Europe Archives - Women Speak

6 03, 2026

https://www.euronews.com/2026/03/08/women-bear-the-brunt-of-climate-change-meet-the-green-politicians-determined-to-change-tha

Women Bear The Brunt of Climate Change. Meet The Green Politicians Determined to Change That

Aparna Packer2026-05-25T23:05:53-04:00Tags: International, Europe|

A rising number of women green politicians across Europe are confronting both the climate crisis and the gendered backlash that accompanies it. Hannah Spencer made history by becoming the first Green Party Member of Parliament elected in the North of England after winning the Gorton and Denton by-election. A working-class plumber who left school at 16, Spencer was met with attacks on her credentials and false rumours about her personal wealth. Her story reflects a broader documented pattern of consistent correlation between sexism, climate denial, and opposition to climate policy, rooted in what researchers termed ‘system justification,’ the impulse to protect existing socio-economic structures. Austrian Green MEP Lena Schilling, a former Fridays for Future activist, noted that online hostility targeting young women in politics continues to discourage many from speaking out or entering public life altogether. This concern is backed by a German study finding that around two-thirds of politically active women experienced sexist or misogynistic attacks online, with 22% having considered leaving politics as a result. Within the European Parliament, the Greens/EFA group stands as the only one to have achieved full gender parity, with women holding 68% of European Green Party leadership roles, the highest of any Europarty, a fact Terry Reintke, co-president of Greens/EFA, attributes to the party's founding commitment to inclusion.

18 09, 2023

https://www.wwf.eu/?11764316/Women-in-wind-A-missing-piece-of-the-EU-offshore-renewable-energy-transition

Women in Wind: A Missing Piece of the EU offshore renewable energy transition

Aparna Packer2025-02-20T18:03:39-05:00Tags: Europe|

As we transition towards clean energy, it's imperative that our values, including gender equality, guide our path. Despite the projected 625% growth in EU offshore renewable energy capacity by 2030, women remain significantly underrepresented in the sector, despite its rapid expansion and potential. Gender disparities persist, with women holding only up to 20% of senior positions in the EU energy sector and comprising just 21% of the global wind energy workforce. This lack of representation extends to decision-making roles, underscoring the urgent need for equal participation in shaping energy policies that affect everyone. Studies show that companies with at least 30% women in senior positions perform more effectively, and integrating women into the industry can drive innovation and alleviate skill shortages. By prioritizing gender equality in renewable energy policy development and implementation, the EU can address broader social challenges exacerbated by climate change. Upholding gender equality as a foundational EU principle is crucial for women as active participants in the energy transition, and addressing socio-demographic inequalities, thereby fostering a just, inclusive, and sustainable future.

30 12, 2021

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/09500170211043005

On the Front Line of the Circular Economy: The Entrepreneurial, Identity and Institutional Work of a Female Entrepreneur towards the Circular Transition

Aparna Packer2026-05-28T14:06:13-04:00Tags: Europe|

Entrepreneur Vicky Harrison has advanced a model of circular enterprise that links environmental sustainability with social justice, care, and collective responsibility. Through her social enterprise SwimHappy, she produces women’s swim and activewear using regenerated ocean plastics and recycled fishing nets, while operating a closed-loop system that collects old swimwear for remanufacturing into new garments. Unlike conventional fashion businesses centered on profit maximization and linear production, SwimHappy reinvests 100% of its profits into microfinance loans for women entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa. Vicky’s work illustrates how small businesses and grassroots entrepreneurs can function as overlooked but vital actors in the transition toward a circular economy. Her efforts extend beyond simply running a sustainable business: they involve entrepreneurial work in building a technically and financially viable circular enterprise, identity work in redefining herself from corporate fashion executive to values-driven circular entrepreneur, and institutional work in legitimizing and popularizing circular practices through public advocacy, events, and collaboration with sustainability networks. She demonstrates that circularity can be both materially practical and commercially possible, while rejecting the dominant entrepreneurial narrative of individualism in favor of collaboration and shared transformation. Her business model connects environmental stewardship with labor justice, feminist principles, and global relational networks. Through this integrated approach, Vicky challenges the fashion industry’s extractive logics and demonstrates how circular business practices can foster more equitable, regenerative, and socially accountable economic systems.