Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen Spoke at Fourth Annual Irene Tinker Lecture

Gender inequalities must be understood as complex interlinked problems, says economist and philosopher Amartya Sen at the 2006 Irene Tinker Lecture.

Renowned for his ability to seamlessly combine ethics and economics, Sen drew from his life's work on gender inequality for a lively lecture and discussion of the gradual progress toward gender equality.

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Photo credit: Sylvia Johnson

Economist Gita Sen spoke at the 2004 irene tinker lecture

"I don't need to tell any of you that important decisions are being made that will shape the rights of women today and in years to come," Sen said to a packed room at the 2nd annual Irene Tinker Lecture Series that included many pioneers of women and development.

"This is a time when all of us need to step back and gain perspective on what is going on. It's the only way we can see our way forward."

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SPECIAL EVENTS

Irene Tinker Lecture Series
Oct. 24, 2005

An Integrated Approach to Women's Health:
The Only Way Forward

"Terrible things are happening to women and girls on our watch," says Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland and U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, who spoke at the third annual Irene Tinker Lecture Series on the need to better integrate health care in international development efforts.

Despite the billions of dollars - both public and private - being poured into various health and development programs, countless girls and women in developing countries continue to suffer the health consequences of malnutrition, chronic diseases like HIV and AIDS, gender-based violence, war and civil conflict, and environmental degradation, says Robinson, currently president of Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative.

These tragedies continue because "our health care systems are broken," she says, and development efforts are not always being addressed holistically. Moving forward, we must give a voice to the voiceless and those who are poor and vulnerable, many of whom are women, she says. Emphasizing health as a human right is important, she added, because it gives poor and vulnerable people the ability to hold their governments accountable.

Robinson is advocating for an integrated health care approach, but acknowledges that many challenges must be overcome before such an approach can be pursued. Questions about donor coherence, country ownership, civil participation and accountability are just a few of the issues that the international development community must first grapple with, she says.

The Irene Tinker Lecture series each year features an eminent scholar-activist doing groundbreaking work on emerging issues affecting the lives and well-being of women and men throughout the developing world.