The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in cooperation with the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), held a conference on women's empowerment in the energy industry that resulted in the formulation of a seven point action agenda with best practices on the topic.
25 October 2013: The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in cooperation with the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), held a conference on women’s empowerment in the energy industry that resulted in the formulation of a seven point action agenda with best practices on the topic.
The meeting, which focused on the theme ‘Empowering Women in the Energy Industry for Value and Development,’ aimed to identify concrete solutions for empowering women for “the betterment of themselves, their employers, and the industry.” Discussions were held on topics including: the glass ceiling– understanding challenges and breaking down barriers; managing an energy career; achieving the work/life balance; attracting talent to science and engineering; “gender diversity does not mean gender adversity”; and breakout brainstorming sessions on women’s empowerment.
The resulting action agenda and best practices highlight the importance of seven key areas for moving forward: mentoring; networking; outreach and education; commitment from the top; best practices and performance benchmarking; fostering cultural change; and improving cooperation, collaboration and communication.
The meeting was held from 19-20 September 2013, in Geneva, Switzerland. [Conference website] [Publication: Action Agenda with Best Practices for Empowering Women in the Energy Industry]