Report Empowering women through GIS: Case studies from agri-food systems CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion Sabrina Salameh, Sze Vei Leong, Arielle Rosenthal This publication is copyrighted by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). It is licensed for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0. Unless otherwise noted, you are free to share (copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format) and adapt (remix, transform and build upon the material) for any purpose, even commercially, under the following conditions: Note: Please contact the authors to ask permission to use any of the images in this report. ATTRIBUTION. This work must be attributed when used in other works, but not in any way that suggests endorsement of those works by ILRI or the author(s). CITATION CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion, Shared Planet, International Rice Research Institute. 2026. Bridging the technology divide: cases empowering women in agri-food systems through GIS. Nairobi, Kenya: CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This publication is based on a collaborative project of the Shared Planet and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) under CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion Accelerator. We thank the research teams at Shared Planet for leading this work, and IRRI for guidance and support to strengthen the rigor and reliability of the findings. The CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion is grateful for the support of CGIAR Trust Fund Contributors: www.cgiar.org/funders. About CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion (GENDER Accelerator) CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion is CGIAR’s Accelerator designed to put gender equality at the forefront of global agricultural research for development. The Accelerator will transform the way gender research is done, both within and beyond CGIAR, to kick-start a process of genuine change toward greater gender equality and better lives for smallholder farmers everywhere. gender.cgiar.org CONTACT CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) PO Box 30709 Nairobi 00100, Kenya Tel. +254-20 422 3000 Gender@cgiar.org Sabrina Salameh, Shared Planet, sabrina.salameh@sharedplanet.co.uk Sze Vei Leong, Shared Planet, szevei.leong@sharedplanet.co.uk Arielle Rosenthal, Shared Planet, arielle.rosenthal@sharedplanet.co.uk https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 http://www.cgiar.org/funders https://gender.cgiar.org/ mailto:GenderPlatform@cgiar.org mailto:sabrina.salameh@sharedplanet.co.uk mailto:szevei.leong@sharedplanet.co.uk mailto:arielle.rosenthal@sharedplanet.co.uk CGIAR Gender Empowering women through GIS: Case studies from agri-food systems Sabrina Salameh Shared Planet sabrina.salameh@sharedplanet.co.uk Sze Vei Leong Shared Planet szevei.leong@sharedplanet.co.uk Arielle Rosenthal Shared Planet arielle.rosenthal@sharedplanet.co.uk mailto:sabrina.salameh@sharedplanet.co.uk mailto:szevei.leong@sharedplanet.co.uk mailto:right@care.org Contents 1.0 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 5 1.1 Geographic information systems can contribute to gender-transformative research and practice ........ 5 1.2 GIS can be a lever for women’s empowerment ...................................................................................... 5 1.3 Transformative GIS case studies give insights for design and scaling ................................................... 6 2.0 Exploring gender outcomes with the Reach–Benefit–Empower–Transform framework ............................ 7 2.1 Limitations in supporting information and for complex change ............................................................... 7 3.0 The transformative potential of GIS in AFS .......................................................................................... 8 3.1 Case study: Applying a gendered lens through participatory GIS .......................................................... 9 3.2 Case study: A geospatial rally for social transformation ....................................................................... 12 3.3 Case study: Supporting community leaders through GIS ..................................................................... 16 3.4 Case study: Network for Women+ in Geospatial industries ................................................................. 19 3.5 Case study: Integrating gender into geospatial program evaluations ................................................... 22 4.0 Key lessons about GIS as a tool for GTR ................................................................................................. 25 4.1 Initiative considerations for transformative GIS integration .................................................................. 25 Theme 1: Breaking down barriers for participants to take part............................................................... 25 Theme 2: Strengthening women’s technical capacities ......................................................................... 25 Theme 3: Challenging power dynamics through collective knowledge .................................................. 26 4.2 Barriers to integrating GIS into AFS applications ................................................................................. 26 5.0 Conclusion: looking ahead ................................................................................................................. 28 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Geographic information systems can contribute to gender- transformative research and practice Women are key actors in agri-food systems (AFS), playing multiple roles as caregivers, producers, processors, consumers, wage workers and retailers. Despite their critical and multifaceted contributions, women’s roles in AFS are often marginalized. Women face persistent gender gaps in agricultural productivity, wages, working conditions, and access to land and capital (FAO 2023). These disparities have compounding and disproportionate impacts on food insecurity among women and rural communities, increasing their vulnerability to socioeconomic shocks, climate change and environmental degradation.1 Measures to close these gender gaps through enabling access to resources, services, technologies and training are important.2, 3 However, the persistence of gender inequalities in AFS reflects its complex and structural nature. Women face systemic barriers, including discriminatory property rights, the uneven distribution of unpaid care work, digital gender gaps and restrictive sociocultural norms—all of which drive their unequal access to critical opportunities and resources in AFS.4 To overcome persistent structural barriers to gender equality in AFS, it is necessary to adopt a gender- transformative approach (GTA) to research and practice. CGIAR defines GTA as activities that engage with and transform structural gender barriers—in particular, constraining gender norms. Yet, persistent gender-disaggregated data gaps impede researchers from obtaining a full understanding of the root causes of gender inequality, allowing misinformed and limiting perceptions of informal structures, such as gender roles, to endure. Gender-transformative research (GTR) aims to build an evidence base that informs long- term shifts in power relations, sociocultural norms and gender roles.5 As such, a GTA necessitates sustained change achieved through action, including equitable partnerships, inclusive outreach and localized interventions.6 Most importantly, it involves designing initiatives with gender-transformative goals, giving the local communities engaged in the process tailored project strategies and activities.7 Geographic information systems (GIS) can bridge gender gaps in AFS.8 GIS refers to the wide range of tools and technologies that are used to collect, monitor, store, process and interpret spatial data. GIS connects collected data to maps to add a spatial depth to a broad range of fields and topics.9 Integrating GIS into AFS research and development has a variety of benefits, from strengthening policymaking to improving natural resource management, ecosystem restoration and climate adaptation measures.10 Crucially, GIS can help uncover critical geospatial aspects that can inform gendered issues by integrating geospatial data, satellite imagery and advanced data analytics.11 Geospatial gendered dimensions in AFS can include identifying gendered perceptions of natural resource management and conflict resolution;12 local ecological knowledge13; spatial distribution of gendered roles and divisions of labor;14 and access to resources, infrastructure and transportation.15 Notably, these varying benefits have led to increasing adoption of geospatial technologies not only in AFS gender research, but in women’s empowerment initiatives to improve program design, implementation and evaluation. However, technology adoption alone does not guarantee equity. 1.2 GIS can be a lever for women’s empowerment Adopting a GTA means that systemic barriers will continue to exist if not supported by relevant structural shifts and capacity strengthening for technology adoption. GIS serves as a technology upgrade for management, operations and monitoring within AFS, and a lever for women’s empowerment. Strengthening the capacities of all community members and, in particular women, to adopt such geospatial technologies in research, policy and practice in AFS contributes to women’s empowerment. Often, capacity building activities are delivered when organizations are utlilizing Participatory GIS methods (P-GIS) and dedicated GIS training with women in their roles as farmers, producers, researchers, data enumerators and community leaders.16 Capacity-strengthening case studies tailored to women’s empowerment in AFS have tended to target the adoption of GIS in critical areas to improve livelihoods, resilience and productivity. These areas include the use of GIS in natural resource management, climate change mitigation measures, and climate- smart agriculture.17,18 While the benefits of such case studies have been documented to a certain extent, there remains a need for a deeper exploration of their associated gender outcomes that will inform the future use and transformative potential of GIS applications. 1.3 Transformative GIS case studies give insights for design and scaling This report presents a field-level perspective of various GIS case studies tailored to contribute to women’s empowerment. The report deliberately focuses on outcomes, because most GIS-gender case studies interviewed have been implemented within the past five years. The case studies featured in this report have demonstrated clear and observable gender-related outcomes; however, their early stage of development and the limited resources available to monitor long-term impacts at the individual or community level constrain our ability to credibly assess their influence on systemic or structural change. The report’s primary focus is the implementation of GIS case studies, reported gender outcomes and strategies that were successful in advancing gender equality in AFS. The five case studies featured in this report showcase the important role of GIS in areas of capacity- strengthening case studies, participatory GIS (P-GIS) mapping, and impact monitoring and evaluations. The case studies demonstrate three main benefits of applying GIS tools and technologies to: 1. Inform, enrich and uncover key gendered aspects in AFS research through spatial gender- disaggregated data: Engaging diverse community members in mapping activities through P-GIS enhances resource management, conflict resolution and community resilience. Particularly, a gendered approach to P-GIS is used to explore community perceptions on land use, natural resource management challenges, and environmental and climate-related stressors. 2. Strengthen the technical capacities of women: Capacity strengthening of targeted beneficiaries (e.g., women or other vulnerable populations) through GIS and digital literacy training is critical for technology adoption. The gender outcomes of the case studies discussed in this report uncover the empowering role of GIS for women participants and the wider benefits of GIS among community members, including the researchers, local partners and enumerators involved in research processes. 3. Enhance gender-transformative program monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL): Top-down GIS approaches in MEL activities are used to conduct spatial or participatory baseline studies, geospatial impact evaluations (GIEs), causal and spatial impact evaluations, among others. Adding a spatial dimension to gender indicators in MEL can add more depth and nuance to the quality of MEL reporting and program evaluations. This report aims to produce actionable insights for practitioners about designing and scaling gender- transformative GIS applications and case studies. By presenting real-life experiences of pioneering GIS case studies from the field, the case studies offer lessons from development practitioners, civil society leaders and grassroots activists. Additionally, this report sheds light on GIS benefits across individual, household, enterprise and community levels. This report follows a comprehensive scoping review conducted by Shared Planet for the CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform.19 It complements a series of GIS knowledge products, including a practical GIS guidebook tailored to GIS specialists and gender researchers, and a technical policy report analyzing the potential use of GIS for policymaking. 2.0 Exploring gender outcomes with the Reach– Benefit–Empower–Transform framework To systematically explore the gender-focused outcomes of the chosen case studies, we applied the Reach– Benefit–Empower–Transform (RBET) framework. RBET categorizes gender outcomes into four progressive levels: case studies that reach women through targeted interventions, benefit them by improving their livelihoods, empower them to make strategic life decisions, and ultimately transform formal and informal structures that advance gender equality.20 This framework provides a useful lens for analyzing the nature of gender outcomes generated by each case study, based on the specific gender objectives they aim to fulfill and to what extent they contribute to women’s empowerment. In the context of this report, each gender outcome level is explored as follows: This structured approach serves to: (1) enable meaningful presentation of case studies’ results, demonstrating how different strategies can contribute toward gender outcomes to varying extents; (2) identify potential gaps where interventions could deliver more substantive empowerment or transformation; and (3) identify opportunities for scaling case studies toward gender-transformative change. In practice, the RBET framework provides important distinctions between the descriptive case studies to identify insights on how existing gender case studies in AFS can advance gender equality. 2.1 Limitations in supporting information and for complex change For all case studies featured in this report, we engaged directly using semistructured key informant interviews to explore firsthand insights from the ground and determine the nature of gender outcomes achieved. However, the content of this report is highly reliant on the availability of information. As such, the depth of each case study varies, depending on (1) the level of monitoring and reporting carried out by the interviewees after their activities ended, and (2) the availability of evidence related to the mid- to long-term impacts of these case studies within local communities. As presented in Figure 1 the RBET framework explores both tangible and intangible gender outcomes. Many of these intangible gender outcomes are hard to measure (e.g., agency, confidence and collective action). This limitation was addressed by incorporating supporting evidence, testimonials and impact surveys. It is important to note that social change is both complex and nonlinear.21 Change at individual, household or community levels tends to occur over extended periods of time, meaning that initiative representatives may not be aware of changes that occur after the initiative’s conclusion. Therefore, long-term impacts require sustained action to achieve shifts in gender relations, power dynamics and informal structures. Lastly, what has worked for these case studies must be considered within the specific conditions and cultural nuances they are embedded in. Strategies employed within each case study may not be applicable in other contexts and dynamics. We encourage readers to approach this report and future GIS interventions with cultural and contextual sensitivity. Figure 1. Description of RBET framework and examples of gender outcomes REACH The scale and inclusive nature of these initiatives in engaging with its target group BENEFIT The tangible positive outcomes in the livelihoods of the engaged participants EMPOWER The documented or perceived positive changes (economic and non-economic) in individuals and/or their communities to enable strategic life decision- making and collective action TRANSFORM The potential (actual) change in formal and informal structures that can (has) occur(ed) as a result of the initiative Considering key rural communities marginalised groups, Indigenous People, smallholder women farmers, etc., with representational factors including age, ethnicity, geography, gender, occupation, marital status, care responsibilities The tangible improvements in the livelihoods, career progression, agricultural productivity and knowledge levels of participating community members The imrpoved confidence, self- esteem, self-efficacy and autonomy of individuals from applying GIS and the associated opportunities that arise from this application Shifts in constraining sociocultural norms and achieved structural changes on a policy level towards more equitable systems DE SC RI PT IO N G EN DE R O UT CO M ES 3.0 The transformative potential of GIS in AFS This section follows five GIS-focused case studies driving change within their local communities and beyond. The case studies featured are already driving transformative outcomes in AFS, whether directly or indirectly. Their work spans diverse countries and regions, including Ecuador, Costa Rica, India, Nepal, Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, Ethiopia and the United Kingdom. Through real-world examples, each case study delves into the gender outcomes achieved by integrating GIS in varying contexts, capacities and fields. This section delves into the following five case studies: 1. Applying gendered lens to participatory GIS by ILRI 2. A geospatial rally for social transformation by Women’s by Women’s Rally on Geospatial Technologies (WRGT) 3. Supporting community leaders through GIS by EarthSight Foundation and Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini (RMP) 4. Regional networks for women professionals in geospatial industries by women 5. Integrating gender into geospatial program evaluations by AidData Case study structure: Each case study begins with an overview of the initiative, outlining key elements of its establishment and objectives. This is followed by an exploration of the gender outcomes achieved, in line with the RBET framework. Where relevant, the case study includes testimonials and evidence provided by interviewees. We conclude by highlighting the unique contributions or strategies that explain the initiative’s success in achieving the described gender outcomes. 3.1 Case study: Applying a gendered lens through participatory GIS Initiative name Resource and conflict mapping in Isiolo County, Kenya: insights and recommendations from a gendered participatory GIS approach Institution International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Location Isiolo County, Kenya GIS application Participatory GIS mapping Overview In May 2024, researchers from ILRI conducted a three-day P-GIS workshop with women and men from Isiolo County in Kenya. The workshop was part of a study that examines perceptions of natural and market resources, land use and management, conflict areas, and climate-related risks—all through a gendered lens. Lead researcher Ambica Paliwal recognized that there was a gap in research that explores the gender perspective in resource and conflict mapping. As part of the P-GIS activities, the researchers organized a participatory-mapping workshop that brought women and men from the community to leverage local knowledge and understand the natural resources that are present in pastoral areas. This research particularly studied “how community-driven mapping can effectively enhance resource mapping accuracy by bringing new voices, particularly women’s, into the planning process.” The initiative’s approach 1. Trained facilitators and enumerators for the participatory-mapping (P-mapping) workshops to be conducted in the local language. 2. Identified participants through ILRI’s existing network within Isiolo County and its community leaders. Participants were selected based on a diverse set of criteria including age group (elderly and young women/men), marital status, and people with grown-up children. 3. Divided the participants into three groups: women, men and mixed. The men had a man enumerator, the women had a woman enumerator, and the mixed-gender group had a woman facilitator. 4. The facilitator created a large map and stuck it on the walls for each group to simultaneously discuss the location for resources and share insights on grazing routes, water points and areas prone to conflict. 5. Digitized, overlayed and consolidated the three maps into one map, with the intention of then returning the consolidated map for the community to post in local administrative offices. Geospatial tools used 1. Remote sensing: Google Earth images were printed to use in the workshop. 2. Participatory mapping: Each group received a map consisting of seven joined A1-sized sheets. The participants then used the maps to pinpoint key resources, based on their own knowledge. Gender outcomes Reach: Ensuring an inclusive approach to the research design and outreach From the outset of the project, the researchers considered how to encourage women to participate in the mapping activity and share their own experiences. The first consideration by the researchers was to establish the three separate groups (women, men and mixed gender) intentionally to perceive how insights differed based on gender. Since mixed discussions are often overpowered and dominated by men, it was important Figure 2. Women mapping to include women in the activity to increase their comfort levels to share their insights and understanding about the resources. “Women took time to open up, but then in a few hours they understood and were able to provide information on the water holes. While men were giving the larger picture, women gave the focused picture. Integrating both perspectives, you get the micro and macro picture of the landscape.” To ensure diverse perspectives, the researchers also targeted a variety of demographics. Their reach factors were not just based on gender, but also included marital status and duration of marriage, age, occupation and children/dependents. To increase engagement within the project, the organisers arranged for compensation and accommodation for all the participants. One woman was able to come with their baby, demonstrating how the researchers accommodated women’s unpaid care responsibilities. Benefit: Applying a gender lens to natural resource management mapping The study is the first of its kind for the community, where the inclusive participatory mapping of natural resources provided a holistic view of the rangeland resources. This activity integrated both women’s and men’s collective knowledge of the environment and challenges associated with natural resources (see figure 3). Upon the conclusion of the workshop, the women and men recognized that their knowledge complemented each other’s and helped fill in knowledge gaps about existing resources. For instance, women knew resources located at the micro level such as water holes within the local community, and men knew areas of conflict and grazing areas at the micro level. Further, while the men were quick to start the exercise, pointing out conflict areas and cattle grazing points, the women were more hesitant and shy to participate, because they are typically excluded from such discussions. However, once they began to open up about their experiences, they quickly became enthusiastic, pointing out the locations of water holes and paths to avoid due to safety concerns. “Normally, when you start the workshop in Africa, it opens with a prayer. In this case, when they started the exercise, they were so enthusiastic and interested in the activity that they forgot to pray, and it was only later that they realized, ‘We missed the prayer in the morning.’ Even in the mixed group, the women were eager to participate, and no one was dominating.” Empower: Recognizing the value and importance of women’s knowledge of resources The feeling of empowerment for the participants came in the form of increased self-esteem as the women realized that they carry valuable information. In discussions regarding security issues and water points, women felt more empowered in knowing the locations and safe routes of travel, as pinpointed by the men’s discussions. The women wanted to know more information about the landscape and not depend on men for this information. Because of their participation, the value of women’s knowledge about resource availability for household and livestock needs was highlighted in the workshop. The researchers themselves were also empowered; in an interview, Ambica, the lead researcher, reflected on her own feelings of empowerment in seeing the women’s group engage: “I felt empowered. Being a woman myself and coming from a developing world, I understand the kind of issues that women face. Coming from my own perspective when I see women in those communities, particularly rural ones, I am privileged to learn from and work with them.” Transform: Enhancing access to collective knowledge for the broader community All three focus groups expressed their wish to retain the maps they created to display them in the local administrative offices, because this was the first time their collective knowledge was consolidated in a single place. By making the produced map an accessible resource to everyone within the community, the women can identify no-go areas and routes due to safety risks near resources they access daily. Furthermore, this decision demonstrates the fulfillment of data sovereignty for the communities and the importance for the researchers to honor the value of participants’ knowledge and contributions. The lead researcher, Ambica, reflected on how the map assuaged her fear that often overcomes researchers: that of learning from participants without reciprocating or providing any benefit. Seeing the impact of this exercise on the Figure 3. Consolidated map produced from the workshop community, her approach in this study has informed her future work through the sampling strategies and methods used to capture diverse gendered perspectives. “Change starts from within and with one person.” What’s next for the initiative Through participatory mapping with mixed- and one-gender focus group discussions, the study gathered diverse perspectives to illustrate resources and issues at micro and macro levels in a specific place. Ultimately, researchers at ILRI aim to scale up their work across the African continent by applying the methodologies used in this research. These participatory approaches can potentially faciliate women’s involvement in critical community-level decision-making and to increase their capacities in community resource management. Key learnings • Facilitating gender-inclusive engagement at the onset of the project, such as same-gendered facilitators and targeting participants across age, marital status and children in three groups (separate and mixed genders) can maximise the reach to a diverse set of participants. • Developing a resource built on collective wisdom benefits the community by increasing access to and visibility of information, such as for critical resources and safe travel routes for women. • Inviting women to participate in often-excluded spaces, such as pastoral and land resources management, empowers them to take part in decision-making and knowledge-sharing practices within the community. Through their involvement in this initiative, men came to value women’s participation. • By experimenting with P-GIS and observing the vital insights from and changes in confidence of the women participants, researchers have transformed their approach to future work and are now integrating a gender- transformative lens for their sampling strategies and methodologies. 3.2 Case study: A geospatial rally for social transformation Initiative name Women’s Rally on Geospatial Technologies (WRGT) Location Costa Rica and Ecuador GIS application Strengthening rural women’s technical capacities through GIS skills and digital-literacy training Overview The WRGT is a capacity-strengthening initiative founded by Maria Jose Molina to equip rural and Indigenous women in Costa Rica and Ecuador with the technical skills and resources to adopt GIS within their diverse professional fields. Initiated in 2019, this movement has reached over 900 women in Costa Rica and Ecuador, with ambitious plans to develop a regional network spanning Latin America to drive a supportive movement for women in GIS. This initiative aims to strengthen women’s digital and problem-solving skills by using GIS training to address local communities’ pressing challenges—from drought and water scarcity to crop management and forest fires—while bridging the gender- based digital literacy gap. The initiative’s approach The initiative centres around three main building blocks: capacity development, problem solving, and real- world impact. It comprises sessions combining theoretical training, equipping women with the knowledge to understand and analyze spatial data, and the direct application of selected geospatial tools. The training takes place over three days to one week. In each training session, participants are requested to identify pressing local challenges based on their backgrounds and context, and devise solutions integrating the use of GIS in a prototype they develop to trial its feasibility. Such prototypes have included early forest-fire warnings and drone-based water resource management, among many others. Geospatial tools used The geospatial tools offered in these training sessions are carefully selected for their ease of use, accessibility, low cost and availability. These applications consist of a combination of geospatial apps that collect georeferenced multimedia data, such as images and audio, without using mobile data. 1. Kobo toolbox 2. Google Earth Pro 3. Mobile Topographer 4. ArcGis Online 5. My Maps The training curriculum also integrates the use of Arduino (a small, popular microcontroller comprising a circuit board and program, that easily enables people to electronic devices) and other innovative tools that can be adopted within the prototypes created by participants. The exercises taught participants how to apply this data on dynamic maps.22 Gender outcomes Reach: Innovative program design for inclusive reach The WRGT believe that accessibility and reach are central to their mission to empower rural women. WRGT have trained over 900 women in Costa Rica and Ecuador, including rural women, women in agriculture, Indigenous women and forest fighters. In Ecuador, WRGT works with Indigenous Waorani and Quechua participants from the Amazonian and Andean regions. Figure 4. Group photo of participants from one of WRGT’s rallies in Costa Rica - Image requires approval https://www.kobotoolbox.org/ https://www.google.com/earth/about/versions/ https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.applicality.mobiletopographergis https://www.arcgis.com/ https://www.google.com/maps/about/mymaps/ The WRGT team travel to remote rural areas where other organizations fail to reach, tailoring the content of these programs to specific regions and their cultural contexts. While the program targets women of ages 16– 68, WRGT have found that most participants are women over the age of 50. This reflects a demographic pattern of older people remaining in rural areas where they are not exposed to technology on an equal footing, as younger people are more likely to migrate to the capital, where most opportunities are. “Most programs happen in the big cities. What we do is we move to the rural areas and provide this training, which is not the typical thing to happen… Usually people in Latin America need to go to the capital to get the training or opportunities.” WRGT adopts tailored outreach strategies, including childcare-support schemes to ensure they reach women from all regions and backgrounds. Targeted outreach has focused on collaborating with women cooperatives, Indigenous groups’ representatives, and women’s collectives. This approach enables them to engage with hard-to-reach rural communities while identifying local community leaders who can adopt the knowledge gained from the training. The initiative also found women with childcare responsibilities were struggling to attend the training, which prompted WRGT to enable their participation by covering childcare expenses while attending the training. Additionally, breastfeeding time and spaces were integrated for participants with newborns. Benefit: Ripple effects of the program in rural communities The practical component of this capacity-strengthening activity is centred on problem solving driven by participants’ local contexts. Participants focus on creating solutions for community-based problems and learn how to use geospatial tools to implement them. The diverse geographic focus of the training influences the nature of challenges addressed, and the kind of prototypes developed. For instance, in regions experiencing flooding, many of the prototypes developed were related to flood management and early warning systems. The ripple effect of this training happens after the program finishes: many of the program’s prototypes are later implemented by the participants among their local communities. This implementation has reaped tangible community benefits in improving natural resource management. One example includes Yendry Sandoval, a participant in one of the Rallies (see Box 1). Notably, several participants were entrepreneurs leading enterprises in tourism and agriculture. These participants have reported applying geospatial tools to visually and spatially narrate the story of their enterprise and services, creating a compelling selling point for their clients. Empower: Increased agency through technology use Women reported that attending the training and acquiring geospatial knowledge increased their confidence and individual agency. This feeling of empowerment lies in the reality that for “many of the technology things … the man is usually who uses it.” Such sentiments confirm how individual agency is gained by women making decisions regarding the use of technology in their fields, which has reportedly led to more confidence, improved self-esteem and increased sense of fulfillment. When participants see themselves creating these opportunities and using these technologies, they also feel empowered to use technologies more. Beyond the individual level, participants reported that one of the most significant takeaways was the cultivation of a sense of community, companionship and connection. A key element in these capacity building sessions was the engagement and networking process and opportunities, where they learn about the business of other participants, create local networking opportunities, and exchange local knowledge and community solutions. These experiences have been instrumental for each participant. WRGT reflected on the emotional and sentimental value of this shared experience for participants: “it’s beautiful to see that..we all cry at the end (of the session) because the rally is very sentimental too… this empowerment process.. [the participants] see the results because many of these women don’t even have the educational opportunity...” WRGT leveraged the support of Madrinas,23 women facilitators who specialize in geography, agronomy and engineering, to assist with the varying levels of technological knowledge among participants. The Madrinas are paired with participants to facilitate the learning process and ease the process of technology adoption. This form of integrated peer-to-peer learning has helped ease anxiety and stress that can naturally occur from Box 1: Case study spotlight: Yendry Sandoval’s pioneering geospatial tool improving reforestation efforts in rural Costa Rica One of the WRGT’s first rallies brought together a group of women working in geography with women working at ASADA, a rural water-supply association.Yendry Sandoval, who works with the ASADA of Guatuso (a canton in Costa Rica), was one of the participants who came into the training with very little knowledge of geospatial technologies. This soon changed: as part of the problem-solving element of the program, Yendri and her team focused on helping ASADA protect water through green solutions. What started as a prototype created during the program became an ongoing project that today goes by the name We are Green, a mobile application focused on reforestation. Through We are Green, ASADA uses GIS technology to survey plants, allowing them to monitor tree survival and growth, and map the impact and coverage of reforestation plans. The tool uses the My Maps app that includes GPS to record data of the trees planted, determining their exact location, with all data collected stored in an Excel file. The app has several benefits: it enhances ASADA’s reforestation-tracking efforts by monitoring over time where patches of trees were planted as part of their reforestation campaigns; it also informs where specific trees used for preventing soil erotion were planted, thereby improving soil conditions and water resources; The tool also enables them to align reforestation activities with other organisations also working in their target areas. Ultimately, this effort has enabled the association to achieve a more targeted, evidence-based approach to their reforestation campaigning. Source: Claudia Ortíz M., Gerardo Quirós Cuadra, Ingrid Hernández Sánchez, PNUD Costa Rica for content and Priscilla Mora for the images. https://pnudcr.exposure.co/las-jovenes-que-enfrentan-la-crisis- climatica-con-innovacion https://pnudcr.exposure.co/las-jovenes-que-enfrentan-la-crisis-climatica-con-innovacion https://pnudcr.exposure.co/las-jovenes-que-enfrentan-la-crisis-climatica-con-innovacion the process of learning and adopting new technologies. One of the participants reflected on how empowering this format was, noting: “This experience was fantastic. When I saw an Arduino, and they said, ‘you’re going to program,’ then I opened the box and it was just wires. I wanted to cry and thought, ‘No, I can’t do this.’ But together with my peers, we managed to program these devices.” Transform: Opportunities for collective action The safe learning environments fostered by these carefully designed programs help bridge the digital gender gap, and have the potential to mobilize formal and informal forms of collective action. These alliances can pioneer community-led, GIS-integrated solutions driven by women leaders. Though such instances of collective action may often go undocumented, they hold immense potential to inspire and catalyze long-term structural shifts in technology adoption, resource management and more. What’s next for the initiative The WRGT have achieved immense success in creating a movement to empower women in the use of geospatial technologies. They have ambitions to scale these efforts and expand their impact. Their plans involve reaching more rural women leaders who have huge influence and can inform structural change in their communities. By the end of 2025, they plan to build a regional network where women across Latin America can connect with each other, share ideas and experiences from their prototype projects, and have a platform for continuous training and updates on geospatial tools. They are currently seeking international funding to expand the initiative to more countries in the region and have initiated conversations to explore potential collaborations in Argentina, Mexico and Colombia. Key learnings 1. Strategies to ensure inclusive reach should be embedded from the program-design stage through measures such as tailored outreach strategies, locations of training, language used, and childcare-support schemes. These collective efforts have created an enabling environment that encouraged women from all backgrounds and conditions to attend training conducted in their area. 2. The careful selection of accessible and low-resource GIS tools and applications has enabled participants to pass on information within their communities, scaling the benefits from this training through knowledge transfer. 3. The innovative form of peer-to-peer learning through Madrinas provides one-on-one guidance to empower participants in overcoming age barriers and technology gaps for older rural women to adopt geospatial technologies. 4. When women from diverse backgrounds—across age groups, sectors, and regions—come together around a shared goal, countless opportunities emerge for transformative collaboration and partnerships. 3.3 Case study: Supporting community leaders through GIS Initiative name Satellite in Your Hand (SIYH) Institution EarthSight Foundation and Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini Location India GIS application Strengthening capacity in geospatial technology to support women’s political and administrative roles. Overview Satellite in Your Hand (SIYH) is an initiative tailored to women leaders in their varying capacities in local government, education and NGOs to strengthen their technological skills, geospatial knowledge and digital literacy. The initiative is founded by EarthSight Foundation, a nonprofit organization that aims to build strong technological interventions, particularly in geospatial and space-based technologies that align with the Sustainable Development Goals. EarthSight Foundation has partnered with Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini (RMP), one of the largest and well-established NGOs in India, which has worked for the past 40 years to equip elected public leaders and social workers with training and skills needed to perform their political and administrative roles. Since SIYH’s inception one year ago, it has reached eight states across India with over 350 participants, including elected women leaders in local government, NGO representatives, and environmental and disaster-risk-management officers. The initiative’s approach The training is normally conducted over a 2-day workshop and typically includes: • Starting with the basics of remote sensing, GIS applications and how participants interact with satellites in their day-to-day lives. This provides the foundation for understanding the different applications and available open-source data that is relevant to their work. • In the latter half of the first day, the cohort is split into groups to work on a problem question and solve a problem using the technological knowledge gained from the training session. • On the second day, the cohort begins to develop their own questions based on the challenges they face in their daily lives. The training programs include the use of GIS technologies in: • rural and urban development • environment, water conservation, agriculture and fisheries • creating the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (a participatory planning process for local self- governments that creates a development plan for economic development and social justice) • demonstration of the various Indian Space Research Organisation portals • drone operations • accessing the European Space Agency’s Sentinel program and historical data on Google Earth Gender outcomes Reach: Expanding access to geospatial training in rural India Partnering with RMP, the SIYH workshops achieved vast reach across eight states with diverse representation from different rural communities, age groups, castes and tribes. The training engages a diverse audience of Figure 5. GIS training for 72 women across various government departments including agriculture, fisheries and more three main occupation groups: (1) elected local government leaders; (2) environmental NGO representative; and (3) professionals in environment, disaster management, water management and forest conservation sectors. The age range of the SIYH audience was between 25 and 55, engaging both early and senior career politicians and community leaders. This age diversity fostered intergenerational knowledge exchange by pairing younger and older learners with each other throughout the training. The decentralized reach of SIYH incorporated multiple program-design considerations related to language, curriculum and format. First, training was delivered in Hindi, English and/or the local language (e.g., Telugu in Andhra Pradesh) through interpreters to ensure language was not a barrier for attendees from remote villages. Second, the flexible nature of the training accommodated varying levels of education, offering an opportunity for women from diverse educational backgrounds (e.g., high-school or graduate-level education) to access the training. Lastly, the format of the training incorporated reflection points and informal opportunities for knowledge exchange among participants to ease the process of knowledge exchange and skill development. Benefit: Delivering practical advantages from training to administration24 This training provided community leaders with the ability to obtain a better understanding of the villages they serve and gain access to national government platforms for geospatial data. With mandated gender quotas and women’s representation in local government in India, RMP reported that this targeted focus on elected women leaders is instrumental in equipping them with the technical geospatial and digital skills that enable them to deliver their work more effectively and improve awareness of technologies that may serve their villages. Through this training, participants in varying capacities have been able to use national GIS portals to support their public duties designing such programs as related to public facility provision, water and waste management, and infrastructure development. A common sentiment about the benefits was reported by RMP: “[The participants] saw their village at one click on GIS portals, which made them very happy; they now can know how many facilities they are providing in their village.” Participants have learned how to actively use EarthSight’s proprietary geospatial platform, which is provided free of charge to ensure accessibility. The foundation noted that analysis of user activity shows the platform being used by the participants most frequently for environmental and forestry applications, including monitoring landslides, tracking mangrove ecosystem changes and detecting forest fires. These tangible benefits are particularly significant given the remote locations of participants, who typically have limited access to technical resources. Empower: Elected women leaders have more confidence in governance spaces The initiative has increased the confidence and capabilities of participating women elected leaders, who often face stigma or marginalization in men-dominated governance spaces. In the words of one of the participants, gaining this technical knowledge felt like a “one up over male officers”. After training on GIS technologies, GPS and drone operations, participants have reported becoming more ‘tech-savvy,’ which resulted in boosting their confidence and self-efficacy to perform their administrative and political roles with more autonomy. “[The training] boosted their confidence … there is always a feeling in women representatives in India that they are not technically savvy, but after these workshops they all told me that we know more than the male representative, so we can teach them and we can plan the program [ourselves] basically.” By extension, RMP’s program lead also reflected on her personal journey being part of this initiative and how it has made her an advocate for improving women’s access to GIS. Coming from a legal background with limited knowledge in the geospatial sector, she took part in initial training as a participant, and learned how to use the GIS portals and integrate it into her work across agriculture and women’s empowerment. Since the training, she has leveraged national geodata portals extensively to build relevant development plans for her village. In conclusion, she reflected: Box 2. Increasing access to government platforms A key component of SIYH focuses on raising awareness on how to use GIS dataset platforms offered by the Central Government of India, including the Bhuvan Panchayat Geoportal and Bharat Maps. These platforms offer rich GIS data on administrative boundaries, transport infrastructure, forest areas, settlement locations, terrain map services, and more. This is particularly important for officials working in rural governments. Initiatives like SIYH are essential enablers for women community leaders’ equal access to and use of such national platforms. https://bhuvanpanchayat.nrsc.gov.in/ https://bhuvanpanchayat.nrsc.gov.in/ https://bharatmaps.gov.in/bharatmaps/ “I am confident when we [as SIYH] approach women who were illiterate in this GIS sector. I know it is possible, because I was one of them ... I didn’t have any knowledge about what is GIS, what is the technology and what is a GIS portal.. So, it is a very wonderful experience for me, and I’m happy that at the age of 57 I could do that.” Transform: Evolving societal perceptions of women’s access to technology The training has slowly begun shifting gender dynamics and perceptions within the community. Some participants reported an increased status within their workplace and households. This effect was illustrated when a woman elected leader brought her husband—who was politically influential in the region—to the training and became a strong advocate for the initiative and encouraged individuals in his constituency to apply for SIYH. Prompted by this technology-focused training, such encouraging notions that start at the household level have immense potential to nudge restrictive sociocultural norms that inhibit women’s equal access to technologies in the long term. “Especially at the rural India level, training in such advanced technologies is not very easily accessible, let alone to a women-only cohort … Advanced technology training, especially given to the ladies of the house, might end up changing the status quo.” Ultimately, community-level initiatives such as SIYH can facilitate and complement national digitalization and geospatial interventions tailored to increasing women’s empowerment. India’s central government offers numerous subsidies and schemes to promote women’s role in the agricultural sector. One example is the Namo Drone Didi (Didi meaning “sister” in Hindi) initiative, where women-led self-help groups can access up to 80 percent government subsidies to procure drones for practical agricultural applications like fertilizer spraying and land monitoring. While initiatives to bridge the technological divide are crucial, they must be complemented by targeted digital-skills development at the individual and community level. Without initiatives like SIYH, structural digital inequities will continue to undermine the reach and impact of these efforts.25 What’s next for the initiative Looking ahead, RMP and the EarthSight Foundation aim to improve the decentralized model of this initiative to make it more accessible to women across India and ensure its long-term sustainability. They plan to develop easy-to-follow operational handbooks translated into local languages for participants to use beyond the conclusion of the initiative. This allows participants to implement their learning with guided support using these developed materials. Additionally, EarthSight Foundation plans to leverage existing computer facilities in schools to establish village-level GIS labs to create sustainable and low-cost spaces for women-led training hubs. These labs would enable program graduates to train others in drone operation, satellite data analysis and GIS software use—potentially creating a ripple effect of empowerment across rural communities. The long-term vision is for the women who developed technological skills to establish their own geospatial ventures, addressing local challenges through innovative, context-specific solutions. Key learnings 1 The tailored design and outreach of the initiative was key to achieving diverse and decentralised reach, and key to promoting intergenerational knowledge exchange and cross-sectoral collaboration among participants. 2 Enabling women elected leaders to use national geodata platforms unlocks numerous benefits for better serving their communities and improving their ability to fulfill their roles and duties in delivering services. 3 Increasing women’s access to GIS empowers them to more easily navigate male-dominated professional spaces by increasing their confidence to use and apply geospatial data in their work. 4 Change at the policy level must accompany shifts across varying domains. The transformative role that initiatives such as SIYH play in women’s empowerment is in driving sociocultural shifts at the household, community and national level. https://www.india.gov.in/spotlight/namo-drone-didi 3.4 Case study: Network for Women+ in Geospatial industries Initiative name Women+ in Geospatial Network Institution Women+ in Geospatial Location Registered in the United Kingdom, with a global reach GIS application Connecting women professionals and students globally through an online platform and mentorship program Overview Women+ in Geospatial is a global professional network founded in 2019 to promote diversity and gender equality in the geospatial industry and academia. The UK- based initiative began as a grassroots movement on X (formerly Twitter) ahead of International Women’s Day. A single post calling for women+ (including nonbinary and underrepresented genders) in GIS, Earth Observation, and mapping to connect quickly garnered 300+ sign-ups in two days. The network spans 5,500+ members across 149 countries, fostering a supportive, inclusive community for women+ in geospatial fields. Women+ in Geospatial focuses on career development, mentorship and advocacy to counter systemic barriers faced by women and other marginalized genders in a men-dominated sector. The initiative’s approach The network has three main initiatives: an online platform for women+ GIS professionals and students, a mentorship program, and regular in-person and online events such as webinars and conferences. Those participating in the mentoring program can collaborate on a legacy project, using the guidance, support and tools provided. Women+ in Geospatial ensures gender perspectives shape data analysis by: (1) amplifying women+ voices in GeoAI, disaster mapping, and climate resilience; (2) advocating for gender-equal and diverse hiring; and (3) highlighting nontraditional pathways into GIS (supporting women+ from ecology, urban planning or the social sciences). Geospatial tools used The initiative empowers women+ to shape data analysis and technology applications with a gender lens. Members work across: • GIS (QGIS, ArcGIS) • remote sensing and satellite imagery • Python, cloud computing (Google Earth Engine, Docker) The network seeks to ensure that spatial data solutions consider women’s needs, from urban planning to climate resilience, by advocating for diverse hiring, developing gender-inclusive training and spotlighting key role models. Gender outcomes Reach: Breaking down barriers to employment in the GIS sector Women+ in Geospatial has expanded access to the geospatial field for diverse genders through its global community of members across 149 countries. The initiative’s organic growth from an X/Twitter thread to a formal UK-registered organization demonstrates a demand for networking, advice and mentorship from professionals and students in the GIS industry. This network is paired with an active online platform on Circle (a cloud-based community management platform), which has created crucial entry points for women+, particularly gender and ethnic minorities. Although geographic representation remains uneven—with stronger Figure 6. Women+ in Geospatial Networking event at Living Planet Symposium 2022 (Credit: Women+ in Geospatial) membership in the UK, US and Canada—partnerships with similar regional groups in Latin America (GeoChicas) and Africa (African Women in GIS) help address these disparities. See box 3 for a spotlight of a Women+ in Geospatial pioneering regional partner, GeoChicas. Benefit: Connecting young women professionals to address the technical skills gap From its inception, the network has run a mentorship program that enables gender minorities in the geospatial industry to connect and feel empowered in both their personal and professional lives. This flagship mentorship program has successfully mentored over 560+ women from 80 countries across its six cohorts. Mentorship takes on three different formats, which provide diverse benefits: (1) one-to-one mentoring, where an advanced professional serves as a mentor to support and advice the mentee on a particular topic or skill; (2) group mentoring where one mentor provides support to a small group of up to three mentees; and (3) peer mentoring where each participant in this group contributes their areas of expertise, advice and network. Mentees benefit from idea sharing and group-based discussions, while evolving their soft skills such as interpersonal, communication and leadership skills. The initiative’s diverse offerings translate into career-advancement opportunities, with numerous members securing positions through referrals and the network’s job board. Women+ in Geospatial offers structured career guidance while addressing critical technical-skill gaps through specialized webinars about Python, cloud processing, and emerging geospatial technologies. The network emphasizes practical, industry-relevant skills, bridging the persistent gap between academic training and workplace requirements in the geospatial field. For example, a project from the 2024–25 mentorship cohort explored the urban expansion, vegetation loss and shifting landscapes in Khartoum. Mentorship relationships have directly led to members securing positions in satellite companies and environmental monitoring roles, while skills-building workshops addressed critical gaps in cloud computing and GeoAI competencies that academic programs often overlook. “What are the job profiles that the industry actually needs? There is a mismatch now where people are traditionally educated on ArcGIS or traditional GIS mapping approaches. But they realize companies are asking for an understanding of cloud, Geo AI, Python, and Docker.” The network’s LinkedIn presence (more than 40,000 followers) and network of women+ professionals have created alternative hiring pipelines that circumvent traditional gatekeeping in GIS recruitment. Notably, the Box 3: Initiative spotlight – GeoChicas in Latin America GeoChicas is a network of 200-plus women+ in geospatial and technological sectors, from 22 countries across Latin America and beyond. Launched in 2016, this grassroot network sought to address a dual challenge of (1) the geodata scarcity of Latin America in comparison to other regions in the global North and (2) a persistent gender gap in women’s representation in the men-dominated geospatial industry. This network has provided women in the sector with: • an inclusive platform: delivering regional geospatial conferences and inclusive platforms for women+ from the sector to connect and network • career growth: increasing women’s involvement in leadership roles in geospatial industries by offering targeted mentorship and career advice to improve confidence and agency • knowledge sharing: promoting exchange of knowledge, resources and opportunities among community members • skills building: strengthening relevant geospatial and digital skills, including training on applying P-GIS, MapBox, OpenStreetMap and others Based virtually on the messaging app Telegram, this network has offered many geospatial professionals an inclusive and safe space platform to grow in this men-dominated sector. Individuals engaged in this initiative have reported on the numerous benefits that being part of this network has offered for them in terms of personal growth, confidence boosting and career development. The power of networks A key value for the network is collaboration, not competition, and believing that such networks are more powerful for unity. As such, GeoChicas has collaborated with numerous open-data organisations and other similar networks, such as Women+ in Geospatial. program’s emphasis on soft skills like public speaking and CV writing specifically targets confidence gaps that disproportionately affect women+ in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. These interventions are particularly impactful for mid-career professionals facing systemic barriers to advancement. Empower: Building visibility of women professionals in the GIS space The initiative fosters professional confidence and leadership capabilities through its peer-learning model. Unlike traditional, hierarchical mentorship structures, the initiative emphasizes collaborative projects that provide reciprocal benefits for both mentors and mentees. The organization supports conference organizers to make panels and speaker lists more diverse. It is important to spotlight women leaders in the field and increase speaker diversity to demonstrate their successes, as their visibility often serves as inspiration for younger attendees. The Women+ in Geospatial initiative seeks to shift gender dynamics in a field where technical roles remain overwhelmingly men-dominated (reports demonstrate that 62 percent of women do not stay in the field for more than 10 years, and conference data indicated that only 9 percent of women attendees were at the management level).26 This imbalance has implications for how geospatial data is collected, analyzed and applied, with traditionally men-led teams often overlooking gender-specific considerations in urban planning, disaster response and resource allocation. The initiative directly counters this by cultivating women+’s technical leadership, ensuring spatial technologies evolve to serve diverse needs. Transform: Toward closing the skills gap and developing equitable technology Through strategic partnerships with employers and educational institutions, Women+ in Geospatial aims to address the root causes of inequality in the field by combining community building alongside professional development and advocacy. This has the potential to reshape hiring practices and influence GIS curricula to be more gender inclusive. The growth of the network indicates that there is potential to: • Reshape industry norms. The network’s advocacy efforts could shift the gender diversity of speakers and attendees at major conferences, although there is a need for consistent pressure to institutionalize this change. • Redefine career pathways. The mentoring program takes a peer-learning model, challenging hierarchical knowledge transfer, which could inspire more collaborative professional development across the sector. Tracking career progression of alumni, the network could demonstrate the importance of investing in women’s leadership in the GIS space. • Progress equitable tech development. As more members enter decision-making roles, they may steer GIS applications toward the inclusion of gender-transformative design and data analysis. “There’s definitely a conversation starting on how to close the skills gap, working together with educational organizations and additional training providers, because a lot of training happens when you’re employed and at the workplace itself.” What’s next for the initiative The GIS industry remains occupationally segregated, with women and marginalized genders often excluded from technical roles, leadership and conference speaker lineups. Building on its grassroots success, Women+ in Geospatial wants to strengthen the reach of its community, connecting its early-career members with mid- and senior-level women professionals. Naturally, as the community continues to grow, its members will gradually shift from early graduates to having more years of experience. Another important long-term goal for the network is collaborating with organizations and companies to raise awareness and advocate for the importance of diverse representation in their teams and inclusive hiring practices. Although they perceive challenges in receiving applications from diverse candidates, Women+ in Geospatial expressed their plans to bridge this gap by matching qualified geospatial professionals from the network with the hiring organizations directly. Key learnings 1. The platform has been able to reach members across 149 countries to provide both technical skills and an expansive network of women+ professionals and students globally, allowing gender-diverse individuals to access jobs in a space that men predominantly occupy. 2. Through this network, members can benefit from mentoring opportunities that support early-career women+ professionals in developing soft skills in collaboration, leadership and communication. Mentees can gain knowledge and expertise to address skill gaps, which can lead to increased employment opportunities. 3. The network seeks to empower women+ in the field of geospatial technologies by providing speaking opportunities at conferences, panels and webinars, to demonstrate their hi t d l d l i th fi ld f i i + 3.5 Case study: Integrating gender into geospatial program evaluations Initiative name Gender Equity in Development Institution AidData Location Based in the United States GIS application Integrating gender data into spatial mapping using GIS for monitoring and evaluation Overview AidData is a research lab housed at the College of William & Mary, specializing in geospatial impact evaluations (GIEs). AidData launched its Gender Equity in Development program, responding to the need to integrate gender perspectives into evaluation projects. The initiative aims to apply a gender lens in all its activities—particularly in survey measurement, agriculture, health, and labor markets—using geospatial data to evaluate programs. Since it was founded, the program has partnered with such leading organizations including the Hewlett Foundation, the Gates Foundation, USAID, Innovations for Poverty Action to improve the measurement and understanding of gender-related outcomes from development programs. The initiative’s approach The following examples demonstrate how the program uses top-down geospatial technologies to: (1) compare perception-based differences in household survey responses between women and men in Ghana using OpenStreetMap (Goodman et al. 2023), (2) track urban land use in Rwanda (key informant interviews with AidData 2025), and (3) assess irrigation impacts on women farmers in Mali (key informant interviews with AidData 2025).27 Geospatial tools used GIS is applied across various aspects of AidData’s monitoring and evaluation work, including: • using satellite imagery for land-use classification (Google Earth Engine), poverty prediction (Python), and for visual inspections such as crop monitoring (ArcGIS or QGIS) • integrating GPS data with surveys by using both private and open-source data sets, like PlanetScope, Landsat, Sentinel and Open Street Maps • complementing geospatial tools with quantitative and qualitative data analysis and processing software like STATA and Python Gender outcomes Reach: Accessing rural communities for program evaluation AidData’s work demonstrates both the potential and limitations of using GIS to promote gender-inclusive data collection, monitoring, and impact evaluation. While their projects span diverse urban and rural contexts across Africa and Asia, the inclusion of women, youth and Indigenous groups remains heavily dependent on donor priorities and funding availability. AidData’s top-down GIS approach fills an evidence gap, particularly for hard-to-reach or conflict-affected settings. AidData uses GIS in impact evaluations precisely because some areas are difficult to send on-ground enumerators for traditional surveys. Practical barriers, such as working with limited infrastructure and building local trust, act as obstacles to deeper grassroots involvement. Donor priorities often have a broader focus on agriculture or health, which shape the scope of AidData’s work. Although there are opportunities for gender components to be included, they are Figure 7.7 Panel discussion for the AidData-CDD Ghana workshop on “Evaluating Gender Bias in AI Applications” in Accra, Ghana https://www.aiddata.org/blog/aiddata-partnership-works-to-promote-gender-equitable-ai-applications https://www.aiddata.org/blog/aiddata-partnership-works-to-promote-gender-equitable-ai-applications https://www.aiddata.org/blog/aiddata-partnership-works-to-promote-gender-equitable-ai-applications neither always prioritized, nor adequately funded. This can result in representation gaps for marginalized communities, who are often excluded unless specifically targeted in project design. The technical barriers to implementing comprehensive capacity building compound these challenges, leaving participatory methods largely unrealized in most initiatives. However, there is recognition of the need to strengthen community-level engagement in future work, integrating inclusive approaches where feasible. “Gender has been a consistent priority for most funders, and GIS is gaining traction, but we don’t currently see dedicated funding opportunities for GIS-gender integration. Rather, we encounter a funding opportunity where we would suggest incorporating both elements.” Benefit: Supporting local organizations to integrate GIS in future program design AidData has reported success in supporting local partners in the country of evaluation to overcome perceptions that GIS is highly technical and advanced in nature. Through dedicated capacity-strengthening efforts tailored to local organizations involved in geospatial data collection, GIS applications have encouraged local partners to incorporate practical, low-cost geospatial tools—such as AidData’s GeoQuery, which allows users to download GIS data into easy-to-use Excel spreadsheets. AidData also advocates for GPS-linked surveys in earlier stages of program design, which could yield longer-term benefits in data quality and program effectiveness. AidData’s study on household surveys in Ghana demonstrates how conventional agricultural data collection systematically undersurveys women’s agricultural knowledge. By comparing survey responses from both women and men who make decisions about the same farming plots on plot characteristics (e.g., distance from household, size, and fallowing status), satellite imagery can serve as an independent observation against which to compare their responses. The research demonstrated significant gendered reporting biases on the characteristics of agricultural plots, where men were more likely to overstate the size of the plots and underestimate the distance to the plots. These findings highlight the critical need to reform agricultural survey methodologies through a gender- transformative lens. Current practices that predominantly rely on men respondents distort vital farming data and marginalize women’s expertise in land management and resource allocation, demonstrating the need for data-collection approaches that incorporate women’s perspectives in AFS. Empower: Disrupting gender-based perceptions, strengthening local capacity AidData observed that reporting on gender outcomes, particularly women’s empowerment, is difficult to quantify and harder to measure, creating barriers to translating the research to advocate for gender equality. However, the evaluations can quantify the importance of conducting primary data collection that ensures gender parity among the respondents. The results from the agricultural surveys conducted in Ghana found that male respondents are more likely than women respondents to overreport agricultural productivity, creating biases in the data used to inform program design and interventions. This result has the potential to increase women’s agency by recognizing their knowledge and the need to have women inform resource allocation and strengthen their decision-making in AFS. While the following examples are not explicitly focused on women’s empowerment, they demonstrate cases where strengthened local capacity can serve as a model for empowerment. Notably, the initiative has successfully built technical capacity by partnering with a local organization to train Nepalese researchers in analyzing satellite data for river erosion. In another workstream, facilitating connections between research fellows and Rwandan government officials to build GIS skills for land-use planning, and transfer skills to others. This demonstrated the potential for sustainable and localized geospatial expertise. These approaches bridge the gap between data and empowerment by creating mechanisms and feedback loops to enhance program adaptability and long-term impact. Transform: Building an evidence base for institutional change The initiative’s influence on structural change manifests through potential shifts in gendered perceptions about resource use and management. At an institutional level, GIS can serve as a powerful tool for challenging entrenched gender biases. For example, in Ghana the findings on men’s overreporting highlighted the need to ensure gender parity in survey responses, specifically by reaching more women respondents in survey data and assessments. However, the translation of these insights into broader social norm change remains an area of further research and study. The translation of GIS findings into policymaking has been an area of increasing interest for AidData in future programs. This gap between data and mobilization highlights a challenge and opportunity for future monitoring and evaluation. The Malian irrigation project offers a promising model, demonstrating how infrastructure investments affect women’s empowerment, creating an evidence base for gender-transformative program design. While GIS can provide the proof, it does not automatically create the pressure for change. What’s next for the initiative Moving forward, the initiative is exploring pathways to connect geospatial insights more directly with participatory community-engagement strategies. For example, the initiative aims to ensure that their research insights can reach and benefit end users (such as farmers) in an accessible format. Due to the nature of AidData’s work on impact evaluations, providing technical and technological capacity building can be challenging if it is not specifically included in funding requirements. This is mainly due to logistical and financial constraints that may arise, especially when reaching end users in remote geographical regions where evaluations are conducted (especially women) who are less likely to have access to a smartphone or a device of any kind. AidData also seeks to investigate links between geospatial indicators and gendered outcomes in order to develop a greater understanding about whether geospatial data can be used to measure gendered outcomes. “It’d be great to be able to go into the communities and have them participate; for example, knowing ‘this is where my field is,’ we can then remotely send data and information on their field.” The intersection of GIS and gender has received limited attention from donors, influencing the scope of work conducted by AidData. The design of the evaluation, and therefore which specific groups and indicators are examined, is defined by donor priorities and objectives that do not always include understanding the effects of an intervention on women. However, there is no standardized indicators for measuring gender-related impacts when conducting evaluations. While this presents a challenge for comparison across projects, it can also provide flexibility on a project-by-project basis to determine where spatial data is most relevant for gender- related outcomes. Beyond their work on monitoring and evaluation, their work is increasingly incorporating capacity- strengthening elements in projects such as urban land use in Rwanda. AidData is finalizing a collaboration with Rwandan-based fellows who are paired with different ministries and organizations. The current project involves the fellows working alongside the National Land Authority to disseminate GIS-related findings on urban land-use change to inform policymaking. This may lay the groundwork for institutional change in the future. Key learnings 1. While GIS integration in M&E has the potential to reach marginalised groups and improve gender-inclusive data collection, limitations persist due to donor-driven priorities, technical constraints and barriers to participatory engagement. 2. Strengthening local partners’ capacity to integrate GIS early in program design, particularly through gender- disaggregated spatial analysis, can provide benefits by challenging biases in agricultural surveys and improving agricultural program design by correcting men-biased reporting and by validating women’s expertise. 3. Training researchers in satellite analysis and land-use planning builds local expertise, disrupts gendered knowledge hierarchies, and centers women’s knowledge, empowering women in their decision-making. 4. Structural transformation will require moving beyond reporting to accessible data. This should ensure findings reach end users through accessible dissemination to drive social norms and policy change, enabled by gender-transformative funding. 4.0 Key lessons about GIS as a tool for GTR The case studies presented in this report demonstrate how GIS can be a powerful tool for adopting a GTA in various capacities and fields. By examining the insights from the five case studies, we have developed the following advice to promote a more inclusive and transformative application of GIS within initiatives. 4.1 Initiative considerations for transformative GIS integration Theme 1: Breaking down barriers for participants to take part A recurrent theme in the success of the featured case studies was their ability to reach women and other communities within their initiatives by integrating gender considerations from the outset. Adopting a gender- transformative approach when engaging participants in research activities for initiatives or academic studies involves co-creating the entire initiative with the participants, taking into account their needs and contributions to ensure their inclusive engagment. Participation across age groups for intergenerational exchange: It is integral for project sustainability that knowledge is spread across age groups. This aims to ensures that the project is representative of the entire community. (For example, see case studies 3.1 and 3.2) 1. Childcare support and breastfeeding facilities: Women are often disproportionately responsible for childcare. To ensure that women are able to participate, provide accommodating measures such as childcare support and breastfeeding facilities for the duration of the initiatives. (For example, see case studies 3.1, 3.2, and 3.3) 2. An accessible initiative for participants: Women are disproportionately affected by a lack of transport, limiting their access to many programs. Initiatives for AFS should ensure that they are not merely operating in main urban areas (e.g., the capital city). This should involve taking the initiative to more remote, rural or hard-to-reach areas where targeted communities are present. (For example, see case studies 3.1 and 3.3) 3. Compensation: It is integral that participants are compensated for the time and effort dedicated to the initiative or project research. This compensates for any time lost for agricultural productivity or profits due to their participation, and for women, provides them with monetary resources to manage. (For example, see case studies 3.1 and 3.2) Theme 2: Strengthening women’s technical capacities Beyond simply applying the tools, geospatial approaches and GIS technology, researchers require a certain level of knowledge and training to apply them within a specific context and understand the local challenges communities face. Additionally, equipping women with geospatial knowledge—whether in participatory research, training or mentorship—has significant potential for driving transformative outcomes related to decision-making and employment on the individual, household and community levels. 1. Training researchers, enumerators, and trainers in the field: Research can be gender transformative when it builds the capacities of participants in the research process.28 Incorporating geospatial training for local implementers—enumerators, local research partners and facilitators— strengthens the quality of data collection and helps improve the sustainability of the knowledge outcomes and training beyond project life cycles. (For example, see case studies 3.1, 3.2, 3.5) 2. Using peer-to-peer learning to overcome varying knowledge levels: Technology gaps rooted in structural barriers related to gender, age and education can be adapted into program activities by pairing community members as facilitators in capacity-strengthening activities. These facilitators can be advanced degree students specialized in geography, agronomy, engineering or other fields, or trained data enumerators who are deeply familiar with the local context. This format of knowledge exchange enables training to be catered to different individuals while easing the frustration and anxiety that naturally can come with adopting new technologies. (For example, see case studies 3.2 and 3.3) 3. Creating an enabling and safe environment for knowledge exchange: When conducting P-GIS with community members, there must be measures to allow women the space to share their valuable knowledge. Such considerations include working with women facilitators, providing ample time for P-mapping, and pre-mapping capacity strengthening. By pairing different participants with each other based on their interest and expertise, capacity-strengthening initiatives allow for a mutual exchange of geospatial knowledge, opportunities and essential traditional ecological and Indigenous knowledge among attendees. (For example, see case studies 3.2, 3.3 and 3.4) Theme 3: Challenging power dynamics through collective knowledge The inclusive adoption of geospatial technologies across the case studies featured in this report can trigger cascading effects that challenge entrenched power dynamics and established ‘ways’ of knowing and doing, at both community and epistemological levels. 1. Fostering agency through technology adoption: Depending on the context, some women who engaged in GIS training activities felt empowered, more confident, and able to make critical decisions related to their livelihoods by acquiring geospatial and technological knowledge. As such, strengthening the capacities of women to adopt geospatial technologies challenged entrenched structures that have historically concentrated decision-making powers regarding technology use and adoption (such as agricultural machinery) within the control of men community members. (For example, see case studies 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, and 3.5) 2. Integrating women’s geospatial perspective in research and policy: Rural women hold essential spatial knowledge related to aspects of safety and areas to avoid due to conflict zones, and intrahousehold dynamics that can inform natural resource management and public policies. For instance, women’s familiarity of the danger zones in water-collection pathways where instances of rape or violence have occurred can help community members and local government establish targeted safeguards for concerns that could have otherwise gone unnoticed. (For example, see case study 3.1) 3. Convening community members to foster collective geospatial knowledge outcomes: Researchers conducting P-GIS activities have an important role in organizing inclusive and safe spaces for knowledge exchange that allows collective knowledge to be produced, combining different perspectives. Gender roles and dynamics between women and men in shared spaces must be actively considered to enforce an ethical and equitable data-collection process. Measures such as training facilitators and having gender-segregated focus group discussions could ensure that many voices are heard and reflected in the P-mapping process and provide a more accurate and rich collective knowledge outcome beneficial for all. (For example, see case studies 3.1 and 3.2) 4. Encouraging geospatial career growth for women professionals: Fostering networks, highlighting role models in the GIS space, and providing upskilling support schemes tailored to women+ in the geospatial industries facilitate the growth of GIS in GTR. The gender of gatekeepers in the process of geographical knowledge production can influence the nature of the research produced.29 As such, when more women engage in the geospatial industry, prevalent men- dominated narratives around GIS knowledge outcomes can be challenged to become more gender transformative . (For examples, see case studies 3.2 and 3.4) 4.2 Barriers to integrating GIS into AFS applications There are several constraints to carrying out and sustaining these case studies. At the onset, reaching and targeting women for the case studies were hindered due to accessibility and mobility issues; women had issues with physically accessing the implementation site or focus group discussions, a lack of awareness on how to participate, and having to balance childcare and domestic duties with participation, or additional factors. As such, it is essential that these considerations are considered at the program- or research-design stage. Availability of funding and potential partners for collaboration shape the nature and reach of capacity- strengthening initiatives such as WRGT and SIYH. The adoption of geospatial tools is also contingent on the tools remaining open-source, with low costs for installation. In instances where certain geospatial tools, such as Story Maps, became paid subscriptions, the WRGT could not continue providing this to participants. This calls for geospatial solution providers to ensure the accessibility of their GIS tools and applications to rural communities and grassroot organizations by considering both the tool’s usability and monetary aspects. Similarly, the flexibility of AidData and ILRI to integrate gender-focused geospatial activities into GIEs and monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning activities rely on the interest and priority of donors funding programs on the ground. Additionally, capturing success stories from rural women utilizing GIS within AFS remains an obstacle. Numerous accounts noted that post-program evaluation of the activities’ impact would require the initiative teams’ mobility and presence on ground where training was conducted, which can be timely and costly if there is no budget allocated for post-implementation support. In addition, in the post-implementation period, it is integral that resources are budgeted to allow any resources or deliverable products produced from the project or research to be made accessible to the communities and additional people who have been involved in it. Furthermore, there currently appears to be a lack of ability to connect with additional researchers, because the area of GIS, AFS and gender appears to be a niche field. However, as there is not yet a platform on a global scale that enables knowledge sharing, developing this field and sharing best practices appears to be a barrier that restricts the momentum behind developing the movement as a collective. 5.0 Conclusion: looking ahead The presentation of the five case studies, which focus on promoting gender empowerment within AFS through geospatial approaches and GIS technologies, is a first. The RBET framework analyzed the activities and outcomes of each initiative to identify the building blocks for gender-transformative activities. In this niche field, these case studies demonstrate the need for a multifaceted approach to empower women within the AFS space: • Reach: Targeting participants, especially women at the micro level, requires initiatives to be implemented within communities where the women are based and to consider their accessibility, particularly in rural areas. This approach should include adapting and tailoring initiatives to overcome structural gender barriers at the design stage and budgeting accordingly for lodging, transportation, childcare and compensation for participants. Additionally, the outcomes of the initiatives improve by targeting women, youth, Indigenous People, other marginalized genders and populations,. • Benefit: GIS can serve as a strong capacity-strengthening tool for women. Whether this was through direct training or learning more about the land around them, women who participated in these initiatives gained technical skills and knowledge about how to use GIS technologies and associated methods to improve their position in local AFS activities. The information collected through GIS also assists the allocation of resources and identifies where activities should be targeted to ultimately benefit women. One key consideration for sustained benefits is the need for open-data platforms and services to allow women and the communities using GIS to access them cost-effectively. • Empower: Women can experience improved confidence and sense of autonomy as they gain the needed skills to adopt GIS technologies and use GIS to understand more about the activities that they participate in, such as crop management and water gathering. In increasing their confidence level, their individual agency can grow. Further, in many of the case studies, women were invited to participate in spaces that they often would not be invited to. By involving and including their perspective, women have been able to increase their decision-making power and drive a shift at the community level in gender dynamics, particularly in initiatives where men are also exposed to the valuable input that women provide. • Transform: An overarching element throughout the case studies is that collective involvement and buy-in from the communities when integrating GIS can drive transformations within the community. Peer-to-peer networks, mentorship programs and community connections can enable supportive learning environments for women from different backgrounds, fields, ages and occupations to continue developing their skills and knowledge on GIS methods and tools to integrate within AFS. However, data on the impacts and extent of long-term transformations from GIS initiatives remain limited. This gap calls for more mid- to long-term impact evaluations that revisit the role of such GIS initiatives in enacting transformative change for women in agri-food systems. Furthermore, giving back to the community—whether the data collected, maps created, or impacts evaluated—must remain a key priority to ensure equitable research outcomes and intiatives. Transformative gender outcomes can be achieved when they challenge entrenched structures that are the root causes of gender inequalities in AFS and more generally. Policymaking and existing policies are avenues that several initiatives like these aim to expand into, to broaden their reach and impact. This includes measures such as: (1) integrating the activities of the initiative within existing national policies and schemes to tie to national efforts and encourage transformation for women’s empowerment in AFS (see case study 3.3), (2) leveraging outcomes from OGIES and GIEs to provide evidence-based data to influence policy and advocacy efforts (see case study 3.5), and (3) using insights from P-GIS method to feed information into established policy pathways to influence existing rural and infrastructure development (see case study 3.1). Looking forward, it is essential to share best practices on incorporating GIS into AFS and gender. This can encourage donors to adjust their funding priorities to accommodate gender-transformative geospatial approaches and to support researchers and practitioners in implementing these activities within their own projects. Each interviewee expressed the need for a platform to share knowledge and opportunities, establish connections and gain insights on leveraging GIS at the intersection of AFS and gender. Supporting the scaling and launching of field initiatives is crucial, and raising awareness to make this space accessible is the top priority. Endnotes 1 Quisumbing, Agnes R. and Doss, Cheryl R. 2021. “Gender in agriculture and food systems.” Handbook of Agricultural Economics, 5, 4481–4549. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1574007221000098 2 Quisumbing, Agnes R. and Doss, Cheryl R. 2021. “Gender in agriculture and food systems.” Handbook of Agricultural Economics 5: 4481–4549. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1574007221000098 3 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 2023. The status of women in Agrifood Systems. http://www.fao.org/3/cc5343en/cc5343en.pdf 4 Stancliffe Bird, M. 2024. Advancing gender equality and agrifood systems: what’s working? https://goodgrowthpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/advancing-gender-equality-an-agrifood-systems- whats-working.pdf 5 Jayasinghe, N., Pavez Butt, A., & Zaaroura, M. 2019. Integrating gender in research planning. Oxfam International. https://policy-practice.oxfam.org/resources/integrating-gender-in-research-planning-620621/ 6 Jayasinghe, N., Pavez Butt, A., & Zaaroura, M. 2019. Integrating gender in research planning. Oxfam International. https://policy-practice.oxfam.org/resources/integrating-gender-in-research-planning-620621/ 7 Rietveld, A., Gartaula, H., Farnworth, C. R., Lopez, D. E., Bailey, A., Hellin, J., Fisher, E., Kramer, B., Teeken, B., Mujawamariya, G. and Choudhury, A. 2022. A community of practice for gender-transformative research methodologies. CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform Working Paper #007. 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