Seminar 2

TU-BS 2005/2006

Seminar series 2.

Gender, transport and information communication in the developing world.

Seminar 1. October 26^th

Introduction: an overview.

The seminar will provide an overview of the course. It will explore the role of information communication technologies can play in compensating for the historical deficiencies of transport structures in the developing world and examine the implications of such compensating changes for the gendered organisation of transport

The key reading for the course is:

http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/mg294/maternalmortality.html

http://www.geocities.com/transport_and_society/ruralinclusion.html

Seminar Notes: Week 1

Seminar 2 November 2^nd

Gender, transport and information communication technologies: empowering women farmers

This seminar will explore the role that information communication technologies aligned with transport provision can make to women farmers. Women farmers are often disadvantaged in terms of their information and transport opportunities within the developing world: this seminar will explore how new information communication technologies aligned to transport can make to women’s abilities to capture better market prices for their products.

Seminar Notes: Week 2

Seminar 3 November 9th

Women as a form of transport, headloading in Africa: organising transport through new information communication technologies

Within Africa women carry more goods on their heads than motorised vehicles carry loads. This seminar explores the ways in which information communication technology aligned with better organised transport provision can alleviate this situation.

Seminar Notes: Week 3

Seminar 4 November 16^th

Maternal mortality and transport: information communication technology and saving womens’ lives

Maternal mortality rates in Africa are on the increase whereas they are on the decrease in all other regions of the world. One critical element in this situation is that of the inadequacy of emergency obstetric transport. This seminar explores the extent to which information communication technologies aligned with improved transport provision can play a part in the amelioration of this situation.

Seminar Notes: Week 4

Seminar 5 November 23^rd

Health risks and transport corridors: information communication technology for health care

The pattern of AIDS infection in the developing world is strongly related to the location of transport corridors with truckers in these corridors playing a major role in the transmission of infection. This seminar explores new transport based approaches to the reduction of AIDS infection piloted by agencies such as the World Bank.

Seminar Notes: Week 5

References – reading in German:

The context of AIDS in Africa - http://www.bundestag.de/bic/analysen/2004/2004_11_29.pdf

http://hrw.org/backgrounder/wrd/032105doseDE.pdf

Seminar 6 November 30^th

Marketing womens’ products: fair trade, international transport and local control through information communication technology

New information communication technologies create new marketing opportunities for women in developing countries. These technologies create new transport needs, patterns and demand. The technologies also provide remote communities with the ability to monitor the price and location of their products. This seminar will explore how new logistic developments in the developed world can be harnessed to the needs of women in the developing world.

Seminar Notes: Week 6

Seminar 7 December 7^th

Public access to public technologies: community communication centres and gendered access to information.

Whereas access to communication technologies has become a normal feature of household operation in the developed world, in the developing world access is frequently organised through community facilities and community use of individual facilities. This seminar explores the operation of community communication centres in a number of developing world locations and the implications of these arrangements for women’s access to travel and to information.

Seminar Notes: Week 7

Seminar 8 December 14^th

Gender, transport and information communication technology: the opportunity for new educational arrangements.

This seminar explores the new patterns of educational arrangements made possible by new technologies and their consequences for patterns of educational travel.

Seminar Notes: Week 8

Seminar 9 December 21st

Gender, transport and information communication technology: the political implications of shrinking communication distance.

This seminar explores the political consequences of new information communication technologies in a context where women’s physical mobility has been historically constrained.

Seminar Notes: Week 9

Seminar 10 January 11^th

Gender audits, gender checklists and the millennium development goals: tools for gender transport equity

This seminar explores the new institutional tools used by governments and development agencies in developing policies and patterns of gender equity in travel and in access to information.

Seminar Notes: Week 10

Seminar 11 January 18^th

Wrap up