Intersectionality Project

SCIS in partnership with the IDRC has undertaken a new project to shape the intellectual and policy agenda on intersectional approaches to development research in, and for, the Global South.?

Intersectionality is a term used to describe the pluralisation and interlocking of forms of discrimination and oppression based on compounding social differences. Kimberle Crenshaw (1989) coined the term intersectionality in the context of socio-legal research on black women’s marginalisation in the United States and the erasure of their specific position of oppression in the courts. Since then there have been multiple theorisations of intersectionality. It has also become increasingly central to the study of inequality, identity and power relations, highlighting the inseparability of categories of social difference such as race/caste, gender, class, and nationality/citizenship.  Activists and organizers are increasingly urging researchers and policy makers to account for the intersectional dynamics of the changing nature of work, forms of socio-economic precarity, patterns of wealth accumulation, access to public services and the impact of climate change.  

Despite growing calls to embrace an intersectional approach to understanding and addressing systems of power and inequality, the concept still lacks specificity which makes it difficult to operationalise in research. There is also relatively little in the way of documented best practice and/or the possibilities, challenges and implications of embracing an intersectional approach in the research process.  This includes how the research is carried out (i.e. questions of research design, method and data analysis) but also what happens to the research afterwards (i.e. dissemination, engagement and policy application).

The objective of this project is to understand, inform and promote intersectional approaches to development research across different program initiatives of the IDRC. Through collaborative partnerships with researchers based in the Global South, the project produced 8 case studies that document the diverse application of an intersectional research approach. The project also developed a synthesis report that summarises the benefits, limitations and barriers of incorporating an intersectional approach and a practical guide on how to put intersectionality into practice in development research (and policy). 

For more information about the project, please contact Siviwe Mhlana: Siviwe.Mhlana@wits.ac.za