Ecology, women’s liberation aspirations for a better future

The connection between women and nature

Throughout the history of humankind the position of women has never stayed the same. Primitive human societies, as deduced from archaeological evidence and supported by many theorists, were matriarchal. Erich Fromm writes that Women were fairly considered as superiors of the prehistoric world, in hierarchy as well as ideologically-religiously, linking their position to various social practices. The woman as a deity is connected to earth and the respect for it, while aiming to the preservation of love and equality, as she is considered Mother to all. From this we can understand that the blood tie, which was at the centre of the matriarchal world, is inseparably connected with equality. 

With the incremental detachment from earth, however, the hierarchy of societies changed. Fromm moreover supports that the new ethics that emerged and the priority given to Rationalism and power, led to the isolation of women and the creation of a more patriarchal structure of society where men had the first and last word for all human activity. 

Is patriarchy linked to environmental degradation?

The change mentioned above, according to Fromm, was a pivotal point in the history of women’s place in society since it marked the beginning of confinement to a socially restrictive, new life. These restrictions, apart from their figurative meaning, for many women mainly in developing countries, are quite real, as they apply to the actual space where they are allowed to move.

A consequence of this still established situation is the incremental abandonment of nature or even, in many cases, the sacrifice of natural resources in the name of an absolute and rational way of thinking, mainly linked to patriarchy. Naturally, the use of environmental goods and their adjustment to fit human needs lead to their overconsumption and ultimately to environmental catastrophe. Thus, from the universality and respect for nature, we move on to its exploitation and subsequently, after long-lasting and complex processes, end up to anthropocentrism and the development of the first capitalist societies.

Today, the ramifications of environmental exploitation are more apparent in the so-called Third World countries, where the reliance on earth, for agriculture, is common both in the field of economics and the daily life of its inhabitants. However, in these countries, as mentioned before, discrimination based on gender is the norm. The patriarchal structure of these societies and the social undermining of women is made apparent by the statistics that are sometimes brought to public attention, after an environmental disaster. For example, according to U.N. data, women are fourteen times more in danger than men in case of a natural disaster. The reason for this discrepancy is to be found in the restriction of women to enclosed spaces without emergency exits. Moreover, water scarcity forces many girls and young women, mainly in developing countries, to walk more in order to find water sources that are far away from their area of residence. Furthermore, 80% of the population that is forced to move away because of a natural disaster are women. Moreover, based on the same research, these women are then economically afflicted and, having lost their homes and with limited access to the job market, they gradually become poor. 

Source: nytimes.com

However, this socio-economic development continues to afflict even western societies, imposing a connection between biological gender and certain social behaviours. An example of this is the term “men-environmentally friendly”. This term, bearing the mindset of toxic-masculinity, is meant to differentiate between “male” acts of protecting the environment and ones that are considered “female”. That is, some environmental practices are considered too “effeminate” for men. Various statistics, cited below this article, demonstrate the indifference of men towards environmental issues and the association of the latter to women. According to these statistics, women warmly support the adoption of environmental behaviours and are more likely to use electric cars that help reduce carbon emissions. Moreover, women express a more environmentally friendly political direction, choosing, in their majority, to vote for parties with “greener” agendas. It is not by chance that governments with more women promote bills that concentrate on environmental protection. That was recently proved in Germany’s latest elections where, according to DW data, the Grüne party gathered the most votes from women. At the same time, men’s votes were channeled to more conservative parties that do not include environmental issues in their political agendas. Finally, it might be worth mentioning that the campaigns regarding cruelty-free industries concern products that target female consumers. 

However, against the established conditions and social restrictions, women have managed, mainly after the first half of the 20th century, to find their voice. This of course could not have been possible without the development of various feminist movements and the connection of Ecology to Feminism. The latter took form in the Feminist political Ecology movement that continues to this day its sociopolitical activities. The question, however, that emerges is what would change if women had more representatives in the decision-making regarding the environment? More importantly, how have female designers and architects contributed and continue to contribute to the formation of a new way of urban planning and designing? 

“What if” 

A turning point for the conception of architectural housing and design for big cities, in the mid-20th century, was Jane Jacobs’ textbook The Death and Life of Great American Cities (1961, 1rst ed.). In it, Jacobs stands for a new spatial design that centers around the needs of the residents, approaching the city not as something static but as a continuously changing ecosystem that should function harmoniously. Her proposal for mixed-use zoning, where all facets of daily life would coexist, was the first attempt to eliminate the borders between life inside the house, which was the place of the woman-housewife, and life in the city centre, which was considered a strictly male space.  

More opinions for urban space design were expressed in the mid-80s by Wendy Davies, co-founder of Women’s Design Service, the first feminist topography group of the U.K. . This group, along with many female designers and architects, aimed (and still does) at the reintegration of women in the city, adopting Jacobs’ positions on mixed-use zoning, and considered the unlimited and unobstructed access to all urban space by all people (regardless of their age, sex, etc.) as the ultimate aim of design. Only by those means, according to Caroline Moser, can women be reintegrated into all facets of social life, empowering their position in society and mitigating patriarchal practices. 

The question of what would change if women were part of the decision-making for the environment could perhaps be answered by observing the actions of women in many afflicted areas. Data has shown that the experiences of women who are attuned to nature and their holistic approach, help them to rebuild houses through empirical observations and to find practical solutions regarding the design of housing space. Research concerning the study of housing in Dhaka, Bangladesh, provides such data. According to researcher Huraera Jabeen, the proposals of local women centered on the adequate lighting and ventilation of rooms as well as the protection from all temperature changes. Moreover, the women residents of the houses focused heavily on the interior design of their homes and generally of the settlement, to make sure that it’s ergonomic for daily work and that it provides them with a hygienic environment. 

Source: dezeen.com

From Huraera Jabeen’s research | Adapting the built environment: the role of gender in shaping vulnerability and resilience to climate extremes in Dhaka

According to Christiana Figueres (Executive Secretary of the U.N.), women’s endeavours in the field of agriculture seem to be equally effective, as it is estimated that if they had equal opportunities with men to fund their small acreage they would be able to produce 20 to 30 percent more foods, with less environmental impact, reducing gas emission by 20 billion until 2050.

The legacy of the feminist movements of the 80s, like that of Feminist political Ecology, is evident today. Many organisations like Green Belt movement of feminist activist Wangari Maathai and 350.org of May Boeve, help empower the voice of women through their actions and aid in the battle of protecting the environment, while Greta Thunberg is an example of the continuation of this mission by the younger generation. Moreover, the non-profit organisation Femmes et Ville was founded in 2002, to promote issues of gender equality and a safe urban, or not, environment for women. Lastly, in the field of urban planning and architectural design in Greece, the group Urbana centers its work on fighting inequality in urban spaces, focusing on inclusion and participatory design.

Sources and further reading:

• United Nations. WomenWatch: Women, gender equality and climate change. United Nations. Από: https://www.un.org/womenwatch/feature/climate_change/.
• Guardian News and Media. (2014, December 5). If women built cities, what would our urban landscape look like? The Guardian. Από: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/dec/05/if-women-built-cities-what-would-our-urban-landscape-look-like.
• Patriarchy is killing our planet - women alone can save her. The Ecologist. (2017, November 17). Από: https://theecologist.org/2015/mar/13/patriarchy-killing-our-planet-women-alone-can-save-her.
• Brough, A. R. (2017, December 26). Men Resist Green Behavior as unmanly. Scientific American. Από: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/men-resist-green-behavior-as-unmanly/.
• Man-made disaster: How patriarchy is ruining the planet. Do The Green Thing. (2019). Από: https://dothegreenthing.com/issue/man-made-disaster-how-patriarchy-is-ruining-the-planet/.
• Jabeen, H. (2014). Adapting the built environment: the role of gender in shaping vulnerability and resilience to climate extremes in Dhaka. Environment and Urbanization, 26(1), 147–165. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247813517851.
• Rocheleau, D.E., Thomas-Slayter, B.P., & Wangari, E. (1996). Gender and Environment: A feminist political ecology perspective.
• Beauvoir, S. . (1989). The second sex. New York: Vintage Books.
• Öcalan A. (2017). Απελευθερώνοντας τη ζωή: Η Γυναικεία Επανάσταση. Αθήνα: Στάσει Εκπίπτοντες.
• Φρομ, Ε. (1975). Η Ξεχασμένη γλώσσα. Αθήνα: Μπουκουμάνης.
• Περισσότερα για την Urbana στο https://urbana.gr/en/ και στο https://tomov.gr/2021/11/06/urbana-pos-tha-mia-poli-schediasmeni-gynaikes/?fbclid=IwAR3pKcrWsU0aSyrSf9L_iANHR7TwMxRkLQ70tgnpPXA47EQyZd6Jjjf22Ug.
• Περισσότερα για το  Femmes et Ville στο https://femmesetvilles.org/.