Friday 16 July, 9:30-11:00 CEST

Please register here

The EEB and Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF) are glad to invite you to the Report launch: A gender-transformative European Green Deal? How to deliver policies for people and planet.

You can read the full report here.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the political centrepiece of her Commission, the European Green Deal, made a carbon-neutral economy that works for people a declared objective. At the same time, there is a confirmed commitment to a “Union of equality”, most notably enshrined in the first EC’s Gender Equality Strategy. However, the connection between these two objectives is not made explicit: the European Green Deal (EGD), the most important policy framework of the current political term, is gender blind. The EGD Communication does not refer to gender equality or broader equality issues (beyond a narrowly defined just transition mainly targeted at carbon intensive sectors) and is not based on any gender analysis. The links between gender and environment have been extensively researched, showing for example the different consumptions patterns and carbon emissions of women and men, the gendered impact of pollution, the female face of energy poverty or the risk of a widening gender gap in the green job market.

Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF) and the European Environmental Bureau (EEB), supported by the Austrian Environment Ministry, the German Environment Ministry and Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung EU, have assessed the gender gaps and opportunities around the European Green Deal. We analyse sectoral policies including agriculture, energy, climate, transport and chemicals as well as proposing alternative narratives on overarching issues such as the economic transition, green jobs, green and gender just budgeting and taxation and political representation. Our focus lies on European domestic policies while not forgetting the global impacts of European policies and practices on gender equality in third countries.  We focus on gender equality with an intersectional approach, looking into specific situation where inequalities linked to race, ability, sexual identity, age or class come into play. The report brings together a wide range of authors from CSOs, academia and independent experts. It makes recommendations to the European Union and Member States to make the Green Deal gender-transformative.

Objectives:

• Raise awareness on the gender-environment nexus in the European Green Deal
• Present the main findings of our report
• Engage policymakers in a discussion on how to enhance gender-sensitivity of the European Green Deal

Agenda

9:30-9:35 Introduction, Patrizia Heidegger, Director of Global Policies and Sustainability, EEB

9:35-9:45 Opening remarks, Leonore Gewessler, Minister of Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, Austria
Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety, Germany

9:45-10:05 Presentation of the main findings of the report
-Presentation of the main analysis and recommendations, Nadège Lharaig, Senior Policy Officer for Sustainable Development and Gender Expert, EEB
-Focus chapter on Agriculture, Sally Shortall, Duke of Northumberland Chair of Rural Economy at Newcastle University
-Focus chapter on Transport, Thorfinn Stainforth, Policy Analyst, Low Carbon & Circular Economy, IEEP

10:05-10:50 Discussion moderated by Patrizia Heidegger, Director of Global Policies and Sustainability, EEB

Discussion on the report findings and the way forward including a Q&A with the audience
Elisabeth Freytag-Rigler, Head of Department for EU-Coordination Climate and Environment, Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, Austria
Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety, Germany
Miriam Muller, WECF Board of Trustees
Kata Tüttő, Deputy Mayor of Budapest – Rapporteur on gender and climate, European Committee of the Regions

10:50-11:00 Closing remarks, Anke Stock, Senior Gender Expert, WECF

Join the discussion!