Advance Notice: Lecture by Dr. Huraera Jabeen “Gendered Space and Climate Resilience in Informal Settlements in Bangladesh”

UniBasel, Hörsaal 101 (Alte Universität) Rheinsprung 9/11, 4051 Basel.

Climate resilience varies significantly based on gender and on location in different physical and social spaces. The relationship between the urban built environment, vulnerability and resilience is a little-studied area of research. Conceptualizing gender only in terms of the vulnerability of women can mean overlooking the complex and intersecting power relations that marginalize women and men differently. These power relations are manifested in spatial practices, while spatial relations are manifested in the construction of gender. Qualitative studies exploring conditions of the low-income households in informal settlements in two cities in Bangladesh demonstrate the appropriation of different types of spaces and their relationships with the residents’ capacity to cope with climate risks. The studies suggest that gendered constraints in both inhabiting and shaping spaces is an underlying cause of differential climate resilience; alternatively, planning climate-resilient spaces can be seen as a fundamental change contributing to transformative adaptation. 

Huraera Jabeen PhD, is an academic and development professional with 20 years of experience on urban resilience, gender, and the built environment, with a specific focus on the intersection of gender and climate change in cities. She works as an Associate Professor in the Department of Architecture, BRAC University in Bangladesh. 

The lecture is free of charge, and a small apéro will be served afterward.

Organised by common-interest in partnership with das Verein, Basel and MA Critical Urbanisms, UniBasel.Supported by UniBasel, ProHelvetia, Samdani Art Foundation, and Dhaka Art Summit.