Ep:6 Highlights

This episode discusses energy and its place in a just green transition. When money is short in low-income households in Wales, after cutting back on days out, clothing and toiletries, women turn the heating down or off. Income poverty particularly impacts lone parents, 86.4% of whom are women, and households with a disabled person are more likely to be in income poverty. Industry and trade recognise that without diversifying the traditional demographic of energy workers, skills needs for the energy transition will not be met. However, an ‘energy diversity gap’ is already apparent in the renewable energy industry, and STEM Women predict that women will hold only 25% of ‘green jobs’ by 2030. Community-owned projects with defined benefits can provide much needed support for community assets and services, reduce fuel costs, and could be invested in retrofit to reduce energy demand for householders/tenants who cannot afford insulation or transferring to renewable heat sources (for example, Swansea Community Energy). This is an area in which women could lead in a green energy revolution but there are policy issues to overcome. However, developing community projects has been stymied by current energy and planning policies. The letting of very large projects excludes the Community Energy Sector, and it appears that collaboration and shared ownership models are not attractive to large producers. The Community Energy Learning Network (ELN) argues that fully realised collaborations have the potential to provide participatory benefits, so that communities do not feel ‘done to’ and therefore resistant to new renewable projects. A feminist green new deal could support women’s greater economic independence through involvement in shared ownership models and ensure that they have a role in deciding where to reinvest community benefits – in skills, supply chains, and to support retrofit to reduce fuel poverty by reducing demand.

A feminist green new deal considers women and work in two ways – the revaluing of social care as social infrastructure (adding it’s value to GVA, while also focusing on shifts to a wellbeing economy), and ensuring that women do not lose out on opportunities to gain skills, secure employment and progression in a changing labour market (sectors and occupations introducing AI and digitisation, and in processes of decarbonisation). Women are 7.9% of Agricultural workers, 24.2% of Energy, 18% of Construction, 22% of Transport, 29.9% of Water supply and waste etc., and 25% of ICT. Without interventions, economic transitions can exacerbate existing labour market inequalities.16 Our review of Welsh Government policies on employability, a fairer greener economy, economic mission, skills for Net Zero, a Just Transition, shows that while some discuss addressing gender, ethnicity, disability and socio-economic inequalities, they lack specific action and outcome measures. For example, how will we know the results of the Welsh Government’s stated intent to ‘ensure equality for groups who might be adversely impacted by the transition’?17 How will we know if delivery of the Net Zero skills action plan has increased women’s take-up of Green Personal Learning Accounts in decarbonising sectors? This episode discusses the world of work today and how we can remedy the structural inequities that harm us all.

Women are more likely to walk and use public transport, and are shown to have more sustainable or green forms of travel, often having trips that are both shorter and greener. At the same time, travel systems are not gender neutral and women are failed in their travel and safety needs as private travel users are prioritised, with public travel systems often modelled on men’s direct commutes to work. This episode puts all this in context and discusses how we set about making things better.

A deeper dive into the importance of care and carers to our communities, to our economy, and to all of us as individuals

This podcast grew out of a discussion paper funded by Oxfam Cymru and researched and written by Dr Alison Parken and Professor Sara MacBride-Stewart of Cardiff University. We would like to thank all contributors who shared their time, insights and expertise in shaping this work and contributing to the podcast. About the Authors of the paper: Dr Alison Parken Alison is an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at Cardiff Business School. Her research and policy analysis work includes leading the development of the unique ‘gender pay differences’ Welsh Specific Equality Duty and creating an equality mainstreaming model to embed intersectional approaches to equality in public policy. Professor Sara MacBride-Stewart Sara is a multidisciplinary academic at Cardiff University working at the intersection of equity, climate, and health. Her work focuses on addressing and preventing emerging inequalities across social, cultural, and economic life. She specialises in place-based, collaborative approaches that promote environmental and social justice that lead to actionable solutions.