From vulnerability to transformation of gender role: Photo voice experience of Sundarbans’ women amidst climate change
Abstract as pdf
Corresponding Author:
Shibaji Bose
Independent Consultant India
shibbose@gmail.com
Author(s):
Upasona Ghosh1
1Institute Of Public Health Bhubaneswar, Upasonaghosh9@Gmail.Com, IND
Larger climate change debates often designate women and girls as the least resilient to environmental changes. Off course, the global climate change has brought several precarities to the local gendered vulnerabilities that exist predominantly in global south. Women, who largely engage in climate sensitive livelihoods like fishing and agriculture, are susceptible towards detrimental impacts of climate change manifestations of sea level rise, frequent cyclones or salinity ingression. However, strong patriarchal norms and regulations often limit their choices of resilient alternatives and bound them to settle for less desirable livelihood options. Although, women have to bear the burden more than their men counterpart, they are resilient enough to cope with gendered specific challenges and aspire for better future.
Participatory visual action research method ‘photovoice’ can potentially open up new and existing conversations around uncertainty and resilience that otherwise might be impeded by hierarchical social structures, such as caste traditions or gender inequities. By providing representation to the voices, knowledge and perspectives about resilience from ‘below’ i.e. vulnerable and marginalized population, who are often framed as recipients of policies rather than active stakeholders, photovoice method seek to address power imbalances and ensure that hidden and subaltern perspectives of women and children remain central to our research ethic. Through photovoice we are going to explore the resilient stories of women from the Sundarbans delta-a climate change hot spot of South Asia, who came forward to participate in a photo voice project, despite their triple burden of livelihood restoration, child care and household chores. Their photo narratives describe everyday lived uncertainties, their negotiation with societal norms and local policy process and raising voices for their children’s health. The women’s photo voice experience ended up with a ‘change within’ which has potential to transform community resilience amidst climate change as well as the existing gender dynamics, especially by the ‘weaker’ section.
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