Around the world, rooted in discriminatory gender norms and shrouded in impunity, gender-based violence (GBV) occurs in all societies as a means of control, subjugation and exploitation that further feeds gender inequality. GBV is used as a form of socio-economic control to maintain or promote unequal and gendered power dynamics across all sectors and contexts, including in relation to the ownership, access, use and benefits from natural resources. Gender-based violence and environment linkages: The violence of inequality reviews the ways in which the potential for violence related to natural resources is particularly augmented in the face of natural resource scarcity, environmental stressors and threats. Reviewing over 1,000 sources of information, gathering nearly 100 case study submissions and having analyzed survey responses from over 300 practitioners along with numerous expert-informant interviews, this study focuses on three major areas where GBV-environment linkages act as barriers to equitable, effective, rights-based conservation and sustainable development: access and control over natural resources; environmental pressures and threats; and environmental action to conserve, defend and protect natural resources. Produced by the International Union for Conservation (IUCN) under its partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Advancing Gender in the Environment (AGENT), this study presents findings on GBV-environment linkages towards supporting strengthened action across sustainable development and conservation sectors.
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Author:
- Castañeda Camey, I., Sabater, L., Owren, C. and Boyer, A.E., Wen, J. (ed.)
Organization:
- IUCN
Citation:
- Castañeda Camey, I., Sabater, L., Owren, C. and Boyer, A.E. (2020). Gender-based violence and environment linkages: The violence of inequality. Wen, J. (ed.). Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. 272pp.

Synopsis
Classifications
- Accessing and Controlling Natural Resources, Addressing Gender-Based Violence, Addressing Masculinities, Addressing Traditional Barriers, Advancing Women's Participation and Leadership, Building Gender Knowledge and Capacities, Conservation Case, Decision Making, Engaging Men and Boys, Filling Knowledge and Data Gaps, Gendered Work Burdens, Human Rights Case, Integrating Gender in the Project Cycle, Land and Resource Rights, Making the Case, Male Engagement Strategies, Protecting Defenders
- Adaptation and Resilience, Climate Change, Climate-Related Conflict, Conservation, Deforestation, Deforestation and Degradation, Desertification, Disaster Risk Management, Disaster Risk Reduction, Food Security, Forest Degradation, Health Impacts, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Indigenous Women, Social Inclusion and Intersectionality, State Fragility and Climate Resilience, Wildlife, Wildlife Management, Women Environmental Human Rights Defenders
- Agriculture, Artisanal Mining, Commodities, Energy and Infrastructure, Energy Poverty, Access and Use, Extractives, Farming, Firewood Collection, Fisheries, Forests, Illegal Logging, Illegal Mining, Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, Large-Scale Extractives, Logging, Non-Timber Forest Products, Protected Areas, Rangers, Sanitation, Sustainable Landscapes, Water, Water Access, Water Collection, Water Management
- Asia and the Pacific, Global, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America, Sub-Saharan Africa
- Academia, Civil Society, Donors and Funds, Government, Private Sector
- AGENT, GBV Center, IUCN
- Report