Contribution short abstract:

Against this backdrop of fractured relations, this research explores why and how alliances among these diverse actors and movements—particularly between environmental struggles and women’s movements—have failed to materialize.

Contribution long abstract:

The recent expansion of South Africa’s coal mining sector has had devastating effects on Somkhele, a southeastern village where the community endures air pollution, water scarcity, health problems, and displacement. These challenges disproportionately affect women, who primarily bear responsibilities for caregiving, farming, and securing water, critically undermining women’s ability to sustain their livelihoods. Civil society organizations from Johannesburg have joined forces with rural women to campaign against food and water insecurity. However, these efforts have not produced sustainable solutions, and the divide between rural and urban women persists. Against this backdrop of fractured relations, this research explores why and how alliances among these diverse actors and movements—particularly between environmental struggles and women’s movements—have failed to materialize. Haraway (1992) describes "political articulations" as the connections diverse actors form to create new collective eco-political entities that enable them to coexist. Yet, such articulations are inherently fragile and may either succeed or fail (Haraway, 1992). Drawing on this concept, I argue that place-based differences are crucial in fostering more transformative articulations that address the intersections of environmental degradation with gender, race, and class. In this workshop, I will present my analysis of the political (non-)articulations among rural women, urban women, and global organizations based on fieldwork data as well as archival research on feminist organizations such as La Via Campesina and the World March of Women. Alongside theoretical and empirical discussions, I will share photo documentation from my fieldwork and a written installation that examines how different movements and organizations frame feminism.