This text explores the link between gender issues and humanitarian work. A central theme is the ways in which emergencies affect men and women differently, from the risks they face during disasters to their changing roles and the resources they bring in preparing for and coping with disaster.

This collection of articles explores the interface between gender issues and humanitarian work. A central theme is the ways in which emergencies affect men and women differently, from the risks and vulnerabilities they face during disasters to their changing roles and responsibilities and the resources they bring in preparing for and coping with disaster. Less well recognized are the ways in which humanitarian responses influence the nature of gender relations. Some contributors focus on humanitarian activity during natural disasters and analyse responses to conflict, others look at the post-crisis period of reconstruction and provide lessons and recommendations for conflict resolution and peacebuilding. While the difficulties of integrating gender equity goals are acknowledged, the authors argue that gender blind responses can worsen the immediate survival of women and their families, and their long term position in society as well as deny them the opportunity of exercising their potential as peace builders.

Editorial
Saving and protecting lives by empowering women
Contested terrain: Oxfam. gender and the aftermath of war
Gender, conflict and building sustainable peace: recent lessons in Latin America
Empowering women through cash relief in humanitarian contexts
Healing the psychological wounds of gender-related violence in Latin America: a model for gender-sensitive work in post-conflict contexts
Gender and power relations in a bureaucratic context: female immigrants from Ethiopia in an absorption centre in Israel
Gendering ethnicity in Kyrgyzstan: forgotten elements in promoting peace and democracy
Reconstructing roles and relations: women's participation in reconstruction in post-Mitch Nicaragua
Resources
Publications
Organisations
Electronic resources.