Women environmental human rights defenders in Nepal and the Philippines

The report examines how 'maldevelopment'—development that prioritizes economic growth over social equity—increases the vulnerability of marginalized groups, particularly women and Indigenous peoples, to disasters in Nepal and the Philippines. It details how inadequate planning and failed free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) processes lead to land grabs and forced displacements, which are experienced as disasters. The study highlights the role of WEHRDs in resisting these processes through grassroots mobilization, legal advocacy, and capacity building, while also documenting the severe hostility, violence, and systemic fragmentation they face.

• Development planning in Nepal and the Philippines often overlooks the needs of marginalized groups due to deep-seated patriarchal norms and social inequalities, which limit the participation of women, Indigenous peoples, and Dalits in the public sphere.
• Free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) procedures are frequently treated as a façade rather than a genuine decision-making tool, characterized by a lack of accessible information, corruption, and the exclusion of women from consultations.
• Maldevelopment—interventions that prioritize economic growth over well-being—amplifies disaster risks by increasing exposure to hazards and destroying the adaptive capacities of local communities.
• Forced displacements and the loss of ancestral lands are experienced by Indigenous communities as disasters in themselves, leading to a loss of identity and traditional knowledge.
• WEHRDs employ diverse strategies to combat maldevelopment, ranging from reactive grassroots protests in the Philippines—such as topless protests by Igorot women—to long-term legal advocacy and capacity building in both countries.
• Environmental defenders in the Philippines face extreme hostility and systemic violence, including 'red-tagging' under the Anti-Terrorism Law, which labels activists as terrorists to silence opposition.
• Women defenders face additional gender-based violence and social backlash, including threats of sexual violence used as a tool of repression or as a means to target the masculinity of male activists.
• Defenders' movements are fragmented, particularly in Nepal, where a divide exists between urban, professional activists and rural, grassroots defenders who are often not recognized as 'defenders'.

APA

Pross, C. (2022). Women environmental human rights defenders in Nepal and the Philippines. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/wehrd-nepal-philipines-sei2022.055.pdf

Chicago

Pross, Camille. Women environmental human rights defenders in Nepal and the Philippines. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2022. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/wehrd-nepal-philipines-sei2022.055.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Pross |first1=Camille |title=Women environmental human rights defenders in Nepal and the Philippines |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=December 2022 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/wehrd-nepal-philipines-sei2022.055.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{pross2022women, author = {Pross, Camille}, title = {{Women environmental human rights defenders in Nepal and the Philippines}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2022}, month = dec, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/wehrd-nepal-philipines-sei2022.055.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }