A webinar organized by  IUCN’s GECCO initiative and ENERGIA

While efforts at integrating gender considerations into climate change mitigation and the renewable energy sector have progressed over the years, most of this progress has taken place in small-scale, community-based projects. Though these initiatives demonstrate ways in which engaging women improves the success of energy access and climate mitigation efforts, the results are often not well-documented or translated into national policies. Hence, the energy and mitigation sectors continues to act under the assumption that their policies, programs and projects are gender neutral–meaning that they benefit or affect women and men equally.

Political economy is a branch of social science that studies the relationships between individuals and societies, the market and the state. By utilizing political economy analytical tools and methodologies it is possible to have a better understanding of existing power relations in a society and the reasons why energy policies do not address gender considerations in their mandates. In addition, political economy can provide guidance for remediating gender gaps at policy and program levels.

At a moment when the international community has agreed to work towards achieving new development pathways through the pursuit of the SDGs, with the goal of achieving universal access to modern energy sources and gender equality by 2030, and the generation of social, environmental and economic [co]benefits from mitigation initiatives, it becomes imperative to understand how progress in the energy sector can address gender equality–in this case through the implementation of women-centered clean energy projects.

The webinar will be moderated by Ana Rojas, IUCN GGO, and will include the following presentations:

Political economy and gender mainstreaming in the energy sector
Andrew Barnet, The Policy Practice

Gender equality, women’s rights and access to energy services
Katrine Danielsen, Royal Tropical Institute

Women’s bargaining power and its implications for the energy sector
Dev Nathan, Visiting Professor, Institute for Human Development & Visiting Research Fellow, Duke University

A recording of the webinar can be watched here.