Gender and Urban Life
Global Urban Development Volume 2 Issue 1 March 2006
BUILDING GENDER EQUALITY IN URBAN LIFE
1
GENDER EQUALITY AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT: BUILDING BETTER COMMUNITIES FOR ALL
Monika Jaeckel and Marieke van Geldermalsen
Introduction
When looking at cities from a gender perspective, one of the main differences affecting the use of urban space is in terms of female and male care-giving roles and responsibilities. Due to the gender-specific division of labor, women do most of the direct care-giving work within families and communities. As such, women are central to urban planning and development, both as key users of urban space in their role as home managers, and as key producers of residential environments in their role as community leaders and initiators of neighborhood networks. The current development of urban infrastructure and the built environment needs to be redesigned to promote greater gender equality in the use and benefits of urban space. Many of the past and present trends in urban planning and development reflect the male perspective regarding the role of women as primary caregivers. Viewing families, communities, towns, cities, and regions from a gender perspective requires a radical shift both in thinking and in actions. This article summarizes basic principles that can inform urban planning, policies, and programs in the process of redesigning and redeveloping urban areas to be more gender-sensitive, inclusive, and responsive to everyone’s needs.
Reclaiming Public Space for Daily Life
Decades of a fragmented approach in urban planning has led to segregated urban environments where residences, workplaces, shopping districts, and leisure environments constitute separate spheres linked by extensive motorways and public transportation systems. In this approach traffic has become dominant, relegating all other functions to compressed and de-linked pockets of urban life amidst a vast landscape of infrastructure and technology. Caregivers needing
BUILDING GENDER EQUALITY IN URBAN LIFE
1
GENDER EQUALITY AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT: BUILDING BETTER COMMUNITIES FOR ALL
Monika Jaeckel and Marieke van Geldermalsen
Introduction
When looking at cities from a gender perspective, one of the main differences affecting the use of urban space is in terms of female and male care-giving roles and responsibilities. Due to the gender-specific division of labor, women do most of the direct care-giving work within families and communities. As such, women are central to urban planning and development, both as key users of urban space in their role as home managers, and as key producers of residential environments in their role as community leaders and initiators of neighborhood networks. The current development of urban infrastructure and the built environment needs to be redesigned to promote greater gender equality in the use and benefits of urban space. Many of the past and present trends in urban planning and development reflect the male perspective regarding the role of women as primary caregivers. Viewing families, communities, towns, cities, and regions from a gender perspective requires a radical shift both in thinking and in actions. This article summarizes basic principles that can inform urban planning, policies, and programs in the process of redesigning and redeveloping urban areas to be more gender-sensitive, inclusive, and responsive to everyone’s needs.
Reclaiming Public Space for Daily Life
Decades of a fragmented approach in urban planning has led to segregated urban environments where residences, workplaces, shopping districts, and leisure environments constitute separate spheres linked by extensive motorways and public transportation systems. In this approach traffic has become dominant, relegating all other functions to compressed and de-linked pockets of urban life amidst a vast landscape of infrastructure and technology. Caregivers needing