Forests and Governance Programme C e n t e r f o r I n t e r n a t i o n a l F o r e s t r y R e s e a r c h January 2006 Number 29 In recent years, the term 'gender' has become a hot discussion topic in various forums and media. Many development sectors require gender analysis as a component of a program's implementation. However, even today, many people still equate gender with sex or even, as a narrower defi nition, with women. This is particularly true in regions, where gender has not yet

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... mmonly been discussed, such as Bungo and Tanjung Jabung Barat (Tanjabbar) districts, Jambi. This common idea is not surprising given that more women are adversely affected by gender inequity in the family environment and society than men. Thus, when gender is discussed, one might think that gender is identical with women's issues. What is gender? Robert Stoller (1968) introduced the term gender into social scientific discourse to distinguish between the biological characteristics of humans and other socio-cultural issues. In summary, gender is the different functions and roles played by women and men, which are shaped by our environment. Gender has much to do with prevalent perceptions and norms about how women and men are considered to be either in line with, or deviating from, local social and cultural values. Thus, gender differs from one place to the next and changes over time.