Why Gender Justice and Dismantling Patriarchy?

As a grassroots environmental and social justice federation, Friends of the Earth International sees system change as crucial for the transformation of our societies. We recognise gender justice and the dismantling of patriarchy as key to achieving this transformative change. We affirm grassroots, anti-capitalist feminism as an essential tool to achieving equality, transformation and, ultimately, system change.

In this new booklet, we explain the key concepts that help us talk about, understand, analyse and strategise within this area of work. It is the result of three years of collective conceptualisation, with the the contributions and analysis of the Gender Justice Dismantling Patriarchy Working Group of Friends of the Earth International, together with national member groups, regions and international structures. Through this work, we are collectively deepening our understanding of power and oppressions in order to challenge and dismantle them.

• What is the sexual division of labour and what does it have to do with patriarchy?
• How is power consolidated and reproduced within our societies and through what mechanisms of oppression?
• What does gender justice and the dismantling of patriarchy have to do with us?
• What would a gender just world look like?
• Why do we believe feminism is essential to system change?

With reflections and stories from different regions, the booklet shows how gender inequality and injustice impact women in our organisations and how patriarchy interlinks with other systemic oppressions – racism, capitalism, class oppression, neocolonialism, heteronormativity – to structure our societies to the benefit of certain social groups.

Do you feel unsure about how to put your commitment to gender and social justice into practice?

We hope this booklet will be a useful and accessible tool for capacity-building, training and political formation. It includes practical ideas for strengthening gender justice, challenging power relations and dismantling patriarchy in your work and organisation. It also inspires us to come together to learn and build alliances with other social and environmental justice organisations and movements.