Is your communications approach gender-smart?

The language companies use to attract customers or employees plays an important role in whether someone feels represented and, therefore, comfortable investing in your organisation. This article outlines the importance of gender-inclusive or gender-smart communications and how it intersects with climate issues. As part of a campaign launched by EIT Climate-KIC that outlines five actions to address gender inequity in climate entrepreneurship, we expand on the third action: updating communications and marketing materials. We spoke to two experts in our community – Stefanie Behrendt, co-founder of wegozero.co and Carolyne Kirabo from M-Kyala Ventures – to learn more.

Why focus on gender-smart communications?

Discrimination and unconscious gender bias have led to women and minority genders being underrepresented in the corporate world – and the percentage of women in higher positions shrinks at each step of the corporate ladder – including in the climate world, where women are still under-represented in climate change decision-making. Women often feel marginalised within the workplace, which affects their well-being and career prospects.

Examining and updating communications materials can help companies stay relevant to their target audiences. Updating marketing campaigns can help diversify the groups of people companies can effectively engage with and make workplaces more inclusive. Unconscious gender biases affect everyone – the way people act and speak can significantly impact others in the workplace and this needs to be acknowledged. Think of a work meeting where a woman presents an idea, and her men colleagues respond by interrupting her, questioning her competence, or attributing her idea to a man colleague. This behaviour, rooted in unconscious gender biases, can undermine her credibility, diminish her contributions, and perpetuate a culture where women feel undervalued and marginalised in the workplace.

Stefanie Behrendt, co-founder and CEO of zero waste consultancy wegozero, says that as a woman entrepreneur, she has sometimes been dismissed: “I look young, so I still face authority problems. Some people, mainly men with old-fashioned attitudes, underestimate me. I don’t particularly take it as a challenge – it can be an advantage. You can ‘flip the cards’ and people can see there is no power to be gained by taking that attitude. But people sometimes still try to undermine my authority.”

Embracing different communication styles is crucial, as men and women have different communication preferences and needs. Gender-inclusive communication that considers imagery and language can help companies reach them more directly. Neglecting gender differences can lead to less effective communication and, at worst, women being disadvantaged. 

Carolyne Kirabo, founder of M-Kyala Ventures, believes there are gender differences in the way events are communicated that cater to men: “Information sessions are very helpful to the women I work with, but a lot of programmes are designed in a very top-down way – the tone of the support space can be a big deterrent to women. Men often ask: “What am I going to get out of this?”, while I believe that for women, programmes should be designed with a strong value proposition as they need to understand how this will enable them to grow. Programmes should share a value proposition which considers content more carefully and signposts how it can benefit women more clearly.”

The intersection of climate and gender

The UNDP says, “There can be no genuine sustainable human development without gender equality.” Nevertheless, as seen in recent news, the initial organising committee for the upcoming COP29 climate change conference was 100 per cent men. Twelve women were added to the 28-men committee only after a global backlash of the initial selection. 

Climate change and gender inequality are intertwined – and communications on these issues must be as representative as possible. The Greens/EFA’s  Communication Toolkit on Gender and Climate outlines how gender stereotypes and assumptions exacerbate a range of climate-related issues, including energy poverty, food and transportation. These stereotypes contribute to the underlying problems that create a “climate-unfriendly” society.

As the business world has been traditionally dominated by men, Stefanie Behrendt believes this has impacted the way all people communicate, but by putting climate change concerns at the forefront, women will become more engaged: “In the corporate world, ‘business talk’ has been created by men, and as women, we are imitating this. We need to zoom out and consider the ecosystem we are operating in and rethink it. Profit generation was the goal, but we increasingly see that companies need to operate within planetary boundaries. If we move away from prioritising profit over everything, we will also talk in a different language. 

Behrendt explains that women are less likely to be motivated by money and more responsive to impacts on nature and the planet. For example, she is quick to dismiss marketing emails asking her if she wants to increase her profits but responds positively to messaging that is more collaborative and empathetic.

Beware the perils of purple-washing 

While companies are increasingly aware of inequality and the need to incorporate gender inclusivity into their communication approach, the actions should not be superficial. If communication around gender equality is seen as merely a marketing ploy, companies are at risk of being accused of purple-washing.

Purple-washing (also known as gender-washing)  is a strategy where companies outline support for gender equality – often to improve their brand image –  without taking concrete steps or actions towards the cause. For example, businesses increasingly promote International Women’s Day on their social media accounts but do not take the actions required to tackle gender inequality internally.

Identifying gender inequality in the workplace, investing in women and fostering gender-inclusive communication are some of the ways leaders in the climate space can help build more equal societies, break down barriers for women’s participation in the workplace and accelerate climate action more effectively.

At EIT Climate-KIC, we’re committed to driving systemic change in gender equity across the climate innovation sector. Our programme, supported by Irish Aid, CATAL1.5°T and Green Hub, helps partners identify gaps in their understanding of gender inequity and implement concrete actions for organisations to embed a gender lens into their everyday work.