Gender sensitivity in the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) nexus is not an optional component, it is central to equitable, resilient, and sustainable development. Women, take care of natural resources in rural contexts, play crucial roles in managing water, energy, and food systems and maintaining ecosystem health and families. But still remain underrepresented in decision-making and under-supported in the innovation arena.

The main recommendation based on the BONEX work is to integrate gender-transformative approaches across all WEFE Nexus projects, ensuring full, meaningful participation and leadership of women.

Some specific recommendations include:

• Mandatory Gender Equality Plans (GEPs): Require robust, well-resourced GEPs with clear objectives, gender-specific indicators to assess the quality and impact of gender integration, starting from project design and with dedicated budgets.

• Gender Committees and Focal Points: Establish formal support structures within institutions and projects to oversee gender integration and provide technical advice.
• Participatory Decision-Making: Mandate the inclusion of women in stakeholder consultations, advisory boards, and governance mechanisms at all scales (local to regional).
• Ensure Inclusion in Environmental Governance: Guarantee women’s voices are represented in biodiversity and climate adaptation planning.
• Resources Rights for Women: Advocate for legal reforms and project mechanisms that support women’s rights and access to land, water, energy, and finance.
• Support Gender-inclusive Innovation: prioritize funding for women-led solutions in clean energy, water management, and agriculture. Promote programs that facilitate women’s access to credit, climate-resilient seeds, tools, and fair markets
• Cooperatives and Knowledge-Sharing: Strengthen women’s collectives and peer-learning networks to foster resilience and sustainable food systems.
• Equal Access to Education and STEM Opportunities – Encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

• Avoid “Gender Washing”: gender perspectives must be substantive and incorporated, not symbolic or superficial.
• Transparent and Inclusive Communication: Ensure all communication materials and public-facing narratives reflect gender balance and inclusivity, avoiding any stereotype.

Initiatives and Actions to Promote Gender-Responsive Practices

• Gender-Responsive CoPs: Engage with platforms like the UfM’s Gender, Environment and Climate Change Community of Practice to align local actions with regional frameworks.
• Inspiring Practices Database: Develop a repository of gender-transformative WEFE case studies (like those shared from Portugal, Tunisia, and Jordan) to inspire replication.
• Gender-Responsive Training and Sensitization: Mainstream gender awareness and unconscious bias training for project staff, stakeholders, and decision-makers.
• Scholarship and Mentoring Programs in STEM: Support female participation in science, engineering, and technology disciplines essential to WEFE systems.

Recommendations to Assess Gender Sensitivity

To ensure that gender sensitivities are considered throughout project lifecycles, implement the following:

• Use Gender-Specific Indicators: Integrate both qualitative and quantitative indicators, e.g., % of women in leadership roles, decision-making bodies, or benefitting from resources.
• Conduct Gender Impact Assessments (GIA): At proposal, midterm, and final phases, assess how policies and actions affect women and men differently.
• Adopt Intersectional Frameworks: Recognize how age, ethnicity, class, and geography intersect with gender to refine targeting and support.
• Feedback Loops: Establish gender-disaggregated feedback mechanisms (e.g., focus groups, surveys) to continuously improve inclusivity and responsiveness.

Gender equality is not only a human rights imperative, it is a strategic advantage in building just, climate-resilient, and sustainable WEFE systems. As emphasized in the BONEX Gender session: Women are not just participants; they are the nexus.