Gender integration in conservation
A young girl helping to restore the Cerrado habitat, Brazil.
Pró-Onça Institute
Women learning about traditional knowledge of biodiversity in the Cerrado.
Pró-Onça Institute
After training, a young woman helpin to tracking jaguars by installing a camera trap in Padre Bernardo, Brazil.
Pró-Onça Institute
This gender integration initiative embeds gender analysis into every aspect of conservation project planning, implementation, and evaluation. It ensures that women’s roles, needs, and aspirations, particularly in natural resource management and ecosystem restoration, are recognized and addressed. A key component is providing targeted training in sustainable practices that boost household food security and foster environmental stewardship.
Women are empowered to assume leadership roles as community leaders, educators, and advocates for sustainable resource management. This enhances their participation in decision-making, particularly where resource management impacts their livelihoods and local ecosystems. Facilitating their engagement in governance structures ensures that conservation strategies are inclusive and equitable.
Women also play a critical role in reducing human-wildlife conflicts, especially with jaguars in the Cerrado. By sharing knowledge of sustainable land-use practices, they help design conflict-mitigation strategies, such as “jaguar-proof” livestock enclosures or diversified livelihood approaches that reduce pressure on habitats. Integrating women’s perspectives into restoration efforts enhances biodiversity recovery and promotes social equity, making this approach transferable to conservation initiatives elsewhere.
Support from gender-focused organizations and collaborations with local women’s groups enhances participation, providing insights into the challenges and opportunities women face in conservation. These partnerships enable knowledge exchange, skill-building workshops, and the sharing of best practices, ensuring women’s voices are elevated and respected in conservation dialogues.
Institutional commitment to gender integration is pivotal. Agencies must prioritize gender equity through policies mandating the inclusion of gender considerations in conservation planning and implementation. This commitment can be demonstrated through allocating resources for gender training and establishing gender-focused programs.
A key lesson learned is that women possess unique knowledge and skills critical to managing and sustaining local ecosystems. For example, women frequently play primary roles in managing household resources, and their traditional ecological knowledge informs effective conservation and habitat restoration strategies. Empowering women enhances environmental outcomes and community resilience.
When women are equipped with tools, training, and leadership opportunities, they become essential agents of change, driving positive environmental and social transformations. This empowerment often leads to improved health, education, and economic conditions.
Involving women in conservation highlights their potential to mediate and reduce human-wildlife conflict, enabling coexistence between communities and jaguars, crucial for long-term conservation success. Integrating gender considerations into conservation strategies creates a community of practice embracing diverse perspectives. This approach fosters ownership and agency within communities, improving the effectiveness and longevity of conservation efforts, and motivating both women and men to protect and sustain their natural resources.
