Gender and Sexuality Commons^™

Giving A Voice To The Powerless: Participatory Monitoring & Evaluation As A Tool For Inclusive Development Through Microfinance, Evan T. Burke

Capstone Collection

The greatest experts on the situation of the marginalized peoples of the world are the marginalized communities themselves. This paper explores how participatory monitoring & evaluation can be a powerful tool for giving voices to marginalized communities, ensuring that the voices of beneficiaries and local stakeholders are heard and inform sustainable project design. It analyzes a participatory monitoring and evaluation methodology implemented for women’s credit cooperatives in Gujarat, India by the Human Development & Research Centre, and examines lessons to be learned to design evaluations facilitating inclusive development.

Strategies for the monitoring and evaluation of microfinance have evolved along with …

Implementation Of A Participatory Approach To Monitoring And Evaluation: Literature Review & Case Study Application, Lucas Sokol-Oxman

Capstone Collection

A literature review is presented drawing from a variety of experts and practitioners who discuss their knowledge and experience with participatory monitoring and evaluation (PM&E). The findings suggest that the broader participation of stakeholders further enhances the quality and credibility of monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Collaboration and engagement between implementors and beneficiaries enhances the sustainability of program outcomes after the program’s involvement ends. Recommendations are made about how participation could be incorporated into the implementation of an M&E system for Women Thrive Worldwide. Additional resources to facilitate the development of a PM&E system are offered.

Keywords: participation, participatory monitoring and …

Social Identity-Based Threats To Human Security: Gender Practice In Sustainable Development And Conflict Transformation, Emma W. Buck

Capstone Collection

I seek to advocate for practitioners in conflict transformation and/or sustainable development to build awareness around the peoples who, according to the status afforded them by their identities within a social context, experience threats to their own sense of human security within situations of violent conflict and/or underdevelopment. This capstone does so by examining gender -- that is, the context-specific distinctions between men and women-- as a social context that influences an individual’s feelings of human security. The capstone then expands a practitioner’s means of addressing gender-based threats to human security in situ. I will first define and situate …

Huggies, High-Fives, And Huismannen: Exploring The Masculinity And Everyday Experiences Of Dutch Stay-At-Home Fathers, Courtney C. Grey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This qualitative research study explores Dutch stay-at-home fathers, or “huismannen,” and their everyday experiences with their role and their own masculinity. There has been much research conducted on stay-at-home fathers within other countries and cultures, but the current research significantly lacks the perspective and voices of those within the Dutch culture. To gather these voices, oral history interviews were conducted with five Dutch huismannen, and the collected data were analyzed using gender theory focused on masculinity and current relevant literature. This analysis led to the conclusion that Dutch stay-at-home fathers create and conform to a complicit masculine identity. …

Talking Mirrors: Experiences Of Older Transgender Adults And Culturally Competent Mental Healthcare Profes-Sionals With Talk Therapy In The Netherlands, Kate Cieplicki

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Historically, both the general population and mental healthcare providers specifically have misunderstood the transgender identity as pathological and unnatural. Despite persistent ignorance in the mental healthcare field about the background and needs of transgender adults, a psychoanalytic evaluation is required by the gender clinic for a transgender individual to begin the gender transition process in the Netherlands. This requirement creates a degree of tension and mistrust between the transgender individual and the mental healthcare field. Such discomfort is unfortunate because statistically transgender adults face more mental health problems than their cisgender peers, likely because of the stress that comes from …

Child Marriage: Addressing The Challenges And Obstacles In The Post-2015 Agenda, Valeria Pelayo

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study explores the progress of child marriage eradication over the last forty years in order to identify the weak points of implementation as well as how these are being incorporated in the post-2015 agenda. An assessment of current rates by geographic region and several other demographic factors is included along with future projections for these affected areas. The shortcomings identified include a lack of program evaluation, negligence towards married children, a shortage of data on sub-national legislation efficacy, and minimal attention paid to child marriage in the context of slavery and human trafficking. The scope of the problem is …

Engaging Non-State Armed Groups (Nsags) In The ‘Fight’ Against Sexual And Gender-Based Violence In Eastern Congo (Drc), Mackenzie Kennedy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

While the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has managed to achieve a greater level of stability more than a decade after finding itself at the center of “Africa’s World War,” the Eastern region of the country continues to face insecurity developments as poorly controlled domestic and foreign armed groups have undermined attempts to secure peace in the region since the end of the Rwandan genocide. Sexual violence has been used as a tool to humiliate, dominate, terrorize, displace, and control civilian populations. Despite much needed international attention towards assisting SGBV survivors, there remains a lack of effective preventative efforts …

Poner Fin A La Violencia Hacia La Mujer: Estrategias Y Opiniones De Tres Organizaciones Feministas En Valparaíso, Chile, Hannah Neukrug

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Violence against women is a worldwide problem that affects about 1 in every 3 women in Chile (Ministerios del Interior y Seguridad Pública, 2013). In this study, I research the responses to this issue in Chile by asking the following questions: What strategies do some feminist organizations of the civil society in Valparaíso, Chile use in order to combat violence against women: Do you strategies include men? Why or why not? I hope to accomplish three objectives: outline the deep-rooted causes of violence against women and ways to combat these causes, define the forms in which some feminist organizations try …

Women’S Work In A Rural Village: Realities, Motivations, And Satisfaction, Sierra Larson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

According to a United Nations report published in 2004, the remaining key challenge to women’s empowerment and gender equality is “women’s indifference to their own empowerment." [1] Initially I was interested in conducting my fieldwork on the state of women’s satisfaction with women’s rights and gender equality in Indonesia, as well as limits to greater equality. Before beginning my study, I spent time considering this declaration about women’s indifference as a potential barrier to greater empowerment and equality, as well as the biases inherent in the statement. I decided to not focus directly on women’s satisfaction with gender equality, since …

“I’Ve Taken My Own Power”: Insights Into Women’S Empowerment And Its Effectiveness In Different Ngos In Cape Town, Molly Willeford

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The research outlined in this study examines different views on women’s empowerment in Cape Town, South Africa. Although a new Constitution and a new democracy promises equal opportunities for men and women, vast inequalities can still be seen throughout most of the country, with the city of Cape Town being no exception. There are numerous non-government organizations in Cape Town, most working towards what they call “the empowerment of South African women.” But what does empowerment mean for the workers and volunteers within these NGOs? The three participants in this study all belong to different organizations in the Cape Town …

The F Word: An Analysis Of The Perceptions And Performance Of Feminisms Amongst Five Black, Xhosa Women Living In Langa, Victoria Chigozie Akah

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This independent study project analyzes the perceptions and practice of feminisms amongst female township residents through a small-scale research project that involved interviewing a group of five women living in Langa as well as research on the development of feminist thought on the African continent and in South Africa. Some might say that the South African constitution is decidedly feminist with Section 9 of its constitution guaranteeing equality for all, regardless of gender or sex. Despite the development of feminist thought in South Africa, especially in “the Academy”, articles often hint at the skepticism feminism receives in Black, female spaces …

Gender And Sexuality In Nepal: The Experiences Of Sexual And Gender Minorities In A Rapidly Changing Social Climate, Sophia Greene

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Gender and sexuality in current day Nepal is at the crux of a societal revolution, as the deeply ingrained patriarchal society framed against the emergence of new ideas results in a shifting social climate in which old and new clash. As modernization and economic development permeate Nepal, they bring with them individualistic ideals which gradually infiltrate society, altering long held social attitudes toward marriage, gender, and sexuality. However, despite societal change and even changing legislation for the rights of women and members of the LGBTI community, both of these minorities still face overwhelming discrimination and prejudice in Nepali society. Sexual …

Lasrealidades Y Los Desafíosde Los Padres Adolescentes. Valparaíso, Chile, Kenechukwu Nwosu

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research on adolescent parenthood for a long time all but ignored the realities of adolescent fathers, butsignificant interest has arisen in the past decade in this area. In Chile, however, the literature remains scarce. The following study describes and analyzes adolescent paternity through the experiences of six young fathers. Individual interviews with the men touched on the ways in which they have handled the untimely transition to fatherhood, as well as the challenges and obstacles to active participation in their children’s lives. The fathers expressedhighly positive views of paternity and recognized the importance not only of their financial contribution but …

Let’S Talk About Sex, And What Happens When We Don’T: How Limited Sex Education In Nepal’S Government Schools Affects Women In Arranged Marriages, Isabelle Stillman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In Nepal’s government secondary schools, the reproductive health curriculum is often covered in a single week, and many teachers neglect to administer the lessons thoroughly due to beliefs that sex is a private matter, inappropriate or unnecessary for students. The government curriculum not only lacks detail about reproduction and intercourse, but, in the information it does include, defines male and female puberty processes, reproductive systems, sexual health, roles in family planning, and intercourse in ways that further the gender inequality so deeprooted in Nepali culture. Following secondary school, many women in Nepal are married in arranged matches, to men they …

Accessing Canal Pride: The Intersection Of Identities For Lgbt People With Physical Disabilities At A Global Event, Margaret Webb

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research is the study of the intersection between queerness and disability within the context of Amsterdam Gay Pride, specifically the Canal Parade. The study examines the intersection between LGBT identity and physical disability at the event and in surrounding organization and events within the Amsterdam LGBT community. The primary research question was: how does Amsterdam Canal Pride’s accessibility affect both the positioning of the LGBT and disabled identifying community in Amsterdam and the relevance of the event as a place of activism and celebration? Five interviewees identifying as lesbian or gay, possessing a physical disability, participating in activism within …

La Atención De Mujeres Con Complicaciones Post-Aborto En Un Hospital Público Del Partido De La Matanza: La Perspectiva De Los Profesionales De La Salud / The Perspective Of Health Professionals On The Quality Oftreatment For Women With Complications Post-Abortion Ina Public Hospital In La Matanza, Hannah Collins

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Background: In Argentina, abortion is illegal under all circumstances except for when a woman has been raped, has a mental disability or her life is in danger. There are approximately 500,000 abortions practiced each year in Argentina, and the majority is performed in an unsafe manner, which can result in complications that require medical attention. In 2010, over 50,000 women were hospitalized because of complications post-abortion. These complications can include hemorrhages, infections, or other toxic illnesses. After the International Conference on Population and Development in 1994 they identified post-abortion care as a worldwide problem. Subsequently, Argentina created a guide for …

Dating In Dharamsala The Tibetan Exile Dating Experience, Ben Kingstone

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

By studying the younger generation’s dating culture in the Tibetan exile community of Dharamsala, I hoped to glean a deeper insight into how cultural values effected interpersonal relationships in an everyday context, and in doing so hoped to find a bit about the unique qualities of Tibetan culture. I came in with many ideas of different themes, from Buddhist values and their effect on the dating culture, to the effect of assimilation on imported Tibetan ideas about dating and relationships. What I ultimately found had very little to do with Buddhist ideas and had far larger implications about the effects …

Learning How To Fly The Intersectionality Of Religion, Culture And Gender Of The Samoan Baha’I Community, Detmer Yens Kremer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Samoan Baha’i community balances their multiple identities in a society where they are a minority. Their cultural, religious and gender identities are all essential to their expressions as human beings, and this research aims to explore how Samoan Baha’i reconcile their multiplicity of identities. Information was gathered through a wide range of primary and secondary resources consisting of interviews, other forms of personal communications and participatory observation. An expansion of the notion of intersectionality in a Pacific context contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of cultural change, globalization and social justice. As the Baha’i religion does not believe in …

Normaal Is Gek Genoeg: Homonormativity & Inclusivity In Amsterdam’S Lgbtq Community, Devin Hanley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper examines the mechanics of inclusivity and exclusion within a homonormative framework in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) spaces in modern-day Amsterdam. Using interviews from five participants involved in various capacities with LGBT/Q spaces in the city, the following paper asserts that the divide between the LGB and TQ communities in the city is predicated, in large part, on the openness in each community towards nonnormative sexual and (especially) gender expressions. In conclusion, it offers suggestions for further inquiry into intersectional inclusion and exclusion factors in these spaces, as well as an examination of the pronounced political …

Violence Against Women And Machismo A Research Study Of How Machismo Justifies Cases Of Violence Against Women And The Psychological Process That Influence Women To Remain In Abusive Relationships In The City Of Fortaleza, Rosa Cabrera

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research is a study on the phenomenon of violence against women that the city of Fortaleza is currently experiencing. Violence against women is an issue that is affecting women worldwide, however in the context of Fortaleza it has become extremely prominent. This study looks whether or not the socialization process of men and women influence rates of violence against women, if institutions are giving life to this violence, and how violence is manifesting in the lives of women in Fortaleza through the eyes of three professionals at Centro de Referencia, one professional at the Delegacia de Defesa da Mulher …

Fuera De La Casa En Búsqueda De Espacios Para Mujeres Jóvenes En Matagalpa / Outside The House Search Spaces For Young Women In Matagalpa, Brenna Bailey

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In Matagalpa one can see many spaces that are for and dominated by men. At any age there are a multitude of activities available to them. And where are the women? Most likely they are in the house. In a crucial period of growth young women are restricted: to the house, by responsibilities young men do not have, and by the limitations placed on them by society. This investigation exposes some limitations and obstacles young women in Matagalpa are up against. It focuses on women already involved in organized activities; a futsal soccer team, a ballet school and a Christian …

Empowered For A Better Future: An Analysis Of Women’S Empowerment Through Gulu Women’S Economic Development And Globalization (Gwed-­‐G) Organization In Gulu, Uganda, Jessica Wightman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study aims to determine the motivating factors that women in Gulu District, Uganda have for joining empowerment programs, how their perception about their own empowerment has changed over time, and the role one non-­‐ governmental organization (NGO) has played in assisting in these women’s empowerment. Data was gathered through 12 personal, semi-­‐structured interviews with the assistance of a translator when necessary. Ten of the subjects currently participate in empowerment programs through Gulu Women’s Economic Development and Globalization (GWED-­‐G), a local NGO. The two remaining subjects are staff members at GWED-­‐G and served as key informants to this study. The …

In Search Of Women’S Full Inclusion: A Case Study Of The Institute For Inclusive Security’S Advocacy For Women’S Inclusion In Sudan And South Sudan’S Cooperation Agreements, Anna Tonelli

Capstone Collection

Over the past nearly two decades, efforts to increase women’s inclusion in peacebuilding have grown exponentially as more research has proven that women’s participation leads to more sustainable peace processes. Yet women continue to be the marginalized from all levels of official processes including negotiation, drafting of resolutions, and implementing agreements. Nowhere is this more exemplary that in the efforts for peace between Sudan and South Sudan. The Cooperation Agreement, signed in September 2012 offered yet another opportunity to engage women. However, once more the processes excluded them from the table. In an effort to finally convince policymakers that women’s …

Black, White And Rainbow All Over: The Segregation Present Among Cape Town’S Pride Festival, Lucy Stockdale

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My ISP works to illuminate the racial segregation that is still present within Cape Town’s LGBT community, particularly during the celebration of gay and lesbian rights, known as the Pride festival that takes place annually in the end of February. I do this through discussing the privilege that comes with access to both information about Pride and the location of the events that take place. By looking at Pride as a parade for the white gay man to celebrate the rights he was granted twenty years ago, I work to openly discuss how a history of exclusion has lived on …

A Mixed Bag: The Inter-Religious Marriage Experience In Bali, Chelsea Bhajan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper aims to investigate how marriage customs as well as the perception of religion and its role in daily and family life changes within the context of religious plurality. This study specifically focuses on the experience of interreligious marriages on the island of Bali in Indonesia. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken in both Bahasa Indonesia and English in north and south Bali and minimally in east Bali. Twenty-one respondents were garnered in seventeen interview sessions. Findings showed a variety of means of dealing with this plurality, including choosing to follow only one faith, practising aspects of several faiths together and …

Young Women’S Perceptions And Narratives Of Intergenerational And Transactional Sexual Relationships In Durban, Kwazulu-Natal, Mckenzie Leier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Transactional sexual relationships are argued to be a potent driver of the HIV epidemic among young women in South Africa. KwaZulu-Natal bears the heaviest burden of the epidemic. The practice has roots in South Africa’s social and political history of oppression, as well as the tides of post-apartheid globalization. Through a combination of individual interviews and focus groups discussions (FGDs), this study explores 21 young women’s perceptions and narratives of transactional sex from an ‘othered’ perspective. Individual interviews were conducted in the township community of Cato Manor; FGDs were conducted with the assistance of OneVoice South Africa (OVSA) in KwaMashu …

Adorative Worship, Respectively. Does The Concept Of Peacebuilding Adequately Address Gender In Africa ? An Accord Practicum, Sylvia Percovich

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

There are certain themes that must be at the core of peacebuilding, gender is one of them. This study aims to answer if the field of peacebuilding adequately addresses the issue of gender in their African missions.The thesis argues that by approaching peacebuilding efforts through a gendered lens, actors are able to increase the chance of creating sustainable peace. This independent study looks at the role gender currently plays and should play in peacebuilding efforts in Africa. Moreover, it outlines where the gaps between policy and implementation exist on the topic. The research seeks to answer three main points: What …

Factors Contributing To Intimate Partner Violence And The Effectiveness Of Services Available To Help Victims In Kisumu, Kenya., Dianne Uwayo

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Gender Based Violence continues to be a global epidemic that physically, emotionally, sexually and economically affects women and girls worldwide. This study examines intimate partner violence, the most prevalent form of Gender Based Violence. The study seeks to determine the extent of IPV in Kisumu, Kenya as well as the factors which contribute to its prevalence in the city and the effectiveness of services available for IPV victims. Data was derived from face-to-face administered surveys, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. The salient findings of the study are that a majority of women in Kisumu are experiencing intimate partner …

Memoirs Of A Mother: Life Between An Islamic Fantasy, Cultural Patriarchy, And The Startling Reality., Nicole Fauster

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Article 490 of the Moroccan Penal Code deems sexual relations outside of marriage illegal and punishable by one month to one-year prison time. But in a society where marriage is often delayed due to financial restrictions, premarital sex is common and pervasive. Though premarital sex is the norm amongst many, if a lady becomes pregnant, the tables turn she is labeled a “whore” or a “street woman”. If a man fathers a child out of wedlock; he can simply deny affiliation and walk out of the picture.The woman is marginalized, and the father of the child does not bear any …

Fútbol Femenino: Empoderamiento En Una Cultura Machista, Chloe Wheeler

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este trabajo investiga el efecto de la cultura machista en el fútbol femenino, y cómo la participación en fútbol de las mujeres puede ser una fuente de empoderamiento a pesar de que existe el machismo en formas diferentes. Ha sido un trayecto difícil para las mujeres en fútbol, pero hay mucha esperanza hacia el futuro, porque los jóvenes de esta generación están progresando con sus actitudes hacia los derechos y las oportunidades de las mujeres—los roles de género no son tan fijos como hace años atrás. Resultando que, los puntos de vista de la gente más adulta están cambiando. Sin …