Ensuring just and equitable energy transitions

This SEI synthesis brief argues that low-carbon energy transitions must explicitly integrate gender and social equity to avoid marginalizing vulnerable groups. Through case studies in regions like the Lower Mekong and countries such as Zambia and Sweden, it demonstrates how political power dynamics, socio-cultural norms, and systemic barriers in job markets and technology adoption can perpetuate inequality despite technological advances.

• Low-carbon energy transitions do not automatically address poverty or social and gender inequities, leaving women and marginalized groups at risk of exclusion from the benefits of these transitions.
• Political alliances between fossil fuel companies and public officials in Indonesia and Colombia have been shown to maintain fossil-fuel-based economies and resist transitions to low-carbon systems.
• Energy security improvements are not gender-neutral; for example, solar mini-grids in Zambia had little impact on women's lives because they did not replace traditional cookstoves or diesel-reliant systems.
• Energy policies can inadvertently increase the burden on women, such as in Sweden where peak-time surge pricing for electricity led women to perform reproductive tasks like washing dishes and clothes during cheaper night and weekend hours.
• The energy job market lacks gender parity, with women often concentrated in operational roles rather than technical work. In the Lower Mekong Region, male engineers dominate the public energy sector.
• Women face systemic barriers to entering the energy sector and starting enterprises, including limited access to capital due to inequalities in land ownership and the perception that STEM fields and 'energy work' are masculine or involve heavy labor.
• The adoption of clean cookstoves is influenced by gendered decision-making processes where social norms and financial considerations often outweigh potential health benefits, even though women are the primary users.

APA

Aung, M. T., & Boyland, M. (2020). Ensuring just and equitable energy transitions. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ensuring-just-and-equitable-energy-transitions.pdf

Chicago

Aung, May Thazin, and Michael Boyland. Ensuring just and equitable energy transitions. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2020. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ensuring-just-and-equitable-energy-transitions.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Aung |first1=May Thazin |last2=Boyland |first2=Michael |title=Ensuring just and equitable energy transitions |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=March 2020 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ensuring-just-and-equitable-energy-transitions.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{aung2020ensuring, author = {Aung, May Thazin and Boyland, Michael}, title = {{Ensuring just and equitable energy transitions}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ensuring-just-and-equitable-energy-transitions.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }