Energy for underserved Populations – Gender Considerations Patricia Taboada-Serrano Liaison to the IANAS Energy Program IANAS Women for Science Working Group Energy Project Meeting Bogotá, Colombia June 9 – 11, 2011

IANAS Women for Science Working Group (WfS-WG)  Established and launched on June 11th, 2010  Mandate: “to advise IANAS and its member Academies on fostering a climate in the sciences that is welcoming to women, and to alert and advice IANAS on gender issues in its programmes and initiatives”

IANAS WfS-WG – Mission Mission: “Work with Academies and IANAS to help them increase gender balance within the Academies and to address gender issues in their research, programmes, community outreach and advice to governments”

 Liaisons established to IANAS and to its programs  WfS-WG web page: modules on gender issues for each of the IANAS programs  Representatives of IANAS Programmes invited to speak at WfS-WG first Focal Point Meeting in Mexico City, Feb , 2011: Arturo Fernandez, UNAM, Mexico, reported on the previous Energy Workshop in Colombia (held in December 2010). IANAS WfS-WG Action Items related to IANAS Programmes

WfS-WG Web Resource: Gender and Energy  Author: Sophia Huyer, WfS-WG member representing OWSDW. Available on request:  Ready to be posted to the IANAS web site  Topical areas: 1. Main gender issues in energy 2. Women and energy: regional cases 3. International programmes 4. Integrating concerns of women and men into energy programmes 5. Women energy professionals

Women – the largest subgroup within underserved populations The 1.2 billion of people living on and on under USD 1 per day (70% are women) People living in rural areas and cities poverty belts, mostly women, because men have moved away to follow job opportunities

Energy, women and environment  The most important energy sources among underserved populations are firewood, charcoal and animal waste  Biomass has poor energy yield and large waste generation (smoke and particulates)  Primary use of biomass is household, with mostly women and girls exposed to detrimental health effects  Women and girls are primarily responsible for obtaining energy resources instead of pursuing education and other productive activities

Differences in gender perception on energy availability Rural community set to choose access to one energy source MEN: decision- making based on energy source – e.g., electricity for quality of life and education WOMEN: decision-making based on energy use – e.g., gas for household (reduce workload & costs)

Effective projects to meet the needs of underserved populations DEMAND-SIDE considerations VS. SUPPLY-SIDE energy targets  Effective and equitable distribution of energy services among all the population  Maximum benefit of energy availability for all the population, e.g., energy for domestic, agricultural and small-scale production activities in the rural areas

Effective policies to meet needs of all  Political element: organization of use, production, provision and distribution of energy to meet needs of all population subgroups  Economic element: definition of investment impact on population subgroups  Environmental sustainability: distinctive solutions based on differing roles and experiences of population subgroups  Social element: empowerment of all population subgroups

Gender-sensitive energy policies  Collect and use sex-disaggregated data to target and serve women and girls within the population at large  Target reduction of inequalities and empowerment of women and girls – e.g., development of income-generating projects out of various forms of energy  Increase participation of women in the energy sector

Some opportunities for the IANAS Energy and WfS-WG programmes  Sex-disaggregated data available to Governments and public in the energy sector  Inclusion of gender considerations in advisory activities towards policy making and project development  Promotion of female scientists and engineers in the energy sector (scholarships, training programs, etc)  Promote the involvement of female population as a means to achieve sustainability in energy projects

Women engineers – strategic agents for development  S&T transfer is an essential element in all development work  The targeted populations are majority women, who need to be engaged and empowered as partners  Female engineers will be effective agents of empowerment by, 1. educating girls and encouraging them to become scientists and engineers 2. promoting the participation of female engineers in programmes, companies and research institutions

Women at the grass roots – strategic agents for energy sustainability  “Widows biomass energy project” - Rwanda: 100 families organized in a cooperative, making rod-like biomass briquettes from garbage after removing recyclable materials, are slowly replacing the use of charcoal in the local energy market.  “Photovoltaic project” – Philippines: Women were trained in operation & maintenance tasks, so energy accessibility is not interrupted, allowing for the development of profitable activities such as specialty products agriculture, bakery and others.

Some useful and important links on Energy and Gender 1.The Relationship between Gender, Energy and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean, Leontine van den Hooven, Fundación Solar, Guatemala ( 2.Gender and Equity Issues in Liquid Biofuels Production: Minimizing the Risks to Maximize the Opportunities, Andrea Rossi & Yianna Lambrou, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Rome 2008 ( 3.Gender and Energy Development Strategies (GEDS), ESMAP, Energy Sector Management Assistance Program, World Bank ( 4.Gender and Energy for Sustainable Development, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) ( 5.Women’s Role in the Clean Energy Economy, Center for American Progress ( )

Acknowledgments To the Organizers, the IANAS Energy Program and the Colombian Academy of Sciences for giving me, acting as the WfS-WG Energy liaison, the opportunity of participate in this meeting, speak on behalf of WfS-WG and become informed on the activities of the Energy Program. To the U.S. National Academy of Sciences for the travel support to attend this meeting. To WfS-WG members, Anneke Levelt Sengers and Sophia Huyer, for important contributions to this presentation.