Women Representation in Disaster Risk Reduction : A Critical Discourse Analysis of the UNDRR Frameworks

Sammanfattning: While early relocation is not makeable, disaster risk reduction seems to be the most effective tool to decrease the impact of a disaster. This case study focuses on three UNDRR frameworks as they appear to be the greatest instance of international documents referring to disaster risk reduction (DRR). Especially, this research examines the representation of women within these frameworks and how their portrayal in DRR has changed over the last two decades. To do so, a critical discourse analysis of the three UNDRR frameworks is conducted. This study benefits from a social vulnerability approach and further engages with the Feminist Political Ecology theory. The analysis finds that even though women are increasingly represented in the frameworks, their roles as active participants remain negligible. Their knowledge and interest are still not recognised as valuable in DRR. Rather, women seem to be employed as tools to include more gender-sensitive programmes. This study recommends a greater and more complex emphasis on women in future DRR policies.