Gender Justice and Policy: Is ‘Mainstreaming’ Up to the Challenge?

Dr Caren Levy

This session will critically review whose agenda gender mainstreaming has served since its inception and the conflict between the 'mainstream' experience of development policy and the more transformative intentions of gender mainstreaming. Key questions about possible future directions for a gender mainstreaming which seeks to address gender justice are posed for discussion.

Bio

Dr Levy is an urban development planner who works on governance and community-led development, with a focus on housing, infrastructure and transport in cities and urban areas in the global South. She has a special interest in the institutionalisation of social justice in policy and planning, with particular reference to the cross cutting issues of gender, diversity and environment. In linking these concerns to development practice, Dr Levy has 25 years experience of teaching, research, training and consultancy in ‘mainstreaming’ gender and social justice in organisational development, exploring innovatory approaches to planning methodology, planning education, capacity building and learning related to the development of the built environment. She works both in London and abroad for governments and international organisations, including UN Habitat, ILO, IMO, EU, DFID, FCO, SDC, SIDA, NORAD, and in-country, including Egypt, Namibia, Mozambique, India, Sri Lanka, Chile and Brazil.

Organiser: Bloomsbury Gender Network and the Centre for Gender Studies (SOAS)

Contact email: N.S.Al-Ali@soas.ac.uk