ABSTRACT
The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls (SDG #5) is cited as interlinked with other SDGs. One often hears that “Global Goals cannot be achieved without ensuring gender equality and women’s empowerment” (UN, 2015) and that “gender equality is critical to all areas of a healthy society, from reducing poverty (SDG #1) to promoting health (SDG #3) and education (SDG #4), and to the protection of the well-being of girls and boys” (UN, 2016). Despite its importance, business academics have been slow to acknowledge issues surrounding gender equality among other SDGs. This chapter argues that despite these challenges, gender research in the wider field of marketing is experiencing a renaissance, fueled in part by global, political and social movements and by the persistence of academics studying these connections. Three research areas for championing a path forward – gender violence, intersectionality and local and global perspectives in marketing – are presented. The translation of this research to inquiry based and transformative learning is particularly emphasized. Lastly, the chapter calls for and advocates ongoing and future efforts to keep the momentum of gender and sustainability issues at the fore-front of the marketing field. Using marketing as an illustration for wider business disciplines, it is their role to recognize and become key drivers in shaping sustainable development.
