Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community
Abstract Indigenous communities in Canada suffer disproportionately from compromised water insecurity, with multiple negative implications. Some attention has been paid to gender and water insecurity in developing countries, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa, but the topic has been neglected for suba...
Published in: | The Canadian Geographer / Le Géographe canadien |
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crwiley:10.1111/cag.12508 2024-06-23T07:54:11+00:00 Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community Hanrahan, Maura Mercer, Nicholas 2018 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cag.12508 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cag.12508 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/cag.12508 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Canadian Geographies / Géographies canadiennes volume 63, issue 2, page 211-224 ISSN 0008-3658 1541-0064 journal-article 2018 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/cag.12508 2024-06-04T06:38:26Z Abstract Indigenous communities in Canada suffer disproportionately from compromised water insecurity, with multiple negative implications. Some attention has been paid to gender and water insecurity in developing countries, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa, but the topic has been neglected for subarctic settings. We conducted long‐term research in Black Tickle, a remote Inuit community in Labrador, Canada, with no piped water and limited access to potable water. Our research was aimed at understanding the multiple dimensions of water security, identifying materialist responses, and conducting a pilot project in domestic rainwater harvesting. Water security emerged as a gendered phenomenon. We supplemented our reflective analysis on this research with two focus group discussions during which Inuit women described their experiences of water security. Participants reported that their physical and mental health are undermined by water insecurity and that water is a source of multiple stresses that demand resilience. Given a developing remittance economy, gender was identified as an increasingly significant determinant of water insecurity in this subarctic community. Having to retrieve water themselves, Inuit women experience altered gender norms and a persistent values conflict in addition to physical strain. Water acquisition is an added responsibility, impacting their labour load. Alternatively, in relying on available men to retrieve water, participants reported feeling guilty and anxious and they worried about men fetching water in dangerous weather conditions and in the vicinity of dangerous wildlife. Participants’ experiences make clear the urgency for a materialist response to water insecurity in the Indigenous subarctic. Article in Journal/Newspaper inuit Subarctic Wiley Online Library Black Tickle ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.467,53.467) Canada Tickle ENVELOPE(-67.733,-67.733,-67.116,-67.116) The Canadian Geographer / Le Géographe canadien 63 2 211 224 |
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Abstract Indigenous communities in Canada suffer disproportionately from compromised water insecurity, with multiple negative implications. Some attention has been paid to gender and water insecurity in developing countries, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa, but the topic has been neglected for subarctic settings. We conducted long‐term research in Black Tickle, a remote Inuit community in Labrador, Canada, with no piped water and limited access to potable water. Our research was aimed at understanding the multiple dimensions of water security, identifying materialist responses, and conducting a pilot project in domestic rainwater harvesting. Water security emerged as a gendered phenomenon. We supplemented our reflective analysis on this research with two focus group discussions during which Inuit women described their experiences of water security. Participants reported that their physical and mental health are undermined by water insecurity and that water is a source of multiple stresses that demand resilience. Given a developing remittance economy, gender was identified as an increasingly significant determinant of water insecurity in this subarctic community. Having to retrieve water themselves, Inuit women experience altered gender norms and a persistent values conflict in addition to physical strain. Water acquisition is an added responsibility, impacting their labour load. Alternatively, in relying on available men to retrieve water, participants reported feeling guilty and anxious and they worried about men fetching water in dangerous weather conditions and in the vicinity of dangerous wildlife. Participants’ experiences make clear the urgency for a materialist response to water insecurity in the Indigenous subarctic. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Hanrahan, Maura Mercer, Nicholas |
spellingShingle |
Hanrahan, Maura Mercer, Nicholas Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
author_facet |
Hanrahan, Maura Mercer, Nicholas |
author_sort |
Hanrahan, Maura |
title |
Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
title_short |
Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
title_full |
Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
title_fullStr |
Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
title_full_unstemmed |
Gender and water insecurity in a subarctic Indigenous community |
title_sort |
gender and water insecurity in a subarctic indigenous community |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cag.12508 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/cag.12508 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/cag.12508 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-55.748,-55.748,53.467,53.467) ENVELOPE(-67.733,-67.733,-67.116,-67.116) |
geographic |
Black Tickle Canada Tickle |
geographic_facet |
Black Tickle Canada Tickle |
genre |
inuit Subarctic |
genre_facet |
inuit Subarctic |
op_source |
Canadian Geographies / Géographies canadiennes volume 63, issue 2, page 211-224 ISSN 0008-3658 1541-0064 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/cag.12508 |
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The Canadian Geographer / Le Géographe canadien |
container_volume |
63 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
211 |
op_container_end_page |
224 |
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1802646235059847168 |