<br>*CLIMATE CHANGE<br><div class="gmail_quote"><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div><div><div><p>
In Europe, Pollution Is a Masculine Noun **/<br>
<br>
/**Julio Godoy* - Tierramérica* <br>
<br>
*PARIS, Feb 17 (IPS) - Many aspects of gender inequality are well known <br>
and well documented. But there seems to be little awareness that male <br>
behaviour leads to greater emissions of climate-changing gases.*<br>
<br>
That is the conclusion of two independent studies by separate teams of <br>
European scientists, both based on statistical data on consumption and <br>
daily activities of men and women in industrialised countries. <br>
<br>
Frédéric Chomé, a French consultant on environmental and sustainable <br>
development issues, stated that a typical French woman causes emissions <br>
of 32.3 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) per day, on average, while a <br>
man causes 39.3 kg of CO2 emissions. <br>
<br>
"The estimates are based on a study of human activities separated by <br>
gender, conducted by France's National Institute of Statistics and <br>
Economics (INSEE)," Chomé told Tierramérica. <br>
<br>
"Although our calculation method is very approximate, I believe the <br>
results are a good indicator of the differences in environmental <br>
contamination resulting from the different behaviours of men and women," <br>
added the author of the study titled "24 Hours Exactly: Your Personal <br>
Carbon Account." <br>
<br>
Similar conclusions resulted from a study by Annika Carlsson-Kanyama, of <br>
Sweden, and Riita Räty, of Finland, about the behaviours of men and <br>
women in 10 daily activities in Germany, Greece, Norway and Sweden. <br>
<br>
According to their study, "Comparing Energy Use by Gender, Age and <br>
Income in Some European Countries," men consume more meat and processed <br>
beverages than women do, use automobiles more frequently and driving <br>
longer distances, resulting in greater CO2 emissions. <br>
<br>
Commenting on the two studies, Corinna Altenburg and Fritz Reusswig, of <br>
Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, noted that some <br>
of the more polluting habits attributed to the male population are the <br>
result of the social roles they usually play in society. <br>
<br>
In transportation, for example, men make more trips in airplane and <br>
automobile, raising considerably their ecological footprint, according <br>
to the two experts. <br>
<br>
That difference could be balanced out in the future, "to the extent that <br>
equal opportunity allows women to climb the labour ladder, while men <br>
take on more household duties." <br>
<br>
Meanwhile, eating habits follow the gender line: men tend to eat more <br>
meat, and women eat more fruits and vegetables -- habits that are <br>
difficult to change, according to Altenburg and Reusswig. <br>
<br>
They suggest that a policy aimed at reducing the male portion of CO2 <br>
emissions should focus as much on environmental objectives as issues of <br>
urban development, traditionally male jobs, and deeply rooted social <br>
customs. <br>
<br>
"The goal in eating should be to trade quantity for quality. Reducing <br>
the consumption of meat reduces mass production of meat, and that helps <br>
fight CO2 emissions from livestock, for example," said the experts. <br>
<br>
Chomé found that in France, in eating habits alone, one man is <br>
responsible for 7.98 kg of CO2 emissions per day, while one woman is <br>
responsible for 6.79 kg per day. The scientists found similar gender <br>
differences in nearly all 11 activities analysed. <br>
<br>
The only case in which women cause greater greenhouse gas emissions is <br>
in carrying out household tasks like cooking and cleaning and washing <br>
clothes, according to the study released Nov. 24. <br>
<br>
Carlsson-Kanyama, meanwhile, explained to Tierramérica that their <br>
research found that, apart from the substantial gender differences in <br>
transportation and eating habits, it is the consumption of alcohol and <br>
tobacco products that drive up the portion of emissions for which men <br>
are responsible. <br>
<br>
"For the study, we looked at the total use of energy per household in <br>
the four countries, and then we divided the individual consumption of <br>
men and women by activity," she said. <br>
<br>
But the activity with greatest environmental consequences is <br>
transportation, stressed Carlsson-Kanyama. "In that rubric alone, men <br>
consume between 70 and 80 percent more energy than women in Germany and <br>
Norway, 100 percent more in Sweden, and up to 350 percent more in Greece." <br>
<br>
This is explained by men's more intensive individual car use, which <br>
leads to greater consumption of fuel, car parts and repairs. <br>
<br>
"These differences are not specific to the four countries studied, but <br>
are generalised across the European Union and have little to do with the <br>
different professional activities of men and women," said Carlsson-Kanyama. <br>
<br>
Women in the EU tend to make short trips by car, utilise public <br>
transportation more often, and plan their trips according to the <br>
transportation needs of others. <br>
<br>
In general, the study that Carlsson-Kanyama and Räty published in August <br>
2009 demonstrates that men consume more energy than women do. The <br>
differences range from six percent in Norway and eight percent in <br>
Germany to 22 percent in Sweden and as high as 39 percent in Greece. <br>
<br>
As in previous studies, the researchers also conclude that energy <br>
consumption increases as household income rises, and with it, increased <br>
individual contribution to climate change. <br>
<br>
According to Carlsson-Kanyama, the findings of the two studies suggest <br>
that the European governments should focus their emissions-reduction <br>
efforts on convincing the male population to modify their transportation <br>
and eating habits to increase energy efficiency in related activities. <br>
<br>
*This story was originally published by Latin American newspapers that <br>
are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news <br>
service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations <br>
Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme and the <br>
World Bank. (END/2011)<br>
<br>
--<br>
<br>
Tony Tweedale, M.S.<br>
*R.I.S.K. (Rebutting Industry Science with Knowledge) Consultancy*<br>
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