The use of polluting fossil fuels, for example in domestic cooking, disproportionately affects the health of women. As African countries transition away from fossil fuels, this major new research project seeks to promote institutional and policy reforms for greater equality.
Research on clean energy transitions has historically overlooked issues of Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) leading to poor outcomes for women and marginalised groups. This new project, ‘Mainstreaming Gender Equality and Social Inclusion for a Just Energy Transition in Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania (JustGESI), brings together leading institutions in each country, to deliver a transformative programme of research integrating engineering with critical social science.
JustGESI aims to ensure that future energy transitions are equitable by advancing equality and inclusion in projects on the ground and in policy, and by addressing the skills gaps that have historically kept women and marginalised groups out of the clean energy economy. It focuses on the strategies of institutional change and capacity building as key levers to bring about a radical change to advance gender justice in the transition to clean energy
The £3m project, led by Vanesa Castán Broto, Professor of Climate Urbanism at the University of Sheffield’s School of Geography and Planning and funded by the UKRI’s Ayrton Challenge Programme, will involve a wide range of collaborators including scholars from Addis Ababa University and Mekelle University in Ethiopia; Ardhi University and TATEDO in Tanzania; Eduardo Mondlane University and the Centre for Research in Governance and Development in Mozambique; Mzuzu University and the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences in Malawi; Cape Town University in South Africa; and the Universities of Loughborough and Sheffield Hallam in the UK. The project will also include a range of partners in the private and public sectors.
JustGESI continues the work completed by the project Community Energy and Sustainable Energy Transitions (CESET), also funded by UKRI (Global Challenges Research Fund).
Professor Castán Broto said: “I am proud to lead this dynamic, interdisciplinary group of scholars to move beyond tick-boxing approaches to GESI and focus instead on the root causes of discrimination and exclusion to make a sustainable and just energy transition possible.”
JustGESI is one of thirteen UK research projects addressing urgent global energy and climate challenges that have been funded through the Ayrton Challenge Programme.
Frances Wood, UKRI International Director, said: “The Ayrton Challenge Programme demonstrates the power of research and innovation to address critical global challenges. These projects exemplify how equitable, interdisciplinary collaboration can unlock transformative solutions, ensuring a sustainable and inclusive energy future for all.”