In March, Ms. Perch attended the Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) Global Forum 2025 in Bridgetown, Barbados.

Under the theme of “Sustainable Energy for Equity, Security and Prosperity”, the Forum centred around the imperative for a just and equitable energy transition, with the aim of achieving climate progress while eliminating energy poverty and catalysing development opportunities.

However, there are gender gaps and issues which affect the achievement of a truly just and equitable energy transition.

Speakers at the Forum highlighted some of these issues, which include:

• Women are still underrepresented in key aspects of the energy sector.
• Women-owned businesses are challenged by barriers such as lack of understanding of financial management, lack of collateral, and issues like bias and discrimination
• There are gaps in the regulatory and policy space as well as in women's leadership
• Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment and Gender-based Violence (SEAH/GBV) should be addressed more directly

Some recommendations from the Forum:

• Women’s access to finance and ability to control resources should be improved
• Green Bonds and Sustainability-linked bonds which focus on the energy sector and provide opportunities for funding by women-led and owned businesses are also critical
• Gender justice and monitoring in all climate and energy projects should be mandatory
• The leveraging of digital technologies and AI to reduce the gender gap is gaining momentum and can be useful for addressing gender gaps in energy
• Young people and young women should be empowered, such as through STEM education from an early age

Look out for SAEDI's blog on Earth Day (April 22nd) where we discuss more on energy and gender, including gaps, barriers and opportunities for women’s and Indigenous Peoples’ participation in the renewable energy sector!