Photo credit: CIAT / Neil Palmer
SERVIR-Amazonia considers Gender and Social Inclusion as “mandatory” pillars for the success of its activities. In this regard, the Program fosters opportunities for women and indigenous people’s representatives to participate actively in the design and implementation of demand-driven services considering their specific needs and priorities. SERVIR-Amazonia also promotes their involvement in Program activities and strengthening of technical capacities.
The study
Most recently, SERVIR-Amazonia launched a study that seeks to better understand the possible impacts of the geospatial services that are being co-developed with partners and that may differ between women and men, and indigenous communities. The results of this study will provide input for national Communities of Practice meetings that SERVIR-Amazonia is promoting in six countries (Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Guyana and Suriname) during the second half of the year 2020. This study is carried on with the support of the SERVIR Support Team and the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative, a US government effort to advance global women’s economic empowerment.
The consultants
Two consultants, Jennifer Twyman and Mariola Acosta, will undertake the study which will be based on a literature review and interviews with stakeholders from governmental agencies, NGOs and indigenous people associations at the regional level. Their experience in the analysis of social norms and structural barriers to women’s empowerment in the area of natural resource management and climate change will strengthen the exercise. “Mariola and I are particularly looking forward to apply our experience to the domain of geospatial applications in the Amazon and to detect practical solutions and possible actions that could neutralize possible negative impacts as well as enhance the benefits of the geospatial services for the most vulnerable people, particularly women and indigenous peoples,” Twyman says.
Jennifer Twyman
Principle researcher
Jennifer is an Agricultural Economist and Gender Specialist with a PhD in Food and Resource Economics from the University of Florida. Her research interests include measuring women’s empowerment and gender equality for agricultural, natural resource management and rural development projects; and intra-household decision-making power and ownerships of assets in smallholder farming systems.
Mariola Acosta
Research assistant
Mariola is a PhD candidate at the Strategic Communication Chair Group of Wageningen University & Research and a visiting researcher at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT. Her research interests include the study of social norms and structural barriers to women’s empowerment, with a particular focus on climate change adaptation, intra-household decision-making power and ownerships of assets in smallholder farming systems.