Chapter 3: Linking Population, Women, and Biodiversity

Mia MacDonald, Danielle Nierenberg

The interplay among population growth, biodiversity loss, and gender roles is complex. But at the core, gender inequity tends to exacerbate population growth, and population increases tend to put pressure on the natural environment, including biological resources.

Over the past decade, several global agreements have acknowledged the need to include population realities in sustainable development planning. These agreements have also noted the central role that increasing women's status plays in lowering fertility and ensuring the sound management of natural resources.

Yet large scale or significant progress toward goals set at such conferences has been slow due to deficiencies in promised funding or political will. In the developing world, women are often the first to feel the effects of environmental degradation since they are the ones who rely on trees, grasses, water, and a variety of plants to meet daily household needs.

In order to head off future collisions between population, consumption, and biodiversity, swift and sure action will be needed in a number of areas, and at policy and program levels. These include targeting areas of high biodiversity for larger-scale improvements in reproductive health, education, and women’s rights and abilities to participate in natural resource management. Also important are encouraging decision-makers and program managers to work across distinct sectors like health and environment, and development of national policies and public information programs aimed at better aligning consumption patterns and biodiversity conservation. Policy innovations, too, could support the scaling up of current programs to maximize their reach and impact.

• Exploring the Linkages
• Why Gender Matters
• Continuing Gaps, Integrated Approaches
• Nurturing the Next Revolution