From policy to progress: do female parliamentarians influence energy justice?

Women parliamentarians have been playing an increasingly important role in shaping climate policy and advocating for energy justice in recent years. As lawmakers, they have a unique opportunity to influence policy decisions and prioritize sustainable practices that can mitigate the effects of climate change. Additionally, women parliamentarians bring a unique perspective to the table, often championing issues that directly impact women, children, and marginalized communities who are disproportionately affected by climate change and energy injustices. As the composition of parliamentarians becomes more diversified with the increasing representation of women, it is crucial to investigate whether female parliamentarians influence energy justice. Based on the theory of ecofeminism, which suggests that women are relatively more concerned with environmental sustainability and environmental risks than men, this study tests the hypothesis that women parliamentarians are more likely to take action in favour of energy justice. Specifically, this paper aims to examine the causal effect of female parliamentarians in promoting energy justice in a panel of 62 countries. The study proposes three sub-indicators of energy justice namely distributive justice, procedural justice, and restorative justice. Using the two-stage instrumental variable approach, we isolate the effect of female parliamentarians and find that it is a driver of energy justice. The results of a mediation analysis highlight the role of democracy and human capital as transmission channels, explaining the indirect effect of female parliamentarians on energy justice. The study's conclusions therefore highlight the importance of supporting and empowering women parliamentarians in their efforts to combat climate change and energy injustice.National initiatives such as parity quotas in parliaments to improve women's participation in political life are strongly encouraged in order to achieve gender parity in parliaments.Concepts of justice are now routinely mobilized in environmental and climate change activism.The various international campaigns aimed at raising awareness of low-carbon transitions could be more successful in countries where women are better represented in parliaments.This article contributes to the literature on the environmental role of women politicians by examining the causal effect of women parliamentarians on energy justice.As women are more sustainability-conscious and are more affected by climate change, women parliamentarians can advocate gender-sensitive climate policies.The results show that increasing the number of women in parliaments helps to minimize CO2 emissions and global warming by improving energy justice.The results also highlight the importance of developing measures targeting better education and more democratic institutions.