"Sandhya Venkateswaran"s account is broad in it scope, covering a whole gamut of issues from agrarian relations to displacement, cooking energy to the problems of displacement. The references are extensive without being cumbersome and the style lucid¼. It will prove invaluable to the interested lay reader¼. The book is a useful reminder of a critical dimension of the debate on ecology and development." --Science, Technology & Society "Venkateswaran"s book is a mine of information, replete with data and statistics and covers an immense canvas reanging from common property, forests, agriculture, water management, domestic energy, social forestry, wasteland development to issues of pollution, health, migration, NGO experiences and governmental efforts." --Seminar "This book is a comprehensive account of the interface between poor women and the environment, their role in environmental management and the impact that environmental degradation has on them." --Current Literature on Science of Science "This is an interesting book which puts women at the epicenter of all environment-related activities. The author . . . points out the diversity between urban and rural women and how the former demonstrate no particular consciousness of ecological issues. . . . For those interested in environment and development issues, this is a book worth possessing." --The Hindustan Times "Environment, Development, and the Gender Gap is a neat and useful compendium of governmental an nongovernmental interventions for women in different sectors, such as wasteland development and forestry." --The Book Review In developing areas, issues of survival are inextricably linked to the state of the environment for an overwhelming proportion of the population. In this comprehensive study, the author discusses women"s predominant role in activities relating to the environment, the impact of environmental degradation on them, and their almost complete marginalization from policies and programs that seek to manage the environment. She argues against the common practice of grouping all women together and points out the diversity between urban and rural women, and even among rural women of different classes, and shows the impact of resource degradation and environmental policies on each of these groups of women. Using case studies and empirical data, the author examines a whole range of crucial issues including croplands, common lands, forest and water resources, domestic energy, technology, and pollution. She maintains that, on the whole, gender biases in development programs have only contributed to the increased marginalization of poor rural women by reducing their access to natural resources. Possibly the only comprehensive study to look at the entire spectrum of environmental issues from a gender perspective in the Indian context, this accessible book will be of great use to both government and nongovernment organizations, policymakers, activists, funding agencies, and researchers.