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Wesleyan University

Publication Date

Fall 2017

Program Name

Nepal: Development and Social Change

Abstract

Development work as it relates to women in Nepal is an ongoing topic of debate and discussion that may never have a concrete end. In the late 1970’s Indian women took a stand in defending their livelihood against commercial logging operations with authorities. This event was known as the Chipko movement and is often cited within the history of women and development as it caused people to “engage the question of gender and gendered livelihoods in the Himalayas” (Gurarani and Berry, 2015). It was women who served as the backbone of this movement in organizing nonviolent demonstrations against commercial deforestation. This movement also illuminated the unique burden women faced in the context of environmental degradation. Since then, many academic works and development projects have sought to analyze, “a politics of gendered exclusion that has resulted from the overlay of development discourses on state-led resource management endeavors” (Gurarani et al., 2015). In Nepal, specifically, projects devoted to women’s empowerment are prevalent and have emerged with their own set of discourse. There remains debate as to whether or not this often participatory approach is effective in achieving its intended goals.

Disciplines

Asian Studies | Family, Life Course, and Society | Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | Other Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies | Women's Studies | Work, Economy and Organizations

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