ICA Commission on Gender and Cartography

mandate people activities Resources
  introduction to gender and cartography
  our publications available on-line,
     including the WORKBOOK: Workshop on Electronic Atlases and Cartographic Multimedia Products
  gender and cartography bibliography
  other web resources

Introduction

This section provides a brief introduction to the area of gender and cartography.

The issue of gender inequality
The 1999 United Nations Development Report reveals that "there is gender inequality in every society… including in political and professional life." (Human Development Report, 1999, p.132)

The problem of inequality between men and women is a problem for both sexes, as the roots of the question lie in the relationship between women and men.

Cartographic research in gender reflects this perspective in its use of approaches from social cartography. In a presentation to the UN, Dr. Siekierska stated that "Concepts such as cultural context and inter-relationships, which guide the social cartographer, are also crucial to gender studies" (Siekierska, 1994) .

Research on gender issues by the ICA
The ICA's work related to gender began in 1991 with a survey on "The Participation of Women in the International Cartographic Association (ICA)" by the Task Force on Women in Cartography. The Report and Recommendations from this survey are available through this web site.

For an overview of all of the activities of the ICA Task Force, Gender Working Group and the Commission on Gender please go to the Activities page of this site. The Commission has published and presented a number of documents, many of which are available as On-line Publications, or are referenced in our Bibliography.

Research on Gender and Cartography
One gender issue in cartography is how the status of women is portrayed through cartography. "Women in the World: An International Atlas" by Joni Seager and Ann Olson, is a compelling illustration of the lesser status and abuse of women and girls worldwide. Seager and Olson's research found that "everywhere women are worse off than men: women have less power, less autonomy, more work, less money, and more responsibility" (p.7).

Another issue is how well cartography actually helps women make sense of their world, and whether cartographic practice actually reflects female interpretations and representations of the world. Examples of work in the area of map perception and gender include papers by Barbara Buttenfield and presentations at the ICA Joint Seminar on Maps for Special Users. Donna Williams' graduate work on gender issues in the mental mapping of communities presented by Dr. Siekierska at the main plenary of the above seminar. is also of interest.

The field of "Gender and Geography" addresses many of the broader issues of gender and space to which research in gender and cartography refers. A starting place for more information is the journal Gender, Place and Culture.

Other international and national organizations and associations in the geomatics field are also focusing on gender issues in their professions:

Top | Introduction | On-line Publications | Bibliography | Web Resources

On-line Publications

Top | Introduction | On-line Publications | Bibliography | Web Resources

Web Resources

The following Web sites address issues related to gender, gender in science and technology, and gender and development. Many of the sites are from international organizations.

The sites are listed in alphabetical order. To search for a particular name or word, type "Control-F" (hold down the Ctrl key and type "F"), then enter your word in the dialog box that opens. Click on "Find Next" or "Find All" to search for your word.

Association for Progressive Computing (APC) Women’s Program: APC Global Women's Networking Survey & Global Women's Networking Database: Contacts and Resources
http://community.web.net/apcwomen/, Association for Progressive Computing (APC)'s Women's Programme.

"In September 1996, the APC Women's Program surveyed over 700 women's groups and individual women by E-mail to identify women's electronic networking needs and opportunities...

From the results of the survey, we compiled a database of women's networking contacts and resources to facilitate women's networking and collaboration."
Last modified: 13-05-1999
Visited: 13-12-1999

Association for Progressive Computing (APC)'s Women's Programme
http://www.gn.apc.org/activities/get/women/index.html , Association for Progressive Computing (APC)'s Women's Programme.

"The APC Women's Programme aims to increase women's access to training and facilitate information flow between North, South, East and West on gender issues. It offers opportunities to women and women's organizations in all regions of the world, but has a particular focus on redressing inequalities in access to technology related to social and ethnic marginalization and the North-South technological gap."
Last modified: 08-11-1999
Visited: 13-12-1999

aviva.org The women's internet magazine
http://www.aviva.org/ , AVIVA.

  • International news and action alerts
  • Free monthly listings of women's groups and events worldwide
  • International Women's Listing Magazine which enables women all over the world to make contact with each other
    Last updated: 01-12-1999
    Visited: 13-12-1999

Gender and Sustainable Development
http://sdri.ubc.ca/gender/index.html, Sustainable Development Research Institute (SDRI), University of British Columbia, Canada.

"This site houses two dynamic documents which explore a broad range of issues concerning gender and sustainable development:

    • a Policy Agenda, entitled "policy woven from a web of values", which contains over 100 policy recommendations developed for the UN Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995; and
    • an Annotated Bibliography, which illustrates the breadth and depth of the work being produced in the domain of gender and sustainable development."
      Last modified: 27-11-1999
      Visited: 13-12-1999

Gender Working Group of the United Nations Commission on Science and Technology for Development, "Missing Links: Gender Equity in Science and Technology for Development"
http://www.idrc.ca/books/765.html , IDRC Books, International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.

"In this landmark book, the UN-commissioned Gender Working Group outlines its policy proposals for national science and technology programs. Its goal is to ensure that women and men have equal access to and benefit equally from science and technology. The proposals are supported by essays written by distinguished scholars and experts."

A book available from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.

Page copyright IDRC March 19, 1997
Visited: 14-12-1999

International Development Research Council (IDRC) Gender and Sustainable Development Unit
http://www.idrc.ca/gender/, International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.

"GSD works to integrate a gender perspective into all IDRC programs and initiatives. This site is meant to serve as a useful starting point for researchers looking for gender-related information at IDRC."
Last updated: 14-04-1999 IDRC
Visited: 13-12-1999

IDRC's Library: Section on Gender and Development
http://www.idrc.ca/library/world/subjects.html#gender, International Development Research Council (IDRC), Canada.

Last updated: June 1999 IDRC
Visited: 13-12-1999

International Institute for Sustainable Development Linkages: The Fourth World Conference On Women
http://www.iisd.ca/linkages/4wcw/

Current coverage: 43rd Session of the Commission on the Status of Women New York,1-19 March 1999
Last modified: 20-04-1999
Visited: 14-12-1999

International Institute for Sustainable Development: Women and Sustainable Development
http://iisd.ca/women/wguide1.htm

"A Resource Guide to People, Ideas and Information compiled by the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Winnipeg in partnership with the Sustainable Development Research Institute, Vancouver.

In May, 1994, people gathered in Vancouver for the conference, Women and Sustainable Development: Canadian perspectives. At that time, we surveyed conference participants about their hopes for a sustainable future. We also approached for comment a number of Canadian women in SD leadership roles who were unable to attend Vancouver. This guide was compiled to present the views of these women, and to provide the context for their work, through documents on the major women's meetings over the past decade. Although orginally designed as a tool for women preparing for the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, September 1995, the information continues to be timely and current. For information on follow up to Beijing itself, check out Linkages: our site on Global Negotiations."
Last modified: 06-03-1998
Visited: 14-12-1999

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Gender Equality Group: Gender Equality Links
http://www.oecd.org//dac/gender/htm/links.htm

Approximately 200 links organized by Topic Areas , Regional Links , WP-GEN Members/Observers links, International Organisations with Gender Equality pages, and International Conventions and Declarations.

Last updated: 01-09-1999 OECD
Visited: 14-12-1999

OECD Development Assistance Committee Gender Equality Group
http://www.oecd.org//dac/gender/index.htm

"The mandate of the Working Party should be viewed, in light of the UN conferences on Women in Nairobi (1985) and Beijing (1995) as an expression of the will of Member countries to fulfill their obligations vis-à-vis the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies and the Beijing Platform for Action and Declaration (1995) endorsed by their countries. The Work Programme Objective adopted in 1984 remains valid, i.e., that the purpose of the Working Party is to work towards ensuring that the full potential of women as contributors to, and beneficiaries of, the development process can be promoted and supported through the work of the DAC and through its Member countries, thus improving the status of women and assisting the total development effort. The Working Party functions in an interactive manner. Its goal is to strengthen the practice of DAC Members." (http://www.oecd.org//dac/gender/htm/about.htm).

Site contents include: Gender Equality Links; DAC Source Book on Concepts and Approaches Linked to Gender Equality ; DAC Guidelines for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Development Cooperation; Policy Statements, Reports and Publications; and a Member's Area.

Last updated: 12-08-1999 OECD
Visited: 14-12-1999

The United Nations Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action of the Fourth UN World Conference on Women (1995)
http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/platform/ , United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW).

  • Full text of the Declaration and Platform for Action;
  • Other conference documents; and
  • Other UN documents addressing gender issues.

Last modified: 18-03-1998
Visited: 13-12-1999

United Nations Development Programme Human Development Report 1995: Gender and Development
http://www.undp.org/hdro/95.htm, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

"Human Development, If not engendered, is endangered. That is the simple but far- reaching message of Human Development Report 1995. The Report analyses the progress made in reducing gender disparities in the past few decades, highlights the wide and persistent gap between women's expanding capabilities and limited opportunities, introduces two new measures for ranking countries on a global scale by their performance in gender equality, analyses the under- valuation and non-recognition of women's work and offers a five-point strategy for equalising gender opportunities in the decade ahead. An innovative feature of this year's Report is the design of two new composite indices - the gender related development index (GDI) and the gender empowerment measure (GEM), both of which rank countries on a global scale of gender equality. The GDI captures gender inequality in human capabilities, and the GEM reflects inequalities in key areas of political and economic participation and decision-making. The Report also brings together, for the first time, considerable data from a sample of countries on the contributions of women and men to paid and unpaid work. The Report concludes that that the unvalued contribution of women is so large that any reasonable valuation would lead to a fundamental change in the premises on which today's economic, social and political structures are founded."
Last modified: 10-12-1998
Visited: 13-12-1999

United Nations Development Programme Human Development Report 1999
http://www.undp.org/hdro/99.htm, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Last modified: 23-07-1999
Visited: 13-12-1999

United Nations Development Programme Human Development Reports
http://www.undp.org/hdro/, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Reports from 1990 to 1999.
Last modified: 04-11-1999
Visited: 13-12-1999

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization: Gender Equality
http://www.unesco.org/women/home.html, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

"The objective of this site is to introduce you to UNESCO's work in promoting the status of women, girls and gender equality in all of its areas of competence (i.e. education, natural and human sciences, communication and culture)."
Last modified: 09-07-1998
Visited: 14-12-1999

UNESCO Education for Women
http://www.unesco.org/education/educprog/women/index.html, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Site subjects are: Highlights, Literacy, Bibliography, Projects, Links, Contacts
Last updated: 14-04-1999 UNESCO
Visited: 14-12-1999

Women on the Net – A SID/UNESCO project initiative
http://www.waw.be/sid/won/won.htm, Society for International Development (SID) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

"The UNESCO-SID Project "Women on the Net: a multicultural perspective on international communication systems" aims to introduce a multicultural gender perspective to the on-going work of Women on the Net. Following through the recommendations and the general trends of the World Report on Culture and Development, the World Communication Report and the Fourth UN World Conference on Women: Action for Equality and the Beijing Declaration in the area of gender and new technologies, the project will help to ensure that different cultural and geographical environments (rural and urban) of women interacting on the Net and across generations will be taken into account as concrete information and case studies (meta-data) are gathered together to build a picture of the distinctive perceptions of cyberspace women hold from different regions. And in addition, the project would aim to strengthen women's already established skills in networking in civil society, academe, policy making and media through encouraging women to use the Net and thereby setting out parameters for how to reorient the debate as catalyzers of new thinking and for networking to foster democracy and peace."
Last updated: 24-04-1997, Society for International Development
Visited: 13-12-1999

Women in Global Science and Technology
http://www.wigsat.org/ , Women in Global Science and Technology (WIGSAT).

"Women in Global Science and Technology supports global networking on critical issues in science and technology for development. This includes women’s formal and nonformal science and technology practices around the world, for policy advocacy and action which promotes their S&T contributions to sustainable development.

The purpose of WIGSAT is to:
• bring together researchers to address the emerging critical issues in gender, science and technology for development;
• act as an electronic information bridge and support for major global gender, science and technology initiatives;
• promote input into these initiatives’
• support the international gender, science and technology movement in addressing the new challenges in the post-Beijing era.

In doing this, WIGSAT activities fall into two broad categories:
• research and advocacy around critical gender, science and technology issues; and
• information and communications technology activities with global or South-based initiatives."
Last updated: 12-11-1999
Visited: 13-12-1999


World Bank Group: GenderNet
http://www.worldbank.org/gender/ , World Bank.

"Gender and Development is one of the four areas of focus in the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management (PREM) Network in the World Bank. Bank staff working on gender and development carry out a range of activities in support of the Bank's objective of mainstreaming gender in operational, research and policy work including:

    • developing strategies to define and implement gender policies
    • disseminating new knowledge and tools to achieve these objectives
    • identifying resources and best practice methods to integrate gender
    • strengthening partnerships and dialogue with external organizations on gender." (http://www.worldbank.org/gender/info/aboutgnet.htm)

Last updated: 03-12-1999
Visited: 14-12-1999

For information on Cartography, please visit our on-line publication, the Workbook from the joint Workshop on Electronic Atlases and Cartographic Multimedia Products.

Another site to visit is Odden's Bookmarks (http://oddens.geog.uu.nl/index.html), which now has over 8900 cartographic links.

Also, please visit the web sites of these other ICA Commissions:

Introduction | On-line Publications | Bibliography | Web Resources

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The Commission on Gender and Cartography of the International Cartographic Association
http://www.geo.ar.wroc.pl/GC

Mandate | People | Activities | Resources || Site Index

Chair: Prof. Ewa Krzywicka-Blum (Email: ekblum@kgf.ar.wroc.pl)
Co-Chair: Dr. Eva Siekierska (Email: siekiers@nrcan.gc.ca)