Program on the Environment

Many studies have been conducted regarding the differences in levels of concern for the environment between genders, but these have led to inconclusive results. These inconsistencies have left a gap in the knowledge and ability of organizations such as Cascadia Climate Action to properly engage community members and use techniques to mediate the differences in gender participation. This research project examines the gender differences that are at play in local climate change-centered activism and engagement through the use of quantitative and qualitative survey data. It also seeks to draw on literature surrounding ecofeminism to mitigate gender differences and provide a useful framework with which to move forward. Survey data suggests that, while both men and women show a great deal of concern for the environment and engage in climate change-related activism, women demonstrate the willingness to go to extremes and have a heightened sense of both concern and urgency. The differences between men and women demonstrate the importance of an ecofeminist perspective (a movement that makes connections between environmentalisms and feminisms; more precisely, it articulates the theory that ideologies that authorize injustices based on gender, race, and class are related to the ideologies that sanction the exploitation and degradation of the environment) and suggest that the implementation and teaching of such a theory could result in deeper concern for the environment in men.