Women Empowerment using ICT in AGriculture

8/12/2019 Women Empowerment using ICT in AGriculture

1/23

Rural womens empowerment in a communication technology project:

some contradictory effects

June Lennie

Paper published in RuralSociety, Vol 12, No 3, 2002, pp.224-245

Abstract

This paper presents selected indin!s ro" the e#aluation o a e"inist action researchpro$ect that ai"ed to enhance %ueensland rural &o"en's access to interacti#eco""unication technolo!ies ()*Ts+. ro$ect acti#ities ai"ed to e e"po&erin! andinclusi#e. They included online con#ersation !roups, &orshops and audioconerences. /"odel o &o"en's e"po&er"ent is used that co"prisessocial, technological, political

andpsychological or"s o e"po&er"ent.The e#aluation results su!!est that "anyparticipants eperienced each o these or"s o e"po&er"ent. The online !roup welink(&o"en's electronic lin+ &as considered particularly i"portant in acilitatin! &o"en'se"po&er"ent. o&e#er, the analysis also indicated #arious dise"po&erin! eects o

participatin! in the pro$ect. *ase studies o t&o participants illustrate these contradictoryeects. These results su!!est that enhancin! rural &o"en's technolo!ical e"po&er"entis ur!ently reuired, !i#en that use o )*Ts is eco"in! increasin!ly i"portant to theirleadership and participation in co""unity de#elop"ent. Strate!ies or enhancin! rural&o"en's e"po&er"ent are su!!ested.

1


2/23

Introduction

ith the shit to&ards a no&led!e society', the role o interacti#e co""unicationtechnolo!ies ()*Ts+ such as e"ail and the )nternet1in sustainale co""unity andecono"ic de#elop"ent is eco"in! increasin!ly i"portant (ansell and ehn, 1667+.

The eecti#e use o )*Ts in co""unity de#elop"ent pro$ects has een ar!ued to ha#e"any potentially e"po&erin! eneits and eects, such as !reater inclusion,cooperation, participation and &ellein! (Scott, 8ia"ond and S"ith, 1669: Si"pson etal, 2001: ilio, 166;+.

any &o"en in rural /ustralia are tain! leadership in co""unity and econo"icde#elop"ent acti#ities and are oten etre"ely reliant on a ran!e o co""unicationtechnolo!ies or personal, a"ily, usiness and net&orin! purposes. 8espite otenlacin! access to !ood uality inrastructure, technical support and trainin!, rural&o"en ha#e een ound to e enthusiastic adopters o ne& )*Ts (


3/23

The Rural Women and ICTs research project

?ro" early 166; to 8ece"er 1669 ) &as part o a tea" o researchers, ased at%ueensland Ani#ersity o Technolo!y in @risane, &ho undertoo a "a$or actionresearch pro$ectEnhancing Rural Womens Access to Interactive ommunication

!echnologies. The ai" o this pro$ect &as to eplore the current and potential i"pactso )*Ts or &o"en in rural, re!ional and re"ote %ueensland, in ter"s o personal,

usiness and co""unity de#elop"ent.

The pro$ect's e"inist participatory action research "ethodolo!y ai"ed to de#elop andi"ple"ent a participatory process &hich &as inclusi#e and e"po&erin! or

participants, taes the dierences et&een rural &o"en into account, and encoura!es&o"en to tae action leadin! to desirale chan!e' (=)*Ts =esearch Tea", 1666B12+.=e!ular critical relection and an on!oin! process o e#aluation (oth or"al andinor"al+ &ere i"portant eatures o this "ethodolo!y. )n addition to #arious onlinecon#ersation !roups, pro$ect acti#ities included &orshops held in ten %ueensland

co""unities and re!ular audioconerences &ith participants.

e conducted this pro$ect in collaoration &ith &o"en in rural co""unities and ei!ht!o#ern"ent and industry partners. The partners in#ol#ed &ere Telstra *orporation,e!asus Net&ors (an )nternet ser#ice pro#ider+, the Cices o o"en's /airs and=ural *o""unities, %ueensland ealth, and the 8epart"ents o ulic ors andousin!, ri"ary )ndustries, and Social Security. The pro$ect partners acti#ely

participated in so"e pro$ect acti#ities and pro#ided on!oin! input into the e#aluation.

/round 350 co""unity "e"ers, "ainly &o"en, had so"e in#ol#e"ent in the pro$ect.articipants included &o"en li#in! in rural to&ns and on re"ote ar"in! and !raDin!

properties, &o"en &ho &ere retired, and &o"en o #arious occupations and a!e!roups. hile "ost participants had a &hite /n!lo-*eltic ac!round, a s"all nu"ero indi!enous and "i!rant &o"en, includin! a e& &o"en ro" non-En!lish speain!

ac!rounds, too part in so"e pro$ect acti#ities.

Ealuation methodology and methods

8ra&in! on Shapiro (1677+, ads&orth (1669+ and others, a participatory e"iniste#aluation "ethodolo!y &as de#eloped to critically e#aluate the pro$ect's "ethods andacti#ities. This &as ased on a prais e"inist ra"e&or that ai"ed to !i#e #oice to,and #alidate the needs, #alues and eperiences o the participants. The e#aluation

included a ri!orous analysis o ho& &ell the pro$ect's "ethods and acti#ities "et thedi#erse needs o the participants, and "et the ai"s o e"po&erin! &o"en and includin!a di#ersity o &o"en. ultiple research "ethods &ere used, includin!B

articipant oser#ations o pro$ect acti#ities such as &orshops and online

con#ersation !roups.

)n depth, se"i-structured, indi#idual inter#ie&s &ith t&enty-si participants and

pro$ect staeholders co"prisin! thirteen participants (all &o"en+, si research tea""e"ers (our &o"en and t&o "en+, and se#en industry partner representati#es(i#e &o"en and t&o "en+. C these inter#ie&ees, nine participants, i#e research

tea" "e"ers and three industry partners too part in the pro$ect's online !roups.C the co""unity inter#ie&ees&ho participated in the online !roups, ele#en had

3


4/23

also taen part in &orshops, or &orshops plus other pro$ect acti#ities, &hile siparticipated in the pro$ect #ia the online !roups only.

T&o ocus !roup inter#ie&s conducted #ia audioconerence &ith i#e participants in

each (nine rural and one uran+. Ei!ht o the participants &ere online !roup

"e"ers.

/nalysis o diaries ept y si participants in the pro$ect's s"all online !roup

wechat.

/nalysis o selected e"ail "essa!es sent to the online !roups.

orshop eedac uestionnaires that pro#ided ualitati#e and uantitati#e data.

Statistical analysis o de"o!raphic and personal ac!round inor"ation pro#ided

y &orshop and online !roup participants.

The ualitati#e data analysis pro!ra" NA8F)ST &as used to code and analyse all o theocus !roup and inter#ie& data, &hile statistical analysis o uestionnaire data &asundertaen usin! the SSS pro!ra". The #alidation process included trian!ulation othe #arious data collected and the use o "ultiple analytical strate!ies and "ethods.?eedac on so"e o the analysis &as also otained ro" selected participants.

8urin! indi#idual and ocus !roup inter#ie&s, the participants, research tea" "e"ersand industry partners pro#ided deinitions o the concept e"po&er"ent'. To!ether&ith rele#ant literature on e"po&er"ent and the results o the analysis, this data &asused to de#elop a "odel o rural &o"en's e"po&er"ent.

!riedmanns framewor" of empowerment

?ried"ann's (1662+ alternati#e de#elop"ent and e"po&er"ent "odel pro#ided auseul ra"e&or or the analysis. This "odel o e"po&er"ent in#ol#es local sel-reliance, direct participatory de"ocracy and eperiential social learnin!. ?ried"ann's#ie& that e"po&er"ent cannot e conerred y eternal a!ents is si"ilar to that o*larid!e (166;+ and Lather (1661+, &hose &or &as also dra&n on. o&e#er, hesu!!ests that such a!ents can play a role in pro#idin! support in &ays that encoura!ethe dise"po&ered to ree the"sel#es o traditional dependency' (?ried"ann, 1662B 99+.

Tain! the perspecti#e o people in households, ?ried"ann ar!ues that they potentiallyha#e access to three inds o po&erBsocial, political andpsychological. Social po&er'reuires access to certain GasesH o household production such as inor"ation,no&led!e and sills, participation in social or!anisations, and inancial resources'(?ried"ann, 1662B 33+. This or" o e"po&er"ent thereore includes ey eatures osocial capital, &hich has een identiied as an essential ele"ent o sustainale ruralco""unity de#elop"ent (arrison, 1667: Si"pson et al, 2001+.

The concept o political po&er' includes access to the process y &hich decisions are"ade, particularly those that aect people's o&n uture. )t also includes the po&er to#ote, as &ell as the po&er o #oice and collecti#e action (?ried"ann, 1662B 33+.

?ried"ann su!!ests that this reuires a prior process o social e"po&er"ent to enaleeecti#e participation.

4


5/23

sycholo!ical po&er is deined y ?ried"ann as an indi#idual sense o potency &hichis de"onstrated in sel-conident eha#iour that oten results ro" successul action inthe social or political do"ains, althou!h it "ay also result ro" intersu$ecti#e &or'(?ried"ann, 1662B 33+. Se#eral researchers ha#e identiied sel-conidence and sel-estee" as essential irst steps' to e"po&er"ent (/nderson, 166;: *larid!e, 166;+.

?eelin!s o !reater indi#idual control are another i"portant aspect o psycholo!icale"po&er"ent (/nderson, 166;+.

/ll three inds o e"po&er"ent are seen y ?ried"ann as rele#ant to &o"en'sstru!!les and or" an interconnectin! triad. ?ried"ann (1662B 11;+ su!!ests that &henthis triad, centred on an indi#idual &o"an and household, is lined up &ith others, theresult is a social net&or o e"po&erin! relations that, ecause it is "utuallyreinorcin!, has etraordinary potential or social chan!e'.

/lthou!h so"e&hat idealistic, ?ried"ann's ra"e&or o e"po&er"ent is useulecause it su!!ests that e"po&er"ent and social chan!e is a "ultidi"ensional process

&hich reuires analysis at the "icro and "acro le#els o the indi#idual and theco""unity, or!anisation or !roup, and the interrelationships et&een the" sho&n. )talso hi!hli!hts the po&er and #alue o /ustralian rural &o"en's net&orin! acti#itiesthat ha#e een successul in !eneratin! action and chan!e (


6/23


7/23

oun!'s analysis o oppression &as considered #aluale in deinin! the concept odise"po&er"ent. oun! (1677B 291+ laels the i#e aces o oppression'Beploitation, "ar!inality, po&erlessness, cultural i"perialis", and #iolence'. Shear!ues that #arious !roups &ho are said to e oppressed, such as &o"en, lacs K

Nati#e /"ericans ... and poor people' are not oppressed to the sa"e de!ree or in the

sa"e &ays' (oun!, 1677B 290291+. o&e#er, she elie#es that in the "ost !eneralsense, all oppressed people share so"e inhiition o their aility to de#elop and eercisetheir capacities and epress their needs, thou!hts, and eelin!s' (p.291+.

oun! considers that "ost people Min North /"erica lac si!niicant po&er due totheir lac o participation in "ain! decisions aectin! their li#es. o&erlessness'descries the li#es o people

&ho ha#e little or no &or autono"y, eercise little creati#e $ud!e"ent intheir &or, ha#e no technical epertise or authority, epress the"sel#esa&&ardly, especially in pulic or ureaucratic settin!s, and do not

co""and respect. (oun!, 1677B 273+

This analysis is useul ecause it su!!ests that, lie e"po&er"ent, oppression (as aor" o dise"po&er"ent+ has se#eral dierent acets that aect !roups o people indierent &ays. )n addition, ecause dierent actors or co"inations o actors,constitute the oppression o dierent !roups', it is not possile to ha#e one essential'deinition o this concept (oun!, 1677B 29;+.

8ra&in! on oun!'s analysis, the #arious or"s o dise"po&er"ent related toparticipation in the =ural o"en and )*Ts pro$ect &ere identiied. 8ise"po&er"ent&as seen as ha#in! #arious or"s that are the inary opposite o the our or"s o

e"po&er"ent, su""arised ao#e. They &ere laelledsocial, technological, politicalandpsychological disempowerment. o&e#er, usin! a e"inist poststructuralistra"e&or o analysis, "y study also sho&ed the intersections et&een e"po&er"entand dise"po&er"ent and challen!ed #arious e"inist assu"ptions: such as !i#in!#oice to &o"en &ill lead to e"po&er"ent (see Lennie, 2001+.

)ey actiities of the Rural Women and ICTs project

The "a$or acti#ities o the =ural o"en and )*Ts pro$ect &ere &orshops, onlinecon#ersation !roups and audioconerences. The ai"s o these acti#ities included !i#in!#oice to participants aout their ey needs and issues related to co""unication

technolo!ies, uildin! conidence and sills in usin! ne& )*Ts, "aintainin! on!oin!co""unication, or!anisin! acti#ities, and learnin! aout the #arious uses that rural&o"en "ae o )*Ts. These acti#ities thereore sou!ht to acilitate "any o the or"so e"po&er"ent identiied ao#e.

The research tea" conducted ull and hal-day &orshops in #arious co""unities inrural, re!ional and re"ote %ueensland2in oth years o the pro$ect. The researchersai"ed to use processes that &o"en &ould eel co"ortale &ith and easily understoodand appropriate lan!ua!e. The #arious &orshop sessions included participants !i#in!

2These co""unities &ere Locyer Valley and


8/23


9/23

o participants - hi!h proile' ar"ers, lo& proile' ar"ers3and proessionals li#in! inrural to&ns - &ere also analysed.

Summary of the findings

/ lar!e nu"er o needs &ere identiied and di#ided into three road cate!oriesB

1.


10/23

participants eperienced #arious or"s and de!rees o dise"po&er"ent as a result otheir participation in #arious pro$ect acti#ities.

Empowering effects of the project

Each inter#ie&ee &as asedB o& &ell did the pro$ect "eet the ai" o e"po&erin!&o"enQ' The analysis sho&ed that 1;O o the inter#ie&ees indicated that the ai" oe"po&er"ent &as etre"ely &ell "et, 57O indicated that the ai" &as #ery &ell "et,23O indicated that the ai" had een uite &ell "et, and one thou!ht the ai" &as not"et.

Table #: *ow well interiewees thought the aim of empowerment was met in

relation to the project+ welinkand the wor"shops

E,tremely

well-ery well !airly well .ot met

/nly met

for some

ro$ect as a &hole 4 7 5 ;

Thewelink!roup 3 12 - 1 -

The &orshops - 3 2 1

Tale 1 sho&s that si!niicantly "ore the co""ents indicatin! that the ai" oe"po&erin! &o"en &as etre"ely &ell or #ery &ell "et &ere "ade aout the welink!roup, co"pared &ith the &orshops.

The forms of empowerment e,perienced

The needs analysis and assess"ent indicated that a si!niicant proportion o theinter#ie&ees and others &ho pro#ided eedac eperienced #arious or"s and de!reeso e"po&er"ent as a result o their participation in the pro$ect and the use o )*Ts inthe pro$ect. The "a$or types o e"po&er"ent that participants reported eperiencin!, or&ere indicated y the data analysis, are no& su""arised.

Social empowerment

any o the participants eperienced the ollo&in! or"s o social e"po&er"entB


11/23

Net&orin! &ith or "ain! contact &ith others in#ol#ed in the participants' areas o

interest such as rural co""unity de#elop"ent, tele&orin!, and &ritin!.

So"e inter#ie&ees also !ained eneits in relation to their paid &or or their usinesses.Ea"ples that &ere !i#en includedB

T&o !raDiers de#eloped #aluale contacts and ideas or their ar" touris" #entures.

Cne industry partner considered that a antastic ea"ple' o the opportunities

pro#ided y the pro$ect &as the &o"an &ho "o#ed ro" a property into a nearyrural to&n to successully estalish a s"all usiness pro#idin! co"puter support andtrainin! to ne& users.

Technological empowerment

Tain! part in the pro$ect also pro#ided "any participants &ith #aryin! de!rees o the

ollo&in! or"s o technolo!ical e"po&er"entB

Ne& no&led!e, a&areness and understandin! aout ne& )*Ts and their potential

eneits and i"pacts.

The de#elop"ent o ne& sills, eperience and !reater conidence and co"petence

in usin! ne& co""unication technolo!ies.

/d#ice and support in usin! e"ail and the )nternet, pro#ided in &ays that oten "et

the participants' needs #ery &ell.

So"e participants also eca"e "ore conident in talin! aout )*Ts, asin! oreplanations aout co"puters, asin! or help &ith co"puter prole"s, or helpin!others use or access )*Ts. Ten rural inter#ie&ees reported an increase in theirconidence in usin! co"puters, e"ail and the )nternet as a result o tain! part inthe pro$ect.

/n outco"e o the social and technolo!ical e"po&er"ent so"e participantseperienced &as enhanced &or or usiness opportunities. Se#eral inter#ie&ees"entioned the ea"ple o a #ery enthusiastic and acti#e pro$ect participant on arelati#ely re"ote property &ho &as oered the irst tele&orin! position &ith the%ueensland !o#ern"ent on a trial asis.

Cther outco"es o this technolo!ical e"po&er"ent includedB

8iscussin! &ith a riend the possiility o de#elopin! a $oint tele&orin! #enture

throu!h co"inin! their co"puter and &ritin! sills.

Encoura!in! other rural &o"en to !et online or assistin! the" &ith !ettin! online.

Cr!anisin! co"puter and )nternet &orshops or others in their local co""unity.

Talin! to local or!anisations and rural &o"en's !roups aout tele&orin! and the

)nternet.

11


12/23

Political empowerment

/s &ell as social and technolo!ical e"po&er"ent, se#eral participants also eperiencedthe ollo&in! or"s o political e"po&er"entB

a#in! a #oice and ein! listened to y the researchers and people in decision-"ain! positions in !o#ern"ent and industry.

articipatin! in or"ulatin! ideas and reco""endations or etter

teleco""unications and )nternet ser#ices and support, and inluencin! other!o#ern"ent policies and decisions that aect rural &o"en and rural co""unities.

*han!in! uran and to&n-ased people's elies and stereotypes aout ar"in!

&o"en.

Net&orin! or "eetin! &ith people in !o#ern"ent and industry and other &o"en to

loy or discuss issues aectin! rural &o"en and rural co""unities, and toor!anise #arious actions.

So"e participants also !ained ne& understandin!s aout e"inis" and !endereuity issues. Cne hi!h proile' ar"in! &o"en reported that she identiied as ae"inist or the irst ti"e ollo&in! a welinkdiscussion on e"inis".

/n i"portant or" o political and social e"po&er"ent &hich se#eral inter#ie&eeseperienced &as tain! indi#idual and collecti#e action to i"pro#e teleco""unicationser#ices and )nternet access or to pro"ote the eneits o the )nternet or ruralco""unities. These actions includedB

*onductin! re!ular "eetin!s o &o"en in#ol#ed in the pro$ect in t )sa to discuss

co""unity-ased initiati#es.

/pplyin! or "a$or !o#ern"ent undin! to i"ple"ent #arious rural co""unity

de#elop"ent pro$ects that in#ol#ed the use o ne& )*Ts. The "ost successul ea"pleo this &as the %=N's application to the =e!ional Teleco""unications)nrastructure ?und or the @rid!)T' pro$ect. This %ueensland-&ide )nternet trainin!

pro$ect recei#ed R2,000,000 in initial undin! and suseuently eca"e an etre"elysuccessul pro$ect.

ain! speeches and presentations at conerences and se"inars aout rural access to)*Ts, and the eneits o )*Ts or rural co""unity de#elop"ent.

Psychological empowerment

any pro$ect participants also reported eperiencin! the ollo&in! or"s opsycholo!ical e"po&er"entB

/n increase in sel-conidence and sel-estee". Se#en rural inter#ie&ees "entioned

that they or others had de#eloped "ore conidence to epress their opinions or#ie&s.

12


13/23

?eelin! "ore #alued, respected or that you ha#e "ore standin! or crediility.

articipatin! in welink appeared to e particularly eecti#e in de#elopin! thiseelin!.


14/23

/n increase in concern or ear aout the potentially ne!ati#e social i"pacts o ne&

)*Ts.

?eelin! an!er and rustration ecause o the poor uality teleco""unications

inrastructure in their area or the lac o appropriate and eecti#e custo"er ser#ice.

This &as a ey eperience o "any participants and pre#ented so"e &o"en ro"tain! part in the online !roups.

a#in! little or no access to appropriate technical support or ad#ice ro" others.

*ertain participants also eperienced the ollo&in! or"s opoliticaldise"po&er"entat ti"esB

Not ha#in! your #oice heard or not ein! !i#en an opportunity to epress your

urnin! issues' due to #arious actors.

?eelin! that your issues &ere not &ell understood or listened to y others.

Little or no i""ediate action ein! taen y !o#ern"ent or industry on the issues

raised due to the slo&ness o the policy-"ain! process, &hich increased cynicis"and scepticis".

@ein! silenced or eelin! restricted in talin! aout socially or politically

contro#ersial issues on the online !roups (see Lennie, 2000+.

Various types opsychologicaldise"po&er"ent &ere reported as ein! eperienced yso"e participants at ti"es, includin!B

?eelin! #ery ner#ous or lacin! conidence to spea out, as uestions, or to tae

part in certain pro$ect acti#ities.

?eelin! "ore earul or concerned aout the uture o rural co""unities ollo&in!

participation in pro$ect acti#ities such as &orshops.

Lac o a sense o elon!in! to &orshop or online !roups.

?eelin! that you are not #alued or respected y the people or or!anisations in#ol#ed

in the pro$ect.

?eelin! inti"idated y others tain! part in the &orshops or online !roups.

?eelin! concerned aout the etent to &hich other welink"e"ers "aintained the

conidentiality o personal issues raised on the list.

14


15/23

Case studies of empowerment and disempowerment

To urther illustrate the participants' co"ple eperiences o e"po&er"ent anddise"po&er"ent resultin! ro" their participation in the pro$ect and the use o)*Ts, our case studies o indi#idual participants &ere prepared. These case studies

&ere sent to each o the &o"en in#ol#ed. /ll o the" a!reed that their eperienceshad een accurately represented, and !a#e per"ission or personal details that "ayidentiy the" to e included.T&o o these case studies are no& presented. Na"esha#e een chan!ed.

Ingrids experience: more excited about the use of this technology

)n!rid had a "oderate le#el o participation in the pro$ect. She too part in the irst&orshop held in *o""unity ; (the co""unities &here &orshops &ere held &ererando"ly nu"ered+, a ollo&-up audioconerence held ater this &orshop, and thewechatand welink!roups. 8ue to #arious actors, )n!rid had uite a lo& le#el o

participation in these online !roups.

)n!rid &as 40 years old and had a de"andin! proessional position that in#ol#edpro#idin! inor"ation and support to rural a"ilies aected y the drou!ht. She and herhusand also o&ned a usiness in the rural to&n &here they li#ed. They had t&o

pri"ary school a!ed children. er #oluntary &or included ein! a co""unityrepresentati#e on the %ueensland Landcare *ouncil and sittin! on t&o health councils.

)n!rid &as #ery interested in !ender euity issues and &as a %=N "e"er. She usede"inist principles and ideas and co""ented that the pro$ect's ocus on &o"en &asin#aluale'. She thou!ht that the welink !roup allo&ed &o"en to e ale to

co""unicate in that particularly supporti#e &ay that &o"en co""unicate'.

rior to the pro$ect, )n!rid said she had a ear' o usin! e"ail and the )nternet.o&e#er, as a result o her participation, she eca"e "uch, "uch "ore conidentaout and ecited aout the use o this technolo!y as a tool in rural co""unityde#elop"ent' and con#inced' that this is the area that ) should !o into'. articipatin!in the online !roups pro#ided useul practical' eperience &ith usin! e"ail. ?ollo&in!the &orshop she too part in, she spoe enthusiastically to other people in herco""unity aout the eneits o the )nternet and one &o"an !ot really ecited aout itand she's no& on the )nternet, and sa& it as a tool or her usiness'.

)n!rid eperienced a !reat deal o rustration' ecause o "a$or prole"s &ith theco"puter sot&are and hard&are at her &orplace. Technical support and trainin!,pro"ised y another participant, did not e#entuate and she &as unale to participate inthe 1669 &orshop &here so"e )nternet trainin! &as pro#ided. / urther rustration&as that the local trainers don't co""unicate, they don't teach #ery &ell'.

Soon ater she $oined the wechat!roup, )n!rid sent a "essa!e sayin! that she elt!uilty o not ha#in! #ery "uch to say' and that she elt a it lie an interloper'. )n!rididentiied a nu"er o reasons &hy she elt uite ecluded at ti"es' as a wechat"e"er. These included the predo"inantly ar"-ased issues ein! discussed not ein!issues that ) eel ) can contriute to', and the sense that she &as not part o the clu'

that she thou!ht had de#eloped a"on! the acti#e "e"ers. Cther actors &ere that here"ail access &as only at &or and she &as oten a&ay ro" the oice and "y le#el o

15


16/23

stress &ith "y &or'. o&e#er, in a ollo&-up "essa!e she said ) do elie#e that ) canlearn ro" ein! part o this !roup aout the issues that do interest &o"en that areisolated not $ust GruralH and ho& you cope &ith the stressors in your lie'.

)n!rid considered that welink "ore eecti#ely "et her need or "ore sti"ulatin! issue-

ased co""unication' than the "uch s"aller wechat!roup. She thou!ht the di#ersityo issues discussed on welink&as antastic'and really en$oyMed readin! K ho& other

people thin, and ho& "y thinin! diers ro" other people'. )n!rid also thou!ht thatwelinkchallen!es your preconcei#ed ideas aout Goh she li#es 50,000 "iles ro"no&here, she "i!ht e a it du"H'. o&e#er, she epressed disappoint"ent that she&as not al&ays ale to tae part in welink as ully as ) &ould ha#e lied to ha#e'.

a#in! access to inor"ation on welinkthat &e &ouldn't necessarily e pri#y tothrou!h the nor"al net&ors' &as considered one o the "ost #aluale, the "osten$oyale (aspects+ or "e K ecause it allo&s "e to ha#e a it o an ed!e'. /nothere"po&erin! outco"e o participatin! in welink&as the #aluale ne& contacts and

net&ors that she de#eloped. This included her contacts &ith so"e hi!h proile'ar"in! &o"en, and an /"erican co""unity de#elop"ent specialist &ho &as &orin!on really ecitin! stu'.

)n!rid had planned to conduct inor"al )nternet sessions &ith s"all !roups o rural&o"en in her co""unity. ?ollo&in! her de"onstration o the #alue o e"ail or their&or, )n!rid's e"ployer a!reed to lin up her oice &ith &orers in t&o other ruralco""unities #ia e"ail. She &as later in#ol#ed in preparin! a "a$or undin! su"issionor a co""unity-ased initiati#e that in#ol#ed the use o )*Ts.

Leilas experience: a sense of empowerment in my community

Leila's le#el o participation in the pro$ect &as #ery hi!h. She helped to or!anise, thenacti#ely participated in oth &orshops in *o""unity 7, too part in ouraudioconerences, and &as oten a #ery acti#e "e"er o the wechatand welink !roups.Leila had pre#iously een in#ol#ed in the pro$ect y


17/23

Tain! part in the pro$ect resulted in Leila eperiencin! a si!niicant increase in hersocial and psycholo!ical e"po&er"ent. This included eco"in! a lot "ore conident'and !ainin! a sense o e"po&er"ent in "y co""unity' ecause o her !ro&in!reputation as a &o"an &ith so"e no&led!e aout ne& )*Ts and an ad#ocate or etterteleco""unication ser#ices in the ush. Leila thou!ht this &as really !ood' or her as

it &as so"ethin! that ) elt &as o "y o&n', co"pared &ith her &or as a !raDier.Tain! part in welinkhad een e"po&erin!' ecause people &ere actually seein! that&e (ie ar"in! &o"en+ &ere runnin! usinesses, &e &ere educatin! children, &e &ere Kdoin! a lot o thin!s'.

/nother i"portant outco"e o her participation in the online !roups &as a "ar#ellouseelin!' o support ro" a !roup o &o"en', so"e o &ho" &ere in si"ilarcircu"stances' and others that &ere not. /s &ell as in ti"es o natural disasters, shealso appreciated this support &hen she so"eti"es elt depressed aout usiness ora"ily prole"s or rustrated aout the second class citiDen' status o rural people inter"s o their access to )*Ts. Lelia ound that she could oten pour her heart out' on

wechatand epressed concern aout ein! ale to do this &hen the lar!er welink!roup&as estalished. Cnce welinke!an, she oten preerred to post "ore personal "essa!esto wechat.

Lelia also !ained a pretty !ood eelin!' ro" ein! a part o a !roup o &o"en &hoare achie#in!, and not all the ti"e, ut in their o&n &ay, they're achie#in! a i!

reathrou!h'. This co""ent reerred to the stron! riendships that she had de#eloped&ith so"e o the other ne& pioneers' &ho participated in the pro$ect. Lie Leila, these&o"en &ere "ostly ar"ers and !raDiers &ho &ere usin! e"ail and other )*Ts toenhance their personal, proessional and co""unity de#elop"ent &or, despite the"any access arriers they aced. articipatin! in the pro$ect had encoura!ed' and

inspired' Leila to eep pushin! or etter co""unications or rural people'. )n awelink"essa!e, Leila su""arised the eects it had on her y sayin! welinkeeps "e!oin!'.

/lthou!h Leila deri#ed a lot o eneit and en$oy"ent ro" participatin! in welink, shealso had so"e dise"po&erin! eperiences. These included oten eelin! a little itinti"idated' y the acade"ics on welink.She elt this &ay, in part, ecause she had nototained any tertiary education. Leila also spoe o so"eti"es eelin! lie a it o a!oldish in a o&l' ecause o the hi!h nu"ers o uni#ersity and !o#ern"ent people&ho had $oined welinkand &ant to ind out aout ho& &e li#e'. hile she couldunderstand this interest ecause our liestyles are so dierent', she thou!ht that

asically &e're all people that ha#e the sa"e interests and prole"s and thin!s liethat, so this is &hy ) thin the &hole thin! &ors so &ell'.

Leila also spoe o eelin! #ery inti"idated or a &hile' y a ("ale+ welinkparticipant.This eperience had "ade her reluctant to participate. /nother reason or han!in!

ac' ro" participation &as that, at one sta!e, "any ne& people &ere $oinin! welinkand &e &eren't !ettin! to no& the people'.

/s &ell as the #aluale riendships and support that in#ol#e"ent in the pro$ectpro#ided, Leila !ained access to useul inor"ation and net&ors and enhanced herpulic proile. Throu!h inor"ation aout a ne& !o#ern"ent undin! sche"e posted on

welink, she eca"e in#ol#ed in a successul proposal to etend her local co""unity'saccess to the )nternet. Ne&spaper articles &ere also pulished aout her pioneerin! use

19


18/23

o e"ail or her usiness and in her personal lie. )n 1669, "e"ers o the research tea"no"inated Lelia or the /@* =adio =ural o"en o the ear /&ard and she &asdeli!hted to eco"e a State inalist.

Analysis of the case studies

Ingrids case study

hile )n!rid appeared to ha#e airly hi!h eistin! le#els o social, political andpsycholo!ical e"po&er"ent, tain! part in the pro$ect clearly enhanced these or"s oe"po&er"ent in eneicial &ays. The "ost si!niicant chan!e she eperienced &as inher le#el o technolo!ical e"po&er"ent. This led her to eco"e in#ol#ed in #ariousinitiati#es related to the use o )*Ts in her &or and her co""unity. o&e#er, )n!ridalso eperienced si!niicant dise"po&er"ent o #arious inds in the process o settin!up and learnin! to use e"ail and the )nternet, and seein! technical trainin! andsupport. Cnce connected, she elt ecluded ro" the wechat!roup and &as unale to

participate in welinkas "uch as she &anted to due to her &or co""it"ents and otheractors, includin! the need to access the list daily or eecti#e participation.

)n!rid's participation in the pro$ect thereore had a nu"er o contradictory eects.So"e o these &ere an outco"e o the inclusi#e and participatory nature o the pro$ect,&hile others &ere associated &ith her &or and co""unity co""it"ents, the pooruality o the technolo!y, and a lac o eecti#e local trainin! and technical support. )na personal e"ail sent in 8ece"er 2000, )n!rid indicated that she eperiencedsi!niicant a"i#alence aout usin! e"ail rather than spoen co""unication in her&or.

Leilas case study

Lie the other hi!h proile' ar"ers &ho &ere inter#ie&ed, Leila already had a airlysi!niicant de!ree o e"po&er"ent prior to her participation in the pro$ect. Thisincluded technolo!ical e"po&er"ent, !i#en that she already had a hi!h le#el oeperience &ith usin! co"puters and e"ail. o&e#er, her on!oin! rustration &ith the

poor uality teleco""unications inrastructure on her property "eant that she alsoeperienced so"e de!ree o technolo!ical dise"po&er"ent &hich "ade her eel a ito en#y' o others &ith aster line speeds &ho &ere ale to learn and do "ore usin! the)nternet.

/lthou!h Lelia &as already e"po&ered in "any &ays, she appeared to ha#e increasedher le#el o social and psycholo!ical e"po&er"ent in airly si!niicant &ays.articipatin! in welinkenaled Leila and others to alter so"e o the stereotypes aoutar"in! &o"en and this resulted in her eelin! "uch "ore #alued and respected. Throu!hthe inspiration and on!oin! support o others in#ol#ed in the pro$ect, Leila alsoeperienced enhanced political e"po&er"ent and her leadership and acti#is" &as later

pulicly reco!nised and re&arded. o&e#er, tain! part in welinkalso resulted in #ariousor"s o dise"po&er"ent, includin! so"eti"es eelin! inti"idated' y others orrestricted in her participation, and that so"e non-rural "e"ers o welink&ere placin!her daily lie under un&anted oser#ation.

17


19/23

'trategies for enhancing rural womens empowerment

The indin!s ro" "y e#aluation o the pro$ect (Lennie, 2001+ and ro" the pro$ectitsel (=)*Ts =esearch Tea", 1666+ su!!ested a nu"er o strate!ies that "ay esuccessul in enhancin! rural &o"en's e"po&er"ent in rural co""unity de#elop"ent

pro$ects that use )*Ts. ?actors that could hinder the eecti#eness o these strate!ies arealso noted.

)ncorporatin! participatory or"s o e#aluation into acti#ities to enale an on!oin!

assess"ent o &hether they are "eetin! the di#erse needs o participants, and to"ae chan!es that i"pro#e acti#ities and processes.

Encoura!in! participants to assu"e $oint o&nership o pro$ects and acti#ities such

as online !roups. o&e#er, a sense o o&nership can result in certain !roups oparticipants do"inatin! acti#ities such as online !roups, thus ecludin! other !roupso &o"en.

Asin! a ran!e o participation processes, such as those ound successul in the =ural

o"en and )*Ts pro$ect, that can e eecti#e in acilitatin! social, technolo!ical,political and psycholo!ical e"po&er"ent. Such processes included estalishin!supporti#e online !roups that enale participants to net&or and share inor"ationon a re!ular asis, and conductin! so"e &o"en-only &orshops in &hich they eelco"ortale to openly #oice their issues and concerns. articipants' eistin! le#elso the #arious or"s o e"po&er"ent need to e considered, as &ell as the etent to&hich they &ant to otain or increase all our or"s o e"po&er"ent.

Encoura!in! the acti#e participation o &o"en ro" di#erse ac!rounds and

interests. This can acilitate enhanced understandin!s o other' &o"en and canresult in roadenin! participants' no&led!e and perspecti#es and the de#elop"ento "ore creati#e ideas and strate!ies or personal and co""unity de#elop"ent.o&e#er, a&areness is needed o the po&er issues that can arise &hen &o"en odi#erse ac!rounds and le#els o sills and no&led!e are rou!ht to!ether.

Asin! #arious co""unication technolo!ies in &ays that "eet a di#ersity o

&o"en's needs. This could include audio and #ideoconerences and theestalish"ent o online !roups. o&e#er, the li"itations and potentiallydise"po&erin! eects o )*Ts need to e taen into account.

Asin! co""unication and interaction strate!ies such as &orshops, se"inars, online

!roups, audio and #ideoconerences that enales the acti#e participation ocollaoratin! researchers and !o#ern"ent and industry partners. This can enale&o"en to ha#e a direct #oice &ith people in strate!ic or policy-"ain! positions,and thus acilitate political e"po&er"ent. Such strate!ies can also pro#ide decision-"aers &ith a etter understandin! o rural &o"en's li#es and issues. o&e#er, to

e "ost eecti#e, prior ace-to-ace contact et&een pro$ect participants andstaeholders is reuired and co""unication and inor"ation sharin! needs to e

personalised. This helps to uild "utual trust.

*onductin! a ran!e o all-&o"en acti#ities that are acilitated in a relaed, riendly,inclusi#e, less hierarchical and non-patronisin! "anner that is sensiti#e to

16


20/23

dierences a"on! participants. These processes should ai" to uild "utual trustand understandin! and enale t&o-&ay sharin! o inor"ation and eperiences.orshop presentations aout ne& technolo!ies and other issues also need to uselan!ua!e that is easily understood and appropriate. )n pro$ects that ai" to enhance)nternet access, so"e hands-on use o e"ail and the )nternet is essential &here

participants lac eperience &ith these technolo!ies.

/llo&in! adeuate ti"e to prepare, undertae and relect on acti#ities in a relaed

and unhurried ashion. articipatory processes, particularly those that in#ol#e theuse o )*Ts, oten tae "uch lon!er to plan, prepare, conduct and e#aluateeecti#ely than is anticipated.

Ctainin! !ood uality euip"ent and technical support to undertae &orshops

that include li#e )nternet de"onstrations and trainin! sessions, and ein! preparedor technical prole"s &ith )nternet connections that can occur in so"e rural areas.

Conclusion

)n oth /ustralia and o#erseas, there is a !ro&in! e"phasis on research "ethodolo!iesand rural co""unity de#elop"ent pro$ects that ai" to e participatory, e"po&erin!and inclusi#e. )*Ts such as e"ail and the )nternet are oten used etensi#ely in these

pro$ects. o&e#er, as u"phries (166;+ ar!ues, the co"ple and contradictory natureo e"po&er"ent processes needs to e "ore &idely acno&led!ed and understood.

The indin!s outlined in this paper su!!est that, desi!ned and i"ple"ented in &ays that"eet rural &o"en's di#erse needs, co""unity participation processes that use )*Ts can

e i"portant to acilitatin! social, technolo!ical, political and psycholo!ical

e"po&er"ent. The pro$ect's online !roup welink&as particularly eecti#e inproducin! these eects. o&e#er, the e#aluation also identiied #arious dise"po&erin!eects o participatin! in the pro$ect and usin! )*Ts. any o these eects &ereassociated &ith #arious arriers to participation that &ere eperienced, includin! a laco eecti#e access to )*Ts, &hile others &ere associated &ith the po&er relationsa"on! the participants and staeholders.

The e"inist participatory e#aluation "ethodolo!y and the analytical ra"e&ors usedin this research &ere considered to ha#e enaled an eecti#e and ri!orous assess"entand analysis o the contradictory eects o the pro$ect. The results o this e#aluationsu!!ested a ran!e o strate!ies that could enhance rural &o"en's e"po&er"ent,

includin! the use o )*Ts in this process.

Technolo!ical e"po&er"ent &as identiied as a si!niicant ne& under-theorised or"o e"po&er"ent that reuires "ore research. The results o this study su!!est thatenhancin! rural &o"en's technolo!ical e"po&er"ent is ur!ently reuired. /s &ell asor personal and social purposes, eecti#e access to and use o )*Ts is eco"in!increasin!ly i"portant to rural &o"en's leadership and participation in co""unity andecono"ic de#elop"ent acti#ities.

References

20


21/23

/nderson, J. 166;. es, ut is it e"po&er"entQ )nitiation, i"ple"entation andoutco"es o co""unity action'.In@. u"phries (ed+. ritical perspectives onempowerment. @ir"in!ha"B Venture ress, pp.;673.

/rnold, E. and . ?aulner. 1675. S"othered y in#ention. The "asculinity o

technolo!y'.In. ?aulner and E. /rnold (eds+. #mothered by invention. !echnologyin womens lives. London, luto ress, pp.1750.

@utler, S. and intra", *. 1661.$eminist groupwork. LondonB Sa!e.

*larid!e, *. 166;. Women, development and the environment% A method to &acilitatewomens empowerment. Anpulished h8 thesis, @risaneB 8epart"ent o /!riculture,The Ani#ersity o %ueensland.

8a&s, L.1669. /n analysis o the role o the )nternet in supportin! rural &o"en'sleadership initiati#es. aper presented to the Sith o"en and Laour *onerence,

8eain Ani#ersity,


22/23

errin!, S. 1664.


23/23

The =ural o"en and )*Ts =esearch Tea". 1666. !he new pioneers% Women in ruralueensland collaboratively e7ploring the potential o& communication and in&ormation

technologies &or personal, business and community development. @risaneB The*o""unication *entre, %ueensland Ani#ersity o Technolo!y.

Truon!, . &ith illia"s,

Documents

Women Empowerment using ICT in AGriculture