{"metadata":{"id":"00439b81e9fdc86771ba5823e405327f","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/c5719597-1378-4341-aa72-f495c008ad5d/retrieve"},"pageCount":2,"title":"Writing for gender equality","keywords":[],"chapters":[{"head":"Problem Example of what not to write Example of what to write instead","index":1,"paragraphs":[{"index":1,"size":11,"text":"Things/animals/ins�tu�ons don't \"empower\" women. Women empower themselves. Saying otherwise is patronizing."},{"index":2,"size":12,"text":"Women benefit from research or ac�on they are not \"empowered\" by it."},{"index":3,"size":16,"text":"'Empowering women farmers to par�cipate in agricultural research is a key strategy for sustainable agricultural development.'"},{"index":4,"size":8,"text":"'Suppor�ng women farmers to par�cipate in agricultural research…'"},{"index":5,"size":33,"text":"Loose use of the term 'empowerment' as a magic fix to entrenched gender inequali�es 'The research led to the empowerment of women who were then enabled to sell their pigs in the marketplace.'"},{"index":6,"size":43,"text":"'The researchers worked with policymakers to look at how to dismantle some of the barriers that perpetuate gender inequality in the economy and wider society.\" Patronizing words/tone/a�tude which ignores the social norms or ins�tu�onal inequali�es that have put women in their current situa�on."},{"index":7,"size":63,"text":"'Women need help in developing their socio-emo�onal skills. They need to be convinced not to simply be sa�sfied with minimum performance.' 'Due to local cultural norms, women may need support to par�cipate in women-only groups so their views can be heard.' Saying 'female' or 'ladies' instead of women. 'Female' reduces women to their biological sex compared to recognizing them as whole human beings."},{"index":8,"size":62,"text":"'Female farmers o�en work small garden blocks at the back of their dwellings compared to male farmers who work the larger cropping areas further afield.' 'Women farmers…. compared to men farmers… (But the sentence below is even beter) Saying 'women farmers' instead of 'farmers', which prevents the use of the term of 'farmers' from being normalized to represent both men and women."},{"index":9,"size":68,"text":"'Women farmers o�en work small garden blocks at the back of their dwellings compared to men farmers who work the larger cropping areas further afield.' 'Farmers working the small garden blocks at the back of dwellings tend to be women, while farmers working the larger cropping areas further afield tend to be mostly men.' Women described as impassioned. Men are less likely to be described in this way."},{"index":10,"size":93,"text":"'… head of plant biotechnology Leena Tripathi has made an impassioned plea for genome edi�ng and its poten�al' '… head of plant biotechnology Leena Tripathi has made a strong case for genome edi�ng and its poten�al' Saying 'gender-based violence' (or even worse, GBV), if what we mean is violence against women 'Gender-based violence is an issue in the small farming communi�es of…' 'The small farming community of X have a high rate of violence against women.' Being general about 'youth': people o�en associate youth with young men 'Youth also find accessing markets difficult…'"},{"index":11,"size":8,"text":"'Young women and men also find accessing markets…' "}]},{"head":"Problem Example of what not to write Example of what to write instead","index":2,"paragraphs":[{"index":1,"size":37,"text":"Lumping 'women and youth' into one category. Women and young people in low-and middle-income countries may face some similar challenges, but they also face very different challenges, and similari�es are no excuse for combining the two topics."},{"index":2,"size":21,"text":"'Women and youth involved in Tanzania's dairying industry find it hard to get directly involved in selling their products at market.\""},{"index":3,"size":23,"text":"'Women find access to Tanzania's dairy markets is limited due to social norms. Youth also find access to Tanzania's dairy markets difficult ..."},{"index":4,"size":47,"text":"Portraying women as vic�ms or passive actors rather than as leaders and ac�ve users of advanced technologies, par�cipants in discussion, and as entrepreneurs 'Women in highland remote areas are at the mercy of the harsh landscape and the restric�ve social norms, which means they can't own land.'"},{"index":5,"size":23,"text":"'Women in highland remote areas are working with their communi�es to look at how they can gain coopera�ve ownership of the land to…'"}]},{"head":"Myths to avoid","index":3,"paragraphs":[]},{"head":"Myth Problem","index":4,"paragraphs":[{"index":1,"size":241,"text":"Women produce 60-80 percent of the world's food IMPRECISE. It is unrealis�c to accurately atribute the share of food produced globally to women (or men), and similarly challenging to imagine precisely accoun�ng for men's greater access to resources for food produc�on 70% of the world's poor are women UNDOCUMENTED. Although it is well documented that women and girls worldwide are disadvantaged in terms of schooling, access to resources, earnings and produc�vity gaps, many ques�ons about the data on which this myth is based remain unanswered Women own 1% of the world's land UNDOCUMENTED. There is lack of clarity on the measurement and interpreta�on of sta�s�cs on gender and land Women are inherently beter stewards of the environment than men STEREOTYPE. This part of a wider myth presen�ng women as heroines who rescue the environment. We should not expect women to be \"independent drivers of conserva�on\" Feminiza�on of agriculture is bad for women and for farming GENERALIZATION. The changing roles of men and women that result from men's migra�on away from rural areas vary widely across contexts. It is true that some women might experience increased drudgery, but it is also true that many women are ac�ve agents that can take advantage of men's absence to take on new roles. Similarly, there are many examples where women farmers and farm managers are just as produc�ve as men. As well, the feminiza�on of agriculture is itself ques�oned, so it is not a given."}]},{"head":"More resources:","index":5,"paragraphs":[{"index":1,"size":10,"text":"• Women in Agriculture: Four myths in Global Food Security "}]}],"figures":[{"text":"• The Finkbeiner Test: A Tool for Writing About Women in their Professions • Writing about Gender: Questions to Consider by J&J editorial • How to Make Your Writing More Gender-Inclusive by the Writing Cooperative • Gut Check: Working with a Sensitivity Reader by The Open Notebook • Inclusion and diversity by Elsevier • Diversity Style Guides for Journalists by The Open Notebook. This work was carried out under the CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform, which is grateful for the support of CGIAR Trust Fund contributors. Copyright © 2023 by Econnect Communication. Licensed for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. "}],"sieverID":"adbba342-d22e-4d2b-9de2-56008cfd9ed2","abstract":"Although well-intended, some messages use phrases, vocabulary, statistics or cliches that can entrench the gender stereotypes and myths we work hard to break."}