Based on the various kinds of sources (desk study, focus group, interviews, survey), this study has sought to direct attention to challenges at the intersection of climate commitment, gender and other categories, especially young people in the Nordic region. Some clear patterns emerge, consistent with previous studies of attitudes and behaviours related to the climate issue: women as a group are more engaged than men as a group (see e.g. Dzialo, 2017). That is evident from representation among those active in youth-oriented environmental organisations, as well as when young people are asked to rank societal issues based on how important they consider them to be.
However, it goes beyond that. Generally, those committed to climate action and sustainability tend to be more highly educated than the population at large, with social sciences dominating in terms of their education. That may be related to gender norms, as women are generally more highly educated than men in the Nordic countries. It appears to be a real challenge to reach young people in vocational training, or with an interest in vocational training rather than academic studies, as well as in applied sciences. That is also a challenge for the education system, perhaps to an even larger degree than for nonprofit organisations (cf. Gabrielsson, 2023). The report provides examples of cooperation between the two.
The study also indicates strong underrepresentation of foreign-born young people or young people with a migrant background among those active in environmental organisations. It is difficult to draw any specific conclusions about that based on the results, but it is undeniably an important area for future research. Some organisations in the study highlight regional or geographical challenges, in particular difficulties in reaching young people outside urban areas. In some cases, resources need to be deliberately prioritised. It is also conceivable that the urban/rural challenge is connected to the education issue, specifically to reaching those with no experience of university studies. There are also examples of strategies to disrupt those patterns.
A dilemma arises from various perspectives regarding the issue of focusing on encouraging young people who already have an interest in the climate issue and are committed to it, versus trying to influence those who are not yet interested or committed. One aspect of that is the prioritisation of resources. One path can be capacity building and working with ambassadors, who in turn can influence their peers. Several organisations choose that route and it has certain advantages, but also limitations that the organisation needs to be aware of and work on strategically. Examples of that approach can be found in the report.
Another aspect is representation and how much space is given to people in underrepresented groups. For example, men are a minority among climate activists, but some of the men who are there tend to take up more space than is representative (cf. Arora-Jonsson & Ågren, 2019). Nonprofit organisations are not free from the norms and structures that exist in society at large, for example within the education system. That raises a dilemma for an organisation that wants to recruit more men but may be wary of giving the men power at the expense of the greater number of women who are involved.
Finally, the study points to two parallel challenges. One concerns representation and recruitment – who (in relation to gender, education, urban/rural, migrant background etc.) is getting involved? In that regard, the report points to various patterns described above. Proposals are also presented regarding how organisations can work on those issues. The second concerns the social dimension of climate or sustainability itself and how organisations relate to those issues in society at large. In other words, how does climate change affect different groups (depending, for example, on gender, class, ethnicity etc.), who benefits or loses from certain climate policies, the connection between climate and gender equality etc.? And what are young people’s attitudes and knowledge regarding this?
Considering that men are less interested in both gender equality and climate issues than women (cf. Hoffman & Åkerström, 2023), it is not self-evident that campaigns about gender and climate would increase commitment among men. They may also have the opposite effect. Possibly, a campaign that integrates other aspects besides gender – social class, geography, etc. – would prove more effective and might interest men and other underrepresented groups. As we have seen, gender and climate are interrelated within the social dimension of sustainability, but the just green transition also has other aspects that relate to urban/rural, social class, and different minority groups (see e.g. Cedergren et al., 2022; Kraft & Qayum, 2023; Lundgren et al., 2023).