ABSTRACT
In the Indian context, women’s struggles with caste, class and other social institutions continue to define women’s lived experiences in urban and rural areas. The struggle for gender equality is further challenged in rural areas by climate change and environmental degradation such as deforestation. From this perspective, the adoption of modern technology is seen as a means of both improving the lives of rural women and protecting the environment. Improved cook stoves (ICS) have been regarded as technological alternatives because they contribute to fuel savings and thereby reduce pressure on local forests and reduce indoor air pollution (IAP) due to smokeless efficient cooking. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the empowering potential of technology using ICS as an empirical example. Based on fieldwork, and using Kabeer’s empowerment framework, our goal is to investigate the impact of women’s access to clean energy technology and its impact on existing gender roles and relations with specific reference to women’s empowerment and expanded livelihood options. Specifically, we interrogate the empowering potential of ICS by asking whether the implementation of ICS led to changes in choices for women within households. What kinds of changes in choices could be identified? How are these changes articulated within the household and the wider community?
