Notwithstanding a strong theoretical background along with a burgeoning stock of literature in Gender Research, the result of all efforts put towards gender mainstreaming in Forest Policy and Practice has been far from desirable. Research and policy predominantly overlooks the historical perspectives and social basis of gender roles. The assumption that the status of women and forests can be improved by simply increasing the number of women in decision-making is problematic and incomplete. It does not address the struggle women face in joining the existing male-dominated institutions. This paper seeks to enhance the understanding of Gender as an analytical dimension in assessing local forest management and governance regimes by systematically tracing the lineage of related discussions, thereby deriving insights from the last 25 years of forest research and policy.