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Research, Strategy and Leadership

In recent years the intersection of gender and the green agenda has drawn attention in research and policymaking. Early work emphasized the disproportionate effects of environmental degradation on women, and women’s critical knowledge in resource management, pushing for their inclusion in sustainable development initiatives. Gender has been integrated into Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 5 (gender equality) and SDG 13 (climate action). By linking gender equity to ecological resilience, research on women’s participation and leadership in environmental governance shows how addressing gender disparities enhances environmental sustainability and fosters social justice.

Margaret Greene has been involved in advancing research at the intersection of gender and the green agenda. With Iris Group and the Chroma Collective, she developed the Gender*Green Agenda framework and learning platform. The framework provides a visual framework for understanding how the dimensions of gender and green agenda activities intersect. From gender exploitative to transformative, and green agenda harmful to regenerative, the framework offers a backdrop that maps programs at the nexus of gender and the green agenda, including climate change. This work was first disseminated at CSW in March 2024, and then at UN Climate week in September 2024; it will be presented at COP 30 in November 2025 in Belém, Brazil.

With support from the Kendeda fund, she and collaborator Brian Greenberg developed an analysis on Girls’ Rights and Resilience: Gender Equality, Climate Response and the Potential of Integrated Programs. Noting that the effects of climate change are likely to worsen rapidly as ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss accelerate, this report examines the implications for girls and women—including for their health, livelihoods, food and nutrition security, personal safety and migration. Climate instability is the most serious gender equality, rights and environmental challenge the global community faces.

Institutional Strategy

GreeneWorks connects social analysis and institutional priorities to improve health and development outcomes. Two strong examples of this work to inform institutional strategy have been work with MARS and work with the Global Financing Facility.

MARS Inc, one of the world’s largest purveyors of chocolate, aspires to upholding the principle of mutuality into all of its operations, allowing all to benefit from the corporation’s success. Vision for Change (V4C), their community development program in Cote d’Ivoire, was working locally to promote sustainable agricultural practices and share farming techniques and materials in support of as smallholder farmers. But a critical assessment by Oxfam demonstrated that women were being sidelined by MARS’s programs. MARS turned to GreeneWorks for help.

GreeneWorks conducted field visits to observe V4C program operations, interviewed community members and staff, and examined project documents to get a picture of what needed to be changed. The team's gender assessment revealed that women, who were providing 45% of the labor required for cocoa production, were not benefitting from the program. Program staff and male community members did not view women as “farmers”; as a consequence, they were not receiving the training or access to inputs that the men were, nor did they have equal access to membership in cocoa cooperatives. MARS went public with the assessment - A Sustainable, Thriving Cocoa Sector for Future Generations - and issued a statement of their plans to address the challenges identified in the report.

In another example of developing institutional strategy, GreeneWorks also produced the Roadmap for Advancing Gender Equality. As countries battled the COVID-19 pandemic, evidence shows that women and girls paid the highest price, through an increase in gender-based violence during lockdown, a reduction in access to needed sexual and reproductive health services, job losses and a lack of social protection, school closures and increases in unpaid care. GreeneWorks supported the GFF in developing a detailed plan to strengthen its global efforts and support a systematized, country-led process to address gender inequality across its portfolio.

Other examples include Save the Children’s Gender Equality and UNFPA’s Girls’ Empowerment Strategy

Policy Analysis

Policy analyses on gender inequality can provide critical insights into the systemic barriers that limit women's and marginalized groups' participation in economic, social, and political spheres. By identifying gaps in access to education, healthcare, legal protections, and employment opportunities, analyses conducted by GreeneWorks have enabled numerous organizations to design targeted interventions that promote gender equality. These evidence-based strategies enhance the effectiveness and sustainability of organizations’ work and investments. 

World Bank Transport Sector Development Project: Lessons Learned and Agenda for Action, report here:  Contributed to Inspection Panel investigation. Full information on the case here, and press release here.

GreeneWorks has supported USAID to assess the policy context and develop a plan for investment in light of country needs and government priorities. 

  • Co-led Gender Assessment for USAID India Although gender inequality and rigidly prescribed roles undermine equitable development and social justice, they are largely unchallenged in many settings, and imperceptible to policymakers and the general public. USAID/India decided to mainstream gender in its strategy to address gender inequalities throughout its programs. The GreeneWorks-led  assessment was conducted to provide the Mission with guidance on how to set this process in motion. (Assessment)

  • Leading another team, Greene also conducted and produced the USAID/Ethiopia Health, AIDS, Population and Nutrition Gender Assessment. (Assessment)

  • Led Gender Assessment for USAID/Mozambique Country Development Cooperation Strategy | Leading a team of experts, Greene conducted an assessment to examine equality and empowerment advances and challenges, and how USAID and others have addressed them. It focuses on Education, Health, Economic Growth, Democracy and Governance, and the Environment. (Gender Assessment)

  • Led Gender Analysis for USAID Madagascar’s Country Development Cooperative Strategy (2025). Forthcoming.