Publications

This paper presents a synthesis of three case studies carried out within the sub-task 2 of the Gender and Energy Research Programme with some supporting evidence from other sources. The sub-task set out to gain an understanding of the systematic inertias in the sociotechnical energy system hindering the formation of gender aware policies and interventions and then to identify ways of countering the inertias.

Austrian Case Study: Smarte Energiesysteme: Wie eine inklusivere Technologieentwicklung erreicht werden kann (in German)

Austrian Factsheet – Die Nutzung im Fokus: Smarte Energiesysteme (in German)

Highlights from this paper:
-An overview of research centred on users and inclusion in energy transitions.
-Work on energy users and justice largely overlooks gender and class differences.
-Mainstream perspectives overlook diversity and richness within social categories.
-Policy-oriented work on users in inclusive energy transitions needs better evidence.
-Important contributions come from non-Western scholars, contexts and epistemologies.

Energy and climate transitions bear an inherent risk of replicating historically embedded unjust gendered norms in the current energy regimes. Positioning our work within critical feminist scholarship, our study emphasizes the embedded nature of energy technologies within respective socio-economic, institutional and cultural contexts. We argue that interventions prioritizing care and knowledge in decentralized, locally managed energy provisioning have the potential to disrupt established gender relations.

This case study contributes to providing an understanding of the systematic inertias in the sociotechnical energy system that appear to be hindering the development and implementation of gender aware energy policies. The case study focuses on a condition known as ‘energy poverty’ and how it is currently addressed in the context of the Netherlands.

Boid’s part in subtask 3 aimed to explore and implement norm critical design at a practical level. Boid’s contribution was to develop and implement technical interventions that support inclusive energy use and challenge prevailing norms in sustainable energy consumption in the specific context of Swedish households.

How is the image of Sweden as champion of gender equality and promoter of welfare policies holding when digging deep into Sweden’s Integrated Energy and Climate Plan?

This case study was conducted within the Gender & Energy Task and analyzes to what extent the instrument of company-independent energy consulting in Austria addresses different target groups and takes gender and diversity aspects into account.

How technology developers can contribute to making sustainable energy supply more equal in terms of accessibility to ensure the participation of all.
A factsheet from the Gender & Energy Task.

The paper discusses the gendered differences in the build-up of interest and expertise in household smart grids, in connection to experiences of control, comfort, safety and trust.

As part of the Gender and Energy Task, a critical analysis of
the three Austrian policies and plans through an energy user’s perspective reflecting on
the incorporation of social/gender justice has been conducted.

This paper discusses how energy policies are gender blind and as a result, their lowered effectiveness and unintended effects.