Mainstreaming a gender perspective into the study of energy poverty in the city of Madrid

Abstract

The feminisation of energy poverty in the city of Madrid is currently impossible to measure through statistics for those women who are not the main breadwinners. However, a crescent body of knowledge about qualitative research applied to the study of energy poverty has disclosed several aspects related to vulnerability to energy poverty and its impacts. The paper shows the results of a qualitative characterisation of 16 women from Madrid based on interviews conducted during the winters of 2019 and 2020, before and after the COVID-19 lockdown. Four different ways in which gender roles shape experiences of energy poverty are revealed. First, the assumption of responsibility for the home well-being is intrinsically linked to women's identity. Second, how patterns and habits of energy consumption are influenced because of gender. In the third place, how emotions are not only a consequence of suffering from energy poverty but can also help to hide it. Lastly, segregation of capabilities by gender roles from the early age contributes to condition knowledge of household energy management. The importance of reformulating gender inequality dynamics by focusing on personal experience and being able to extract conclusions joining quantitative studies shall be included in future studies.