Feminist and gender research in Norwegian farming and forestry (landbruk) contexts: Past and future directions

Abstract

ABSTRACT Much feminist rural geography to date has centred on understanding gender issues in rural space. Norwegian scholars have been leading the way in identifying new themes and approaches to examining the positions of women and men on farms and in farming communities, which has contributed to important contextual knowledge of gender relations on Norwegian farms, as well as conceptual understandings of farming lives more broadly. The article has the same objective. The authors review the extensive body of literature and identify themes, trajectories, approaches, and concepts used since the 1990s. They find that there were three main periods: 1990s to 1997, with early work that sought to describe gender roles; 1994–2005, when constructivist approaches were used; and the mid-2000s onwards, when researchers ‘branched out’ to study more specific themes. To encourage a widening of feminist perspectives in Norwegian farming and forestry, the authors suggest taking up (1) an intersectional approach in attending to gender, sexuality, class, ethnicity, and ability, (2) a decolonial approach, and (3) a focus on the ‘green transition’. They conclude that, together, these could help to address pressing issues relating to equity, sustainability, and the future of agriculture and forestry in Norwegian contexts.