GenDecCCR | Gendering and Decolonising Climate Change Research: Exploring the Waterberg, South Africa

Summary
For decades the living biosphere has been over-exploited and subjected to a corporate-industrial food system and fossil-fuel extractivism, both practices destroying ecosystems and releasing pathogens. Global South populations – most notably women – are particularly impacted by these inter-connected ecological, social, and economic crises of our time. At the same time, however, women are a pivotal force in mobilising struggles for environmental and climate justice. This project specifically offers the first in-depth exploration of climate justice activism led by women living adjacent to coal mines and coal power stations in a ‘new frontier space’ of coal extraction in South Africa, as emblematic of the crises of our time and transformative responses to such.

The project’s overall aim is to contribute towards current climate change and climate justice research and activism, through adopting a unique gendering and decolonising theoretical framework and methodology. It aims to not only develop and conduct a unique approach to conducting interdisciplinary social science research but also to have a concrete impact on the capacity of ordinary women to resist the dire effects of mega-coal mining projects on their lands and communities. The (i) methodological, (ii) theoretical and (iii) concrete objectives of the proposed research are: develop innovative feminist, participatory action research methodologies in response to the climate crisis; produce an original and interdisciplinary history and presence of the Waterberg, drawing on political ecological, feminist and decolonial theoretical frameworks in order to contribute towards understanding the historical and colonial causes of climate change in the Waterberg; support the collective self-organisation of women in the Waterberg who are campaigning against extractivism and climate change; and target future North-South research and civil society collaborations by connecting organisations.
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101023502
Start date: 01-11-2021
End date: 14-11-2023
Total budget - Public funding: 212 933,76 Euro - 212 933,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

For decades the living biosphere has been over-exploited and subjected to a corporate-industrial food system and fossil-fuel extractivism, both practices destroying ecosystems and releasing pathogens. Global South populations – most notably women – are particularly impacted by these inter-connected ecological, social, and economic crises of our time. At the same time, however, women are a pivotal force in mobilising struggles for environmental and climate justice. This project specifically offers the first in-depth exploration of climate justice activism led by women living adjacent to coal mines and coal power stations in a ‘new frontier space’ of coal extraction in South Africa, as emblematic of the crises of our time and transformative responses to such.

The project’s overall aim is to contribute towards current climate change and climate justice research and activism, through adopting a unique gendering and decolonising theoretical framework and methodology. It aims to not only develop and conduct a unique approach to conducting interdisciplinary social science research but also to have a concrete impact on the capacity of ordinary women to resist the dire effects of mega-coal mining projects on their lands and communities. The (i) methodological, (ii) theoretical and (iii) concrete objectives of the proposed research are: develop innovative feminist, participatory action research methodologies in response to the climate crisis; produce an original and interdisciplinary history and presence of the Waterberg, drawing on political ecological, feminist and decolonial theoretical frameworks in order to contribute towards understanding the historical and colonial causes of climate change in the Waterberg; support the collective self-organisation of women in the Waterberg who are campaigning against extractivism and climate change; and target future North-South research and civil society collaborations by connecting organisations.

Status

CLOSED

Call topic

MSCA-IF-2020

Update Date

28-04-2024
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Horizon 2020
H2020-EU.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE
H2020-EU.1.3. EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
H2020-EU.1.3.2. Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
MSCA-IF-2020 Individual Fellowships