Fostering a Gender and Intersectional Perspective in EU Foresight
This policy brief explains how an intersectional perspective can be incorporated into foresight at different stages of the EU policy cycle and 'Better regulation' framework.
Gender-responsive evaluation for an environmental and sustainable future for all (GREENA)
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What is the issue?
The EU is committed to gender mainstreaming in all its policies. The European Institute for Gender Equality strives to advance gender-responsive policymaking processes to achieve just and sustainable development for all amid Europe’s green transition.
Impact assessments and evaluations are a key feature of the EU policymaking process. They are expected to use strategic foresight (research of plausible future developments) to better anticipate emerging trends and risks and to strategically plan for those possibilities. The adoption of a gender-responsive approach to impact assessments and evaluations can help design interventions that more adequately respond to the different needs and priorities of people, in all their diversity and ultimately advance gender equality. Strategic foresight offers an opportunity to strengthen a reflexive approach, addressing gendered and environmental impacts on present and future generations. However, currently no tools or guidelines existed to help systematically integrate a gender and intersectional perspective within the EU strategic foresight, impact assessment and evaluation.
How did we help?
The overall objective of this study was to advance gender-responsive policymaking processes in the EU, to achieve just and sustainable development for all. The study relied on desk research as the main research method and developed resources to implement gender-responsive evaluation. The tools were tested during a workshop with relevant stakeholders.
RAND Europe, in collaboration with PPMI, was responsible for expanding knowledge of strategic foresight in the context of impact assessment and evaluation in the EU and in particular for:
- Analysing existing EU evaluations and impact assessments in the context of the green transition regarding their use of gender-sensitive strategic foresight.
- Identifying entry points in EU impact assessment and evaluation processes where a consideration of gender equality and an intersectional perspective can be implemented.
- Developing a practical tool to enhance gender mainstreaming in strategic foresight that can be embedded in the wider policymaking process.
What did we find?
We helped developed a new toolkit, which aimed to provide guidance on how to address and evaluate gender inequality in EU climate policy. The gender-responsive evaluation for an environmental and sustainable future for all (GREENA) toolkit has 11 individual tools in total, which can be implemented both individually and in conjunction with each other. This toolkit will also be a useful resource in helping strategic foresight meet the needs of women and men, in all their diversity.
It can be used to identify gender impacts across six key dimensions:
- Participation in the labour market and the economy
- Gender stereotypes, gender roles and responsibilities
- Participation in public life and decision making
- Care, including paid and unpaid care work
- Gender-based violence
- Institutions, laws, policies and budgets.
Recommendations
In addition to the GREENA toolkit, we make a series of recommendations on improving EU foresight’s responsiveness to gender and intersecting inequalities, which include:
- Foster the use of gender mainstreaming methods in the EU strategic foresight reports and full foresight cycle.
- Have relevant bodies (e.g. the Regulatory Scrutiny Board) offer support in integrating foresight and a gender equality perspective into evaluations and impact assessments at the EU level.
- Strengthen gender expertise among evaluation and impact assessment units at the European Commission and contractors.
- Incorporate a gender equality perspective into the foresight methods.
- Strengthen the use of participatory approaches in which gender expertise and various perspectives are represented.
- Ensure the collection and analysis of data disaggregated by sex and other intersecting characteristics.
- Review the content of EU impact assessments and evaluations and examine the extent to which they incorporate gender-responsive and intersecting inequalities strategic foresight.