Culturally, men Sample Clauses

Culturally, men predominate in public fora “It is traditionally the role of men to attend such meetings” (Havik Brahmin woman, Uttara Kannada) and “Women feel like they are in the wrong place in a VFC meeting. If problems are there, then women trust that men will come up with some solutions” (woman NGO staff, Uttara Kannada). Women are also silenced because they are thought not to have important ideas to contribute. In Mandla, a Pancha woman states, “when the women speak, the men tell the women ‘Shut up, you don’t know what you are talking about’, and they say ‘don’t speak in front of everyone’”. Speaking out at meetings, when women do attend, can be perceived as a sign of disrespect towards men. Attending meetings can itself be considered a sign of disobedience towards one's husband. Ethnic Exclusions in JFM Ethnicity also strongly shapes participation in JFM. In terms of representation, there are seats reserved for marginalized communities in the VFCs, some of which are filled by women from those communities. In Uttara Kannada, the VFC representatives from ST, SC and OBC communities interviewed generally feel that they do participate and are heard in matters of forest management. Members of the Havik Brahmin community, including many VFC board members and presidents, share that opinion, especially as they indicate that the ST, SC and OBC communities have the largest stake in maintaining and generating income from the forest. Nonetheless, participants alluded to the many barriers these communities face in attending, participating in, and influencing the VFC board and annual meetings and decisions.