What is the Athenian Edge?

Why is putting men on Mars conceived as more achievable than ending conflict on Earth? Perhaps because for centuries we have ignored the voices and perspectives of half the world: women. This loss of perspectives and, by extension, wisdom, is accentuated by gender-based discrimination against the LGBTQI+ community and by women facing intersectional barriers of color, caste, age, income, and religion. Just as peace is a prerequisite for global prosperity and progress, gender equality has come to be known as a prerequisite to peace.

Women, girls, and the LGBTQI+ community continue to be perceived as victims of climate change, of conflict, of COVID-19 - disproportionately impacted by these complex issues that accentuate each other's impact. Yet there is a rising awareness that gender is not an Achilles heel - it is an Athenian Edge. For instance, while women form a disproportionate percentage of victims of both climate change, they can also be solutions to climate action given their unique relationship with nature - growing most of the world's food, collecting most of the world's water, and making most of the world's household-level decisions on energy usage. [1]. Peace agreements with women at the table last longer[2] and gender equality has been qualitatively proven to be the greatest predictor of peace - more than a country's level of democracy, GDP, or dominant religion [3]. Women not only formed majority of the frontline health workers and caregivers combating the COVID-19 pandemic, retaining them in the workforce can also add US$13 trillion to global GDP by 2030 [4]. These insights indicate there is a clear advantage - an 'edge' - and an undeniable urgency to building a gender equality world because women, girls, and the LGBTQI+ community are not just victims, they are solutions to a more resilient, inclusive, and equal future for humanity and the planet.

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I coin this gendered advantage the ‘Athenian Edge’ – Athena being the goddess of wisdom, this pays homage both (1) to the insights and lived experiences that equip women, girls, and the LGBTQI+ community to play a catalytic role as security assets and agents of climate action; and (2) to States that foster gender equality through their policies, practices and institutions to demonstrate greater capacity to build positive peace, particularly in economic or climate stressed environments.

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References [1] Smith et al, ‘The Climate, Gender, Conflict Nexus’, (Georgetown University, 2021), Available at: https://giwps.georgetown.edu/resource/the-climate-gender-conflict-nexus/

[2] Radhika Coomaraswamy, ‘A Global Study on the Implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325’. Chapter 3. UN Women official website, 2015. Available online: https://wps.unwomen.org/participation/

[3] Mary Caprioli, Gendered Conflict. Journal of Peace Research, 2000, 37(1), 51–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343300037001003

[4] McKinsey Global Institute, 'COVID-19 and gender equality: Countering the regressive effects'. 2020. Available online: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/covid-19-and-gender-equality-countering-the-regressive-effects