The International Journal of Cuban Studies
(Online) ISSN 1756-347X
Gender, science and technology 2008
Mavis Dora Álvarez highlights Cuban women's contribution in a cross-disciplinary approach to equality and sustainable development
"One of the cruellest forms of violence against women in the patriarchal system has been to deprive them of access to education."
(Lilliam Alvarez, Science Director, Cuba's Ministry of Science Technology and Environment (CITMA)
Versión español
science_gender.esp
The seventh Ibero-American Congress on Science, Technology and Gender was celebrated in Havana in February 2008. More than 300 activists, academics, scientists and students of different disciplines from around Latin America, Spain and Portugal took part - with the aim of joining forces to promote the importance of gender in scientific research and research findings and drawing on positive and innovative Ibero-American experiences to inform a gendered approach to policy, strategy and legislation.
Presentations and discussions alike highlighted the role of women in local development as well as the multi-disciplinary nature of recent research. One particular debate explored the following question: what is the relationship between science, health, welfare and quality of life, from a gender perspective, in the process of sustainable development, now seriously threatened by climate change and water access problems?
Going some way to answering this question was the outstanding work presented on life style and conditions of young rural women in the province of Colima, Mexico. Research findings helped explain the relationship between social problems and the high level of migration among young women, who abandon the rural context in search of brighter horizons. This phenomenon affects local development since it means the socio-economic potential of young women is lost to the community.
The congress was unanimously in favour of continuing to support women's integration in and contribution to science and technology, both closely linked to peace and development processes and indeed to social progress in general. In various ways, Cuba plays a role here as a stimulus, demonstrating the potential of women as the driving force of development when they have access to education and knowledge of science and technology. On the other hand, it also provides an illuminating case study prompting reflection on the fact that, even where there exists legislation and the political will to eliminate gender inequality, discriminatory attitudes towards women - whether overt or covert - persist.
Nevertheless, in Cuba there is a growing tendency to value women's contributions as well as to turn a gender lens on general social problems. One clear example is the inclusion of masculinities in the debate, taking gender as a relational category and demanding that problem analysis looks at both sides, both women and men. Gender studies have stimulated interest in tackling other social phenomena where discriminatory attitudes persist, such as racism and in regard to individual sexual preferences.
Reflections on femininity and masculinity also arose in the debate on the visibility of women in science and technology: the need to maximise their profile and participation in scientific networks, information technology and communications; to eliminate obvious inequalities; and to proclaim: "knowledge is not a luxury." ("Saber no puede ser lujo.") Brazilian researcher Silvia Yannoulas spoke of the conflictual relationship women often have both with scientific study and with academic institutions - in other words, strongly masculinised frameworks. Similarly, Mabel Burin from Argentina referred to the difficulties women meet in career progression, the glass ceiling which prevents them from reaching the top positions.
In contrast, the Cuban model highlights the potential of women to play a full part in scientific research, technological innovation and in the university system. Several national presenters mentioned the same statistic: that 66% of the most highly qualified professionals in the country are women. A significant number of female Cuban scientists are known worldwide for their contribution to technical development, especially in the field of health (see endnote). One team from the Universidad de Pinar del Río showed examples of the role of women in technological production in the last ten years and particularly their importance in the development of Cuban patents with greater international recognition.
Other important topics in relation to gender were addressed in a number of thematic streams: the language of science and technology; literature and social communication from a gender perspective; respect for other ways of knowing, other cultures, recognising values and differences. One interesting example involves using literature as a source for gender studies, including analysis of the rural novels of Dora Alonso which has served to deepen the understanding of what it meant to be a woman or a man in the Cuban countryside in the twentieth century.
The congress concluded that even more value should be placed on women's stories, their life trajectories and their contributions to science, both past and present. Great emphasis was placed on the need to eliminate barriers and open up opportunities so that Ibero-American women become more visible in the indicators of success for science, technology and human development.
Mavis Dora Álvarez is an agronomist, specialising in agrarian changes and their impact on rural women in Cuba. She contributed to the inaugural 1996 World Food Summit (see http://www.fao.org/wfs/resource/english/RLCNGOE.HTM) and has also recently carried out a study of Dora Alonso’s work.
Note
The most publicised woman scientist in Cuba is Concepción Campa, for her contribution to the development of the first anti-meningitis vaccine. We could also mention some of the panels and round tables at the congress which were led by women with outstanding reputations:
Leticia Artiles (The Gordian knot of gender inequity, technology and health realities),
Deisy Navarro (Middle-aged women from a gender perspective),
Lourdes Fernández (The position of academic women in Cuba and Mexico, similarities and differences),
Gladys Hernández (Gender and age in community development in Cuba) and
Isabel Moya (Gender, images and the imaginary).
Copyright for this work is held jointly between Mavis Dora Álvarez and the International Journal of Cuban Studies under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative 3.0 Licence
IJCS Volume 1 Issue 1 June 2008
