Bridging the gender gap in the energy transition: addressing unmet aspirations and repellent effect in education and early career pathways in Italy, Germany and UK
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Published version (article in press)
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The global energy transition requires not only technological innovation but also structural transformation in education and research cultures. Adopting a feminist analytical lens, we conducted focus groups with university students and academic staff across STEM and non-STEM disciplines in Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Qualitative analysis reveals persistent gender disparities in energy-related higher education and professional trajectories. These disparities emerge through two interrelated dynamics: unmet aspirations and repelling effects. The former reflects a misalignment between student expectations and curricular engagement with socio-technical dimensions of the energy transition, compounded by gender-blind pedagogical content. The latter captures the persistence of cultural norms and gender stereotypes that operate as structural barriers, disproportionately affecting women. We argue that addressing these gaps requires a reconfiguration of curricula, pedagogical approaches, and epistemological foundations, alongside the transformation of workplace cultures, to enable more equitable and socially engaged pathways into energy transition research and innovation.
Date Issued
2026-06-24
Date Acceptance
2026-05-28
Citation
Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, 2026
ISSN
2662-9992
Publisher
Springer Nature
Journal / Book Title
Humanities & Social Sciences Communications
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2026 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
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Publication Status
Published online
Date Publish Online
2026-06-24