BRIDGE is a specialised gender and development research and information service based in the Gender and Sexuality Cluster at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), in the UK. As part of a global network of individuals and organisations working to advance gender equality, women’s rights, dignity and empowerment in development, we advocate for the crucial importance of a gender perspective in efforts to reduce poverty and promote social justice. BRIDGE is committed to making multilingual gender knowledge accessible outside the research community and to building bridges and dialogue between researchers, policy-makers and practitioners.
Women are generally excluded from discussions about energy plans and policies because of gender norms around appropriate roles for women and men, gender biases in education, and gender inequalities in employment status. Yet burning wood or other biomass fuels (such as fuelwood and animal dung) is a primary source of energy in many countries, and fetching and using these fuels is commonly viewed as women's work.
In the introduction to this publication, ENERGIA policy advisor and editor of this pubication Gail Karlsson writes, “In many developing countries, especially in the poorest areas, most energy currently comes from traditional biomass fuels such as wood, charcoal and agricultural wastes - and collection and managing these fuels is strictly ‘women’s business’.” She calls on national energy and development policy-makers to acknowledge the links between women’s work, national economics and energy; as well as make more gender-focused investments and initiatives, with greater and more diverse invo