Maria E. Fernández
Akke W. Tick
It was not until the 1970s that policy-makers became aware of the fact that the statistics, especially those for Africa, were showing a high degree of involvement in agricultural production on the part of women, while development projects were still being directed mainly toward the needs of men. At first it was thought that if women were provided with the same kind of technological alternatives and training as that furnished to men, their capacity for production could be better harnessed for local and national development. As time passed, however, it became increasingly clear that the interests, goals and needs of women were not necessarily the same as those of men. Now, in the 1990s, the realization is gradually dawning that women not only have a right to be directly involved in the decision-making processes which affect their lives, but that they can offer society insights, skills and talents which differ from those of men. One of the spheres in which such differences are most evident is indigenous knowledge.
There is now growing recognition for the relevance of indigenous knowledge systems and for their potential role in the design of sustainable development. But, as interest in indigenous knowledge systems grows, researchers and policy makers in the field sometimes forget the importance of gender for social organization. While increasing attention is being given to gender in the literature dealing with such areas as agriculture, land management systems and livestock production, it is almost absent from the literature on indigenous knowledge systems. As Catherine Hill (1993) argues: 'An understanding of the role of gender, as well as of the intrinsic value of indigenous knowledge is crucial to the solution of situation-specific problems' in our quest toward the construction of models for sustainable development. In this issue the articles and the majority of the communications provide some initial insights into the relationship between indigenous knowledge and gender. They give examples of how women's indigenous knowledge can differ from that of men. It will be clear that gender differentiation of knowledge is found in almost every society, and is reflected in ways that we might not expect. In certain articles it is argued that the subjects 'indigenous knowledge and women', and 'indigenous knowledge and gender' are inextricably bound up with each other. Mishra stresses the role women play in the traditional economy of two communities in India. She demonstrates that the knowledge systems of women can be of importance when it comes to recommending alternatives to conventional development programmes. The knowledge of women in the area of water management in Sri Lanka is described by Ulluwishewa. He argues that women's knowledge of water management in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka has a great potential for more sustainable land use strategies. Simpson argues in his article 'Gender and the social differentiation of local knowledge' that gender plays a major role in the process of knowledge differentiation. The short articles by Fernández-Baca, Moreno and Chiappe testify to the variability of women's indigenous knowledge across cultures and production sectors.
The articles on 'Biodiversity, indigenous knowledge, gender, and intellectual property rights' (Quiroz), 'Gender and indigenous knowledge in various organizations' (Hill and Appleton), and Gender and indigenous knowledge (Fernández) are based on the authors' contribution to the Gender Working Group of the UN Commission on Science, Technology and Development. We are happy to join the Working Group in their efforts to bring the issue of gender and indigenous knowledge to the fore, as we are all trying to clarify our vision of the future in the runoff to the Women's World Conference in Beijing. It is our hope that in potentializing the relationship between gender and the generation of indigenous knowledge we can tap an important resource for the design of strategies for sustainable development. To reach this goal, a concerted effort on the part of all those working in the areas of indigenous knowledge and gender is of the utmost importance.
We hope that this issue of the Monitor will provide our readers with food for thought and discussion. Since we announced the topic for this issue, response has been overwhelming. Contributions have come in from all over the world, and it has not been easy to make a selection. We would like to thank everyone who reported on their work. Any comments on the contents of the Monitor and/or information on your own work is very much welcomed by the editor of the Indigenous Knowledge and Development Monitor. So please do not hesitate to send your information to Ms Akke W. Tick.
Dr Maria E. Fernández
ILEIA
P.O. Box 64
3830 AB Leusden
The Netherlands
E-mail: etc@antenna.nl
Drs Akke W. Tick
Nuffic-CIRAN
P.O. Box 29777
2502 LT The Hague
The Netherlands
Tel: +31-70-4260324
Fax: +31-70-4260329
E-mail: ikdm@nuffic.nl
Reference
Hill, C. (1993) 'Healthy communities, healthy animals: reconceptualizing health and wellness',
pp. 4-32 in Indigenous and local community knowledge in animal health and production systems:
Gender perspectives. Ottawa: The World Women's Veterinary Association.