Background
Transforming Power, a gender guide for organizations campaigning on dams and for rivers was created as a tool to help Civil Society Organizations (CSO’s), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s) and grassroots community organizations strengthen their gender practice and encourage campaigning in ways that are gender-responsive in the interests of both women and men.
Overview
The gender guide consists of four sections and an appendix with tools and resources.
Part One
- Introduces the concepts of gender.
- Defines key terms.
- Provides information on the gendered impacts of dams.
Part Two
- Guides organizations in reviewing and reflecting on their own gender practices as an organization and in their existing campaign work.
Part Three
- Gives organizations tools to work with communities and undertake their own gender analysis of how a dam project will affect women and men.
Part Four
- Empowers organisations and coalitions to ensure that future campaigns include a stronger gender focus.
“This guide was designed as a practical guide for non-gender experts as a means to assess and improve our work. Asking: How can we better include gender into our work? And how can this contribute to advancing women’s interests and rights, alongside those of men, in the context of dam development?”
– Michael Simon, co-author of Transforming Power.
See Inside
The guide is designed to be adjusted, added to and altered for different audiences. Different contexts will elicit different responses and as a result the use of additional imagery, flow charts, checklists, case studies, activity sheets and facilitators notes, will be required. This flexibility enables the adaption of case studies and examples to each river context which will enrich the document, and ensure it stays relevant for local use wherever it is needed.
Examples of activities and tools in the gender guide. Appendix 6: Understand who has access to and control of resources within the household and the community. Appendix 10: Gender responsive campaign planning checklist.
Download the Guide
Testimonials of the Gender Guide
Download the Tools
Access and Control Tool
Gender and Labour Tool
Gender Campaign Assessment Tool
Organisational Gender Assessment Tool
Gender Responsive Campaign Planning Checklist
Resource Impact Tool
Gender Impact Tool
Download the Curriculum
‘Transforming Power’ Cross-regional Gender Guide Webinar.
The cross-regional webinar on 26 November 2020 brought together presenters and participants working on women and rivers in Asia and Africa. It provided an opportunity to share experiences and build new relationships and networks while exploring Transforming Power, A gender guide for organisations campaigning on dams and for rivers.
The webinar introduced some of the dedicated people behind the creation of the gender guide and its testing in the communities of Inga in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It also explored the potential use of the guide across regions as a tool for campaigning.
For a more detailed summary of what was discussed during the webinar download the summary below.