Europe seeks carbon neutrality 0:42
(CNN) -
Gender stereotypes still prevail and harm our planet, according to a new study from Sweden, showing how men's passion for meat and cars causes them to contribute more to greenhouse gas emissions than women.
The study, conducted by the research company Ecoloop and published Monday in the
Journal for Industrial Ecology
, looked at single men and women living in Sweden and looked at their consumption and spending on goods such as food, household items, furniture, vacations. and fuel for vehicles.
SPECIAL
:
Everything you need to know about the weather, climate change and the weather
Similar spending, different carbon footprints
According to the research, Swedish men, on average, were responsible for 16% more greenhouse gases than women, despite spending only 2% more on goods in total.
The research was based on official 2012 consumer spending figures, the most recent data available.
Mastercard launches calculator that measures your carbon footprint 0:50
The study gave several reasons why men have a higher carbon footprint despite spending a similar amount as women.
advertising
It argues that women tended to spend money on "low-emission products," such as healthcare, furniture, and clothing, while men spent 70% of their money on what the study called "gas-intensive items. greenhouse effect, "including automobile fuel.
Milo without milk and 'pork' without meat: Nestlé and other brands in Asia are betting big on vegetarian food and diet
When it comes to transportation and vacations, single men produce more emissions than women due to their increased car use.
On this point, the study also found that in Sweden vacations taken by car are six times more polluting than those taken by train.
Women are also the most affected by climate change
Annika Carlsson-Kanyama, the lead researcher on the study, told CNN that men "could really learn from women's spending habits, which produce significantly less carbon emissions despite the similar amount of spending."
He also said that governments must take these gender differences into account in their decision-making when shaping environmental policies.
"Policies - for example in transport - should be directed at men to discourage them from spending so much on fuel, from using cars so much. It is essential that governments, in their messages, explain to men how high emissions are that are causing their expenses, "he explained.
UK to ban sale of some 1:15 cars
Carlsson-Kanyama also said she has noticed that "people are uncomfortable discussing the fact that men and women affect the environment differently."
Asmae Ourkiya, a PhD Researcher in Ecofeminism and Environmental Justice at the University of Limerick in Ireland, echoed Carlsson-Kanyama's point about the impact fixed gender roles have on the environment, within which it is most likely that men spend their money on cars and fuel and eating more meat, for example.
"Male identities (of men) were strongly associated with the extraction and consumption of fossil fuels ... and resistance to sustainable diets," they told CNN.
Historic Northwest heat wave would have been 'virtually impossible' without a human-caused climate crisis, study finds
The study's release comes just weeks after the devastating consequences of climate change were uncovered in the United States and Canada, where unprecedented heat waves have killed large numbers of people. And last week, the European Union announced its bold new climate action plan. This is the "Fit for 55" initiative, which aims to move its members away from fossil fuels.
Ourkiya and Carlsson-Kanyama said governments must also consider how climate change affects men and women differently, as women not only have a lower carbon footprint than men, but they are, according to the United Nations. , more vulnerable to climate change.
This is a fact that, says Carlsson-Kanyama, "should be reflected in the fight against climate disasters."
Climate change carbon footprint
