The silence around sex and gender in disasters can be deafening—and leads to missed opportunities for engaging with women as well as emergency management approaches that reinforce the marginalization of girls and women. This silence also sidelined sex and gender as factors in disaster resilience as well as relief and recovery.

The GDRA works across sectors and with all our partners to give voice to women and men across the nation who are at risk of disaster or responding to the challenges of an emergency, disaster or catastrophe.

Ethical reporting

We strive to raise community awareness of the capacities of women and the significance of sex and gender for everyone throughout the disaster process—and long before, when the conditions leading to disasters can be changed.  First, the images broadcast so thoughtlessly both invade our privacy and distort our realities (weeping women and stoic men). The GDRA will work with media representatives in all media to promote more inclusive and ethical “reporting,” whether through new social media or old.

Community awareness

“Connecting the dots” between gender inequalities and the empowerment of women in crisis is not difficult—but rarely done in mainstream media or the risk awareness initiatives of conventional disaster management programs.

The GDRA makes available electronic resources and promotional materials that help residents as well as disaster managers ‘connect the dots.’

Women, Men & Gender in American Disasters? What’s the Issue? (brochure under development)

Listening to Women and Men on Disaster Resilience (illustrated postcards and audiotapes under development)

Women Can Prevent Disasters (potholders, napkins & magnets under development)

Posters (original art is solicited for our growing collection of awareness raising posters)