Women in the workforce and climate change performance: the moderating role of environmental management training

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study examines the relationship between gender and carbon emissions, specifically focusing on the influence of female leadership roles and female employees on carbon emissions from 2012 to 2021 in companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. While gender socialisation theory suggests that women are naturally inclined to care for the environment, our results do not fully support the argument that more female directors and employees alone can combat carbon emissions significantly. However, our findings indicate that when employees receive environmental management training, the presence of female directors significantly reduces carbon emissions. This result highlights that informal education alone, as emphasised in gender socialisation theory, is insufficient for addressing carbon emissions of companies. The findings suggest the importance of having more women in leadership positions as well as providing formal training and education for employees to reduce carbon emissions.