IPS publishes Gender Reporting Toolkits online

Published by IPS Asia, its glossary section provides the meaning and nuances of 141 key terms in gender and development, many of them updated from the gender and media discussions over the last decade and useful in covering these issues.

Encouraging public debate

The glossary is the latest in a series of new publications about gender that help reporters and news managers grapple with the challenge of writing about gender issues in a way that does not perpetuate stereotypes but informs and encourages public debate.

IPS Africa launched the "Reporting Gender Based Violence" handbook for reporters, to coincide with the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence campaign in November 2009. The publication covers religious and harmful traditional practices, domestic violence, sexual and gender-based violence, femicide, sex work and trafficking, sexual harassment, armed conflicts, HIV and AIDS, child abuse, the role of men, the criminal justice system, and the costs of gender-based violence.

Stereotypes that perpetuate inequalities

IPS Latin America launched the "Gender Relations in Productive and Reproductive Work" handbook on reporting women's employment, at a workshop in Lima, Peru on 26 November 2009. This manual focuses on how journalists and the media portray the unequal conditions faced by women in the labour market, highlighting all the stereotypes that have contributed to perpetuate gender inequalities.

IPS has long sought to support and strengthen informed reporting on gender across the world.

In 2009 IPS launched "Communicating for Change: Getting voice, visibility and impact for gender equality", with support from the Dutch MDG3 Fund, and embarked on an ambitious programme to promote the voice and visibility of women. IPS activities included hosting capacity building workshops, the creation of journalism tools and the production editorial content to raise awareness about the third Millennium Development Goal (MDG) priorities aimed at reducing violence against women, enhancing women's economic independence and increasing participation and representation of women in politics and public administration.

Copies of the above publications may be downloaded from www.ips.org/mdg3/publications/, or contact gro.spi@3gdm.