Call for papers: Special issue on Women’s empowerment in natural resources management in the Himalayas

2023-02-10

NEW ANGLE: NEPAL JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCE AND PUBLIC POLICY

Vol 9(1) 2024

The agro-forestry entrepreneurial ecosystem that has already been strained by climate change has been further aggravated by COVID-19 and women face the major brunt of burden. Some of the impacts on women’s entrepreneurial environment include increased care responsibilities, loss of jobs, collapse of women-led enterprises and decline in entrepreneurial sales. This has had a disproportionate impact on women that cuts across different ages, castes, ethnicities, income groups and educational levels. As a result of constricting environments at the socio-cultural, political and economic domains, women’s entrepreneurial capabilities, productive work and financial resources have been constrained. In response, women entrepreneurs and researchers alike are increasingly exploring perspectives on what constitutes a gender responsive and shock resilient entrepreneurial ecosystem for women in Nepal and the wider Himalayan context, striving to better understand how such a supportive environment can be created.

These and connected issues are placed within a wider empirical context and academic debate related to gendered socio-ecologies. This special issue looks to highlight different perspectives on women’s empowerment as related to intersectional relations including gender, relations to other species as well as diverse local power relations. Insights from initiatives resulting in transformed gender relations are particularly welcome. Against this backdrop, Southasia Institute of Advanced Studies (SIAS) is pleased to call for papers for a special issue of the New Angle: Nepal Journal of Social Science and Public Policy entitled, “Women’s empowerment in natural resources management in the Himalayas”. We welcome researchers and other academics, professionals, national and international organisations, and graduate students working in Nepal and other Himalayan countries to submit their research articles in this special issue. 

We encourage perspectives and experiences around issues including, but not limited to:

  • Gender and intersectional analysis of agro-forestry production, value chains and related digital technology
  • Gender-based constraints to women’s economic self-sufficiency
  • Gender responsive and shock resilient entrepreneurial ecosystems
  • Multispecies relations in agriculture, forest-based production and related value chains
  • Participatory and action-research based methodologies
  • Gendered access to digital technology (e.g., marketing) and FinTech
  • Social capital, norms and values shaping women’s economic empowerment
  • Policies and regulatory arrangements critical to women’s space in agriculture and forestry value chains
  • Budgetary and programmatic links to women’s economic empowerment
  • Impact of COVID-19 on women entrepreneurs
  • Climate change impact on women led/engaged enterprises.

We accept four broad types of articles, i.e., analytical research papers, opinion/commentary pieces, literary review articles and empirically oriented essays highlighting insights based on practice-based knowledge from the field. The research papers can include articles that are based on rich empirical data, preferably collected fresh from the field. However, rigorous analysis of secondary/historical sources will also be accepted. Shorter opinion pieces/commentary will also be accepted. All articles need to be guided by a well-formulated purpose and clearly defined research questions.

Please send your abstracts of 200-300 words for the research paper, review article, opinion piece or empiric reports together with a short bio of author/s of 150-200 words to info@newangle.sias-southasia.org by 31st March 2023. All pieces will be in English and the deadline for submission of full contributions will be 1st June 2023.  

Chief Editor: Dr. Dil B. Khatri

Special Issue Editors: Dr. Andrea Petitt, Dr. Meeta Sainju Pradhan, Dr. Mani Ram Banjade, Rachana Upadhyaya and Gyanu Maskey

Managing Editor: Parbati Pandey