Christine Lins, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition (GWNET), highlights the significance of gender parity in the energy transition and explores the various opportunities available for women within the sector.

The energy industry exhibits a notable gender disparity compared to other sectors. As outlined in the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) report titled “Renewable Energy: A Gender Perspective,” women represent merely 22% of the workforce in the oil and gas sector and 32% in the renewable energy sector.

According to Ernst & Young’s Women in Power and Utilities Index, a mere 5% of top 200 utilities’ board executives and 16% of board members are women.

In the Global Roadmap for Accelerated SDG 7 Action published in early November 2021, which aligns with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, UN Secretary-General Guterres underscores the importance of prioritizing gender equality and women’s empowerment. This includes empowering women in various aspects of the modern energy sector, such as design, production, and distribution of energy services, as well as ensuring equal representation of women in decision-making processes within the energy domain.

Women possess valuable contributions to make to the sustainable energy sector. Scientific studies have demonstrated that a diverse workforce yields numerous benefits, including enhanced creativity, innovation potential, improved decision-making, and increased profitability.

Preliminary research suggests that companies with a higher representation of women on their board of directors tend to prioritize investments in renewable power generation, take proactive measures to address climate change, and show a greater commitment to environmental issues. However, despite this potential, there has been limited progress in significantly reducing the gender gap within the energy sector.

Read More: https://womenworldmagazine.com/