This two-year research programme will combine a phase of intensive research with an extended programme of social action aimed at rebuilding rural communities and empowering women, paying special attention to public health intervention and rural livelihoods. During the first phase we aim to document the intersectional nature of women’s pandemic precarity in rural setting through longitudinal case studies which will explore the positionality, structural constraints, and experiences of different categories of rural women.

 

The method of action includes documenting and exploring 300 women's lives before, during, and after the pandemic to identify trends and triggers that elevate or depreciate the livelihoods and health statuses of rural women and communities.

 

The application of a “People’s Science” (PS) approach and methodology is used in this project to foreground the epistemologies, customs, and perspectives of local communities in a way that does not pit them against the validity of biomedical or economic science.

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The ultimate aim is the ‘co-production’ of effective strategies to strengthen community-based and women centered public health strategies and promote sustainable livelihoods at the local level.