WHO Webinar: Women, Men and Alcohol: Why is Gender Important in Alcohol Control Policies?

Webinar: Women, Men and Alcohol: Why is Gender Important in Alcohol Control Policies?

The event is co-organized by the Less Alcohol Unit of the Department of Health Promotion at the World Health Organization, the Research Centre for Health (ReaCH) at Glasgow Caledonian University, and Centre for Addiction Research, University of Auckland and School of Health, Victoria University of Wellington.

About

This webinar will raise awareness of the importance of gender when addressing alcohol-related harms, present current research evidence and share examples of how communities are addressing these issues.

This webinar will address the following questions: what evidence do we have about whether gender impacts policies which seek to address alcohol availability, affordability and acceptability? What is the role of gender in declining youth drinking? How does alcohol digital marketing target women and men? What can we learn from civil society and community initiatives which focus on gender and alcohol?

In nearly every country in which research has been carried out, men consume more alcohol than women and are more likely than women to drink heavily and develop alcohol problems. While women’s and men’s consumption patterns have become more similar in some countries recently, there is substantial variation in the magnitude of gender differences across the world. Men’s and women’s alcohol consumption is often judged differently, and these responses reflect wider gender norms in different societies. Gendered understandings of identity are also exploited in alcohol product development, targeting and marketing, with some brands aligning with masculinity and potency, and others with ‘girly’ femininity or women’s empowerment. Structural gender inequality and other social determinants of health, legal and corporate structures, access to alcohol and the physical and social contexts of drinking interact with men’s and women’s perceptions and consumption of alcohol, which in turn impact alcohol-related health and social harms.

Despite these differences, the potential impact of gender on population-level alcohol control policies has been largely ignored. It is important to understand how attempts to reduce alcohol-related harm might impact differently on men and women and to address any unintended consequences. Alcohol control policies should support equality, reduce risks to women and girls where alcohol is consumed and contribute towards ending discrimination if they are to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.

The target audience includes policy-makers, government officials and civil servants, civil society, researchers, local authorities, and the public.

Read the full concept note, here.

Program and Speakers

Opening

• Rüdiger Krech, Director, Department of Health Promotion, World Health Organization

What does the evidence tell us? Marketing, availability and price

Gender and population-wide interventions: what do we know?

• Carol Emslie, Lead, Substance use research group, Glasgow Caledonian University, Scotland, United Kingdom

Digital alcohol marketing and gender

• Antonia Lyons, Director, Centre for Addiction Research, University of Auckland and School of Health, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

Marketing to men

• Nathan Critchlow, SSA Academic Fellow, Institute for Social Marketing and Health, University of Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom

Sexualised alcohol marketing: young women promoting beer in Nigeria

• Emeka Dumbili, Lecturer, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria

Spotlight on practices

Gender and youth alcohol use practices

• Amy Pennay, Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Alcohol Policy Research, La Trobe University, Australia

Young Indian women’s drinking practices

• Sagar Murdeshwar, PhD researcher, Aberystwyth University, Wales, United Kingdom

Blackwashing, gender and alcohol in Brazil

• Paula Johns, Executive Director, ACT Promoção da Saúde (ACT Health Promotion), Brazil

Gender and informal alcohol in Kenya

• Brenda Mkwesha, Regional Director, IOGT-NTO Movement, Sweden

Gender equality: A driving force for civil society’s alcohol policy advocates?

• Kristina Sperkova, President, Movendi International, Sweden

Questions from audience and closing

Moderator

• Carol Emslie, Lead, Substance use research group, Glasgow Caledonian University,Scotland, United Kingdom

Final remarks

• Juan Tello, Head, Less Alcohol Unit, Health Promotion Department, World Health Organization

Access the full program, here.

Participation

Participation in this event is by invitation. If you have not received one and are interested to attend, please contact the WHO Less Alcohol Unit at:  lessalcohol@who.int.