Are men less environmentally friendly than women?

We’re so accustomed to gender gaps and thankfully most of them are narrowing, albeit slowly, but the widening one which shows no sign of closing any time soon is the eco one.

The eco gender gap explained

Research found men cause 16 percent more climate emissions than women.

Think of the first green products that come to your mind – they’ll likely be things like taking your own shopping bag, reusable containers for things like washing powder and cosmetics and brightly coloured reusable water bottles. Overwhelmingly these products are aimed at women with their designs of leaves, bright hues and pretty fonts.

Research from Sweden found men cause 16 percent more climate emissions than women despite them spending the same amount of money. So the eco gender gap is alive and well and desperately needs more people to be aware of it so we can start to close it.

Women are more likely to feel climate impacts than men

Unfortunately women are much more vulnerable than men to the impacts of climate change too.

Research from the UN found women represent the majority of the world’s poor and proportionally speaking are more dependent than the opposite sex on the natural resources that are threatened by climate change caused by CO2 emissions.

Take a gender gap challenge to help the environment

Start making consumer choices together and see if you can make them in a greener way.

Whether you’re single, coupled up or married, why not challenge the significant ‘other’ or best friend in your life to see who can reduce their carbon footprint more?

We know around two thirds of purchasing decisions in households are made by women so start making consumer choices together and see if you can make them in a greener way.

Whether it’s buying a new gadget or doing the weekly shop, do it together. If you’re a woman you can highlight how you are targeted by advertising and how usually eco products are aimed at you. And if you’re a man, you can explain what drives your decision making and decide together if there’s a greener option.

We’ll ultimately end up with a healthier planet if we understand more other people’s motivation and decision making when purchasing products and services.

By discussing the eco credentials together of your next holiday or car etc can really help challenge each other to understand more, do more and be better at going green.

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