Gender and Ecofeminism

In this article I explore the implications of feminist and gender approaches for development for ecofeminism, especially religious ecofeminism. I base my discussion primarily on my experience of conducting gender analysis for a development project in China and Vietnam.1 My purpose is to explore the religious questions that were raised for me in this concrete (and not explicitly religious) context. I conclude (1) that religious ecofeminism can gain insight from the concrete data supplied by gender analysis; attention to the actual day to day roles of men and women not only tests accepted theories but also raises new concerns and challenges that must be taken seriously within the ecofeminist agenda, and (2) that the concrete data of my experience suggest that a religious ecofeminism relevant to the poor of the developing world (or perhaps poor anywhere) must focus primarily on an agenda for the so-called developed world.