Women in Energy Make a Powerful Case for Inclusion
March brings the annual celebration of Women’s History Month. As climate-driven hazards such as wildfires, sea-level rise, and unprecedented heat waves and snowstorms grip the world, Camille Crittenden as the Executive Director at CITRIS and the Banatao Institute published an article discussing the theme of uniting women and climate in the annual flagship conference, “Diversity in Tech: Advancing Climate Resilience.”
At first, she talks about the importance of women's contribution to the component of the world, suggesting the key to building female leadership is strengthening the talent pipeline at all levels. The intersection of gender and climate is marked by activism, environmental impact, and unrealized opportunities for workforce participation and leadership. Women are important decision-makers with respect to household energy consumption and sourcing. Today, although still far from parity, the percentage of women on corporate boards has increased significantly, and is now in double digits globally. Power companies and utilities have actually outpaced progress in other industries; in fact, eight of the largest electric utility companies in the U.S. are led by women.
Then, she reveals that the obstacles to expanding participation are wage inequities, minimal training opportunities or career on-ramps, and a lack of role models, information networks, and mentorship. The benefits of recruiting and training more women are also common across industries. An increased pool of talent expands the diversity of ideas and life experiences leading to improved business outcomes and reduced financial risk.
Quoted from the article:
"The U.S. energy sector could further lead the way by encouraging power companies to set diversity targets and create written diversity policies for their boards and senior leadership (a majority of companies in Canada’s utilities sector have adopted these measures), borrow proven strategies from other industries to recruit, retain and promote women; and work with colleges and universities to offer experiential learning opportunities. To improve the world’s capacity to face and mitigate potentially devastating effects of climate change, it will take the best minds and a collaborative spirit, to be found in women and others from historically resilient communities."
To read the full article, please visit here.