In many cultures the division of roles is particularly strongly marked. In Hainan，China，for example，the women are responsible for drying traditional upland rice. Photo：Huang Yongfang

Key terms

Gender

Gender is not determined biologically；it is a central organising principle of societies and often governs the processes of production and reproduction，consumption and distribution. Gender issues focus on the relationships between men and women，the various roles of women，their access to and control over resources，the division of labour between men and women，their interests and needs. All these things affect the mutual relationships of household members，family wellbeing，planning，production and many other aspects of everyday life.

Participatory Plant Breeding

Farmers and professional breeders differ in the knowledge they possess and in the breeding techniques they use. Participatory breeding means using methods to which farmers，breeders，scientists and other interested groups contribute their knowledge. Such methods started to develop some two decades ago.

Farmers’Rights

Farmers have always saved part of their harvest as seed or grain to be planted the following year. This was and is a central element of agriculture-and the legitimate right of farmers. It is a right that came under serious threat in the mid-1980s when the first patents on plants and plant material were registered. In 2001 the right was established as part of the “Farmers’Rights” included in the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture （see 3.4 “Farmers’ Rights and agrobiodiversity”）.

In the mountain areas of Nepal，women collect fodder for the animals，feed and graze them，clean the sheds and compost the dung. Children，mainly girls