- As India transitions to clean energy, there is a long way to go in terms of including women in the sector and understanding its impacts with a gender lens.
- Low participation in policy level decision-making compound inequalities and prevent women from fully contributing to climate and energy policy. Women need to be involved more in decision-making to bring sustainability from margins to mainstream, noted panellists.
- Mongabay-India’s sixth Clean Energy Talks webinar looked at closing the gender gap in India’s clean energy journey.
According to a 2019 report by the International Renewable Energy Agency, globally, women account for 22 percent of jobs in the energy sector as a whole and 32 percent in the renewable industry. In India, women account for less than 10 percent of the workforce in the energy sector. An analysis by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) reveals that most of these jobs are non‐technical.
India has an ambitious clean energy transition plan (500 GW by 2030) but will the country’s energy transition translate into into more opportunities for women?
Mongabay-India’s sixth Clean Energy Talks webinar looked at the challenges and possible solutions to advance opportunities for women in the clean energy sector. Panellists included Priya Pillai, Social and Environmental Activist, Disha Agarwal, Programme Lead, Renewables, CEEW India and Manjushree Banerjee, Contributor (Energy Access). The webinar was moderated by Sahana Ghosh, Contributing Editor, Mongabay-India.
The domino effect of increasing the share of women in the workforce, encouraging self-disclosure of gender in employment by clean energy companies, women oriented trainings and the need for more data and research on the impact on women and the role of women in clean energy projects were some of the points discussed in the webinar.
Read more: Ashden award winner paves way for women in clean energy sector
The panellists also shared their field experiences, highlighting that the transition to clean energy has not only an economic impact on the women but also a social impact. Threats to individual security, loss of livelihood and restrictions on access to resources are some issues women face, panellists highlight based on their experiences in the field.
Read more: Given land for power, Pavagada residents now powerless
Mongabay-India’s series of talks on clean energy will continue every month and will feature industry specialists, researchers and senior environment journalists. Sign up for our newsletter or follow us on social media @mongabayindia for updates on the next and future webinars.
