoral work in the sustainable development field. It contains archives of journals, an impressive directory of key organizations, subscriptions to e-zines, international documents, calendar of international conferences, video clips of ongoing negotiation processes and more. Add this to your favorites!

http://www.web.net/~weed/
A project of Women and Environments, Education and Development Foundation (WEED) and Women’s Network on Health and the Environment (WNHE), WE (Women and Environments) International Magazine is a one-of-a-kind journal that examines women’s relationships to their environments social, natural, physical--from a woman-centered perspective. Past issues have covered: ecology, environmental activism, child care, recreation, community development and planning, urban and rural agriculture etc. Archives are accessible.

http://www.wri.org/wri
The World Resources Institute views and combats global environmental problems through a holistic lens. Their dynamic and innovative programs target governments and businesses, natural resource use and conservation, economic development and social equity, and capacity building and institutional change. A wide array of multimedia resources and original research reports are available, including their reputable annual World Resources Report, about each region of the world and each environmental sector. Great as a reference site to maps and indicators, international documents, and country by country initiatives. In English and Spanish.

http://www.webdirectory.com
This Amazing Environmental Organization Web Directory, a remarkably navigable search engine, is worth a browse as a network hub to springboard into an abundance of links from categories such as sustainable development, water resources, government, education, databases, land conservation, news and conferences and many more. Although lacking a gender dimension, this website is recommended for the breadth and depth of its links.

http://www.sedac.ciesin.org/entri/
Fast, convenient, and comprehensive are adjectives to describe the Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators (ENTRI) systems an unique online search service for finding information about environmental treaties and national resource indicators. Organized around nine issue areas, ENTRI draws and integrates different types of data to give the user a multi-dimensional perspective on complex issues. Although missing a gender perspective, ENTRI is nevertheless perfect as a quick reference guide for the busy activist or policy maker. A must surf.

http://www.wedo.org
Women’s Environment and Development Organization (WEDO) is an international organization that advocates for women’s full participation in sustainable development. The website presents reports on activities, action and campaign announcements, United Nations programmes, gender and development issues.

http://www.earthsummit2002.org/wcaucus/csdngo.htm
The website of the Caucus of Non-governmental Organizations of the NGO Steering Committee to the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development Concerned with Gender and Sustainable Development Issues has a wonderful website that is not to be missed! NGOs and anyone interested in grassroots advocacy at the UN will surely visit and revisit this page for updates, schedules, and reports on meetings, upcoming agendas, position papers and resources. Fabulous collection of links to women’s and environmental organizations from all four corners of the world.

http://www.widtech.org
Women in Development and Technical Assistance (WIDTECH) funded by USAID stresses that women in communities should be key and active participants in natural resource management. WIDTECH operates projects throughout the Global South that increases women’s participation in the decision-making process. Read about how WIDTECH achieves this mission by browsing through its multiple programs on environmental literacy/education, gender mainstreaming, bettering women’s access to land and credit, and training workshops.

http://www.iucn.org
The World Conservation Union is the world’s largest environmental knowledge network, and its mission is to make sure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable. The World Conservation Union has a gender component to their research and training programs on how to integrate social issues into natural resource management. Check out their latest initiatives, publications and events!

http://www.unep.org
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the major arm of the United Nations dealing with issues concerning the environment and sustainable development. On this website, you will be able to find multimedia coverage of international conventions, a comprehensive collection of environmental legal instruments you can download as well as the latest UN initiatives and programs. Be sure to stop by in particular at UNEP’s ENRIN (Environment and Natural Resources Information Network) and Global Resources Information Database in your many visits to this webpage!

http://www.ecouncil.ac.cr
The Earth Council was created in 1992 to promote and advance the implementation of the Earth Summit agreements. Learn about their environmental campaigns, their Indigenous Peoples Project, and national action plans following the Earth Summit. Although the Earth Council does not have an explicit gender dimension, they advocate for full public participation in environmental policy-making. This site is a wonderful well of Earth Summit documents and country contact information.

http://www.idrc.ca/gender
The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is Canada’s primary public research institute on development issues. IDRC’s gender unit integrates gender into their initiatives, research, and analysis. A particular gem in this webpage is their Gender Map which serves as a guide to gender and women-related links at IDRC sorted by topics such as Health, Social Policy, and Natural Resource Management and Food Production to list but a few. In English, Spanish, and French.

http://www.sdri.ubc.ca/gender
Sustainable Development Research Institute - offers a collection of research and information regarding development, research and environmental issues.

http://www.fao.org/waicent/faoinfo/sustdev/WPdirect/ WPhomepg.htm
Women and Population section of Sustainable Development Dimensions, a service of the Sustainable Development Department (SD) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Selected Books

Many of these publications can be ordered online at http://www.womenink.org

Biopiracy: The Plunder of Nature and Knowledge
Vandana Shiva
Biopiracy exposes the "new colonies" in the North's assault on the South's biological resources: the interior spaces of the bodies of women, plants and animals. Shiva convincingly argues that international agreements enable Northern capital to appropriate biodiversity from its original owners by defining as "non-science" the seeds, medicinal plants, and indigenous knowledge of the South.
1997. 148 pages. US$13.00

Dangerous Intersections: Feminist Perspectives on Population, Environment and Development
Jael Silliman and Ynestra King (Eds.)
This anthology offers a multi-cultural, international look at the issues of environment, development, and population control. It presents alternative voices and approaches to policies that focus on the fertility of poor women of color in the North and in the South as the primary threat to the ecological viability of the planet. Feminist scholars and activists reveal the racism behind the scapegoating of women, the poor and immigrants as the source of major world problems, and present realistic solutions that rely on the ingenuity and resourcefulness of women who thus become the central agents of their own fate.
1999. 283 pages. WE437W. US$20.00

Environmentally Sound Technologies for Women in Agriculture
International Federation for Women in Agriculture (India) and the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (the Philippines)
This practical workbook focuses on 60 simple technologies to help farmers with animal husbandry, vegetable harvesting, organic farming, seed production and storage, pests and pesticides, water management and fish farming. Step-by-step instructions and easy-to-follow diagrams make this an invaluable hands-on manual for extension workers as well as neo-literate farmers.
1997. 213 pages. US$30.00

Gender and Sustainable Development: A New Paradigm
Ana Maria Brasileiro (Ed.)
Throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, women have organized to integrate the concept of gender-sensitive sustainable development into all development planning and projects. This book (from UNIFEM's Series 'Reflecting on Experience in Latin America and the Caribbean') describes practical examples ranging from seed money to capacity-building, from single conferences to multi-project programmes.
1997. 79 pages. US$7.95

Gender in Water Resource Management, Water Supply and Sanitation: Roles and Realities
Christine van Wijk-Sijbesma
Although in the developing world it is women who invariably have to ensure that the family has water, they have often had no voice in decisions about water supply and sanitation. Recently, however, the roles and responsibilities of women and men, and how decisions are made, have begun to take centre stage. This book provides a wealth of up-to-date knowledge and experience about water and gender. Bibliography.
1998. 200 pages. US$25.00

Women, Land and Agriculture
Caroline Sweetman (Ed.)
Women's vital role in food production, land development and agronomy around the world continues to be undervalued; now, with the push towards new technologies and genetically engineered crops, small landowners and farmers are being even more marginalized. Contributors to this collection analyze these issues as well as suggest solutions, warning that global food security and sustainable development stand threatened until gender equality is achieved.
1999. 87 pages. US$12.95

Many of these publications can be ordered online at http://www.womenink.org