GENDER RELATIONS AND SUSTAINABILITY WITH WOMEN RECYCLING
MATERIALS RECYCLABLE IN A NATAL / RN ASSOCIATION
Women pickers. Gender relations. Sexual division of labor. Recycling.
Sustainability.
In this masters dissertation, the aim was to understand gender relations and
sustainability in the context of the women pickers of the Association of Collectors of
Recyclable Materials (Ascamar), located in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte. In order to do
so, we sought to analyze gender relations by appropriating the sexual division of labor
based on the principles of separation and hierarchy and power relations, as well as to
analyze the perception of the women pickers regarding the environment and
sustainability from work experience and daily life. The methodology used was the
qualitative research with an ethnographic approach with obtaining the data through
participant observation, semi-structured interviews and writing of field diaries. Twenty
women pickers were interviewed. The Critical Discourse Analysis was used to interpret
the data. This study shows evidence of the inequality situation manifested in the
division of tasks and in the qualification of these tasks within the association. In
addition, these women were found to be inserted in an intergenerational cycle of poverty
that places them in conditions of social vulnerability. The analysis of the perception of
the environment and sustainability revealed that the collectors recognize themselves as
environmental agents because they understand that the selective collect work generates
several benefits for the environment and for the urban environment. However, they face
serious precarious conditions, as well as discrimination and lack of recognition in
relation to work. There is a need for public policies that favor social recognition and
inclusion, as well as ensuring safer and more dignified living and working conditions.