Women in Wind Global Leadership Program welcomes biggest intake ever for fifth year
24 March 2023, Brussels | The Global Wind Energy Council (‘GWEC’) and the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition (‘GWNET’) are delighted to launch this year’s Women in Wind Global Leadership Program. This year’s program will be the biggest yet with at least 23 participants, from 13 countries.
Having started in 2019 with an initial group of eight mentees, this year the program will welcome almost four times as many spots to women who are working in vital emerging wind energy markets around the world.
Now in its fifth year, the initiative – hosted by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition (GWNET) – helps accelerate the careers of women in the wind industry, facilitating empowerment and career development by providing training, mentorship, knowledge-sharing and fostering a global network of professionals in the industry.
Ben Backwell, GWEC CEO, said: “Delivering a just transition is fundamental to the idea of the energy transition, and that must mean gender diversity and parity throughout the industry. Wind energy can deliver enormous opportunities for clean jobs, clean industry and clean economies, and the benefits must be shared by all.
“It is vital the wind industry ensures there is diversity throughout the industry to drive innovation, improve performance and help accelerate the transition to a renewables-powered future.
“Women in Wind plays a key role in the industry diversifying by working with strategic stakeholders to develop and then implement the principles of gender equality which will drive genuine chance.
“GWEC is delighted to see the Global Leadership Program continue to grow as it begins its fifth year. Delivering gender diversity and parity is at the heart of everything the Global Wind Energy Council does, so we’re all very excited to be working with this year’s cohort – the biggest group of participants yet.”
GWEC Director of Women In Wind, Jeanette Gitobu said: “I am absolutely delighted that this year’s Women in Wind Global Leadership Program will be the largest intake yet. As the energy transition accelerates through this decade it is vital that gender diversity and parity are at the heart of that growth, and welcoming more mentees to the scheme helps the industry do exactly that.
“GWEC and GWNET are absolutely delighted by the diverse group of mentees we have received this year. The program received more than 140 applications this year from across the world, which highlights the enormous interest from women in starting, building and developing their careers in the wind industry.”
Christine Lins, Executive Director and Founding Member of GWNET, said: “Over 140 applications were submitted for this year’s Women in Wind program. The Women in Wind initiative is vital in tackling the issue of gender disparity in the wind energy sector and investing in the future leaders of the industry.
“The excellent and highly qualified applications for this year’s program show that women around the world are strongly committed to driving the global energy transition. The Women in Wind program will continue to promote and empower women professionals in the industry, boosting their career advancement into leadership roles.”
Background to GWEC’s Women in Wind
In 2020, GWEC and IRENA produced Wind energy: A gender perspective, a report that explored female representation, gender-inclusive policies, and perceptions of gender bias in the wind industry. It found only 21 per cent of the workforce is female, lower than the global renewable rate (32%), and below the whole energy industry figure (22%). At leadership level the figures are even more stark, with only 8% of senior management roles in the global wind energy sector held by women. Women mainly occupy administrative and non-STEM positions. Women in Wind is part of the industry’s response to these figures.
About Women in Wind Global Leadership Program
The Women in Wind Global Leadership Program was launched in April 2019 by the Global Wind Energy Council and the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition. Its objective is to advance the role of women as agents of change in society and the energy transition, and to promote best practices within the wind industry. The program is designed to accelerate the careers of women in the wind industry, support their pathway to senior leadership positions and foster a global network of mentorship, knowledge-sharing and empowerment. More information about the Women in Wind Global Leadership Program is available here.
About GWEC
GWEC is a member-based organisation that represents the entire wind energy sector. The members of GWEC represent over 1,500 companies, organisations and institutions in more than 80 countries, including manufacturers, developers, component suppliers, research institutes, national wind and renewables associations, electricity providers, finance and insurance companies.
Find us at: https://gwec.net/.
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About the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition
Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition (GWNET) aims to advance the global energy transition by empowering women in energy through interdisciplinary networking, advocacy, training, and mentoring. GWNET seeks to address the current gender imbalances in the energy sector and to promote gender-sensitive action around the energy transition in all parts of the world. See more: www.globalwomennet.org
Contact
Alex Bath, Communications Director, [email protected]
Jeanette Gitobu, Program Leader, [email protected]
