The women who remain largely invisible

Women’s Role in Resistance Movements

• Women have led resistance movements against unjust development, extractivism, and climate degradation.

• They have led protests against destructive mining, dams, and infrastructure projects.

• These movements represent community-led development and environmental protection.

Leadership in Resistance

• Women are often excluded from consultations, especially those that uphold free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC).

• Women’s perspectives are often devalued or dismissed as emotional, despite being rooted in acute socioenvironmental knowledge.

• Policies designed to respond to such movements often remain blind to the gendered impacts of displacement and rehabilitation.

Legal Frameworks for Women’s Land Rights

• Legal frameworks exist in South Asia to protect women’s land rights, but they are often undermined by systemic gaps.

• Land titles often remain in the name of male household heads, with women rarely listed as joint or sole owners.

• Implementation mechanisms often lack gender sensitivity, and many displaced women are not counted as heads of households and are excluded from compensation.

Gender Inequalities in Climate Change

• Women are excluded from decisions on climate resilience, rehabilitation, or mitigation.

• Most climate adaptation frameworks fail to integrate women’s traditional ecological knowledge or ensure their participation in planning.

Need for Structural Change

• Governments and corporations must ensure consultations are not only free and prior but informed and inclusive.

• Women’s leadership within movements must be amplified.

• Women’s voices must be heard and their stories must be reflected in policies, laws, and institutions.