ID: 1619
Presenting Author: Johanne Hanko
Session: 654 - Culture's Role in Impact Assessment
Status: approve
Discover how gender-based misinformation undermines impact assessments and explore field-tested strategies that counter bias, foster inclusive engagement, and strengthen outcomes.
Misinformation and disinformation can mislead environmental, social, and health impact assessments by misleading decision-making. This is particularly evident in how women’s capacities, interests, and roles are perceived. Entrenched stereotypes—often reinforced by cultural norms—can silence women in consultations, overlook their needs, and limit access to opportunities such as employment. These biases reduce representativeness, undermine stakeholder engagement, and weaken assessment quality.
Integrating gender considerations strengthens results by broadening talent pools, fostering innovation, and enhancing community acceptance. Multilateral development banks increasingly require gender integration as a transversal priority, with measures such as Gender Action Plans, gender-sensitive indicators, and inclusive consultations for approval and monitoring. Ignoring gender dimensions risks inefficiency, delayed financing, loss of credibility, and diminished sustainability.
This session will explore how misinformation and stereotypes influence assessment processes and present practical strategies drawn from field experiences in diverse countries and contexts. It will highlight gender-sensitive communication, data verification, and targeted outreach to ensure women’s perspectives are reflected. Participants will gain actionable insights to counter bias, strengthen gender-responsive engagement, and enhance the legitimacy of impact assessments.
Johanne Hanko, Dr.-Eng., is Senior Project Manager at RINA with over 30 years of experience specializing in environmental and social development, gender equality, and sustainability