The gender pay gap is well documented, globally women earn 20% less than men for the same work. In the UK the figure is 7%, but this is the difference between the average male and female salary, not the difference between men and women doing the same job.  

One of the key reasons women earn less than men in the UK is that they are more likely to work in jobs that are poorly remunerated; caring and teaching for example – though encouraging everyone is paid poorly in these sectors! Conversely for those women that do work in higher paid areas; skilled trades, managerial position, these have the highest gender pay gaps – so where women are being well paid, they are still earing significantly less than their male counterparts.  

An aspect of the gender pay gap that is maybe less well understood is what are the implications of men having more money than women? 

Well, a recent study by LSE showed that the carbon footprint of French women was 25% less than their male counterparts. Women’s transport footprint was close to 40% lower than men, often as they have smaller (less polluting cars). Another key factor is that they often worked closer to home to be able to care for the children, which would also explain why they may have been earning less – linking together carbon emissions and gender equality.  

Gender food choices are also revealing, women have a 25% lower carbon footprint for food mostly due to consuming less meat. Furthermore, women are more likely to buy organic food than men. Given the impact of the meat industry and intensive farming on water quality we can start to make a connection between the food purchasing habits and local pollution.  

Delving into air travel the picture is more nuanced as female passenger numbers are essentially the same as men, though almost inevitably men dominate the carbon intensive business and first-class travel. Interestingly men make up a much higher percentage of frequent fliers – the group that is most responsible for air travel emissions.  

Pulling all this together, narrowing the gender pay gap will require generally closing the pay gap between high and low earners, particularly increasing the pay of key sector jobs, and reining in excessive pay. Closing the gap would also put more money in the hands of consumers with less polluting cars and diets, having a direct impact on our local air and water quality.  

Obviously closing the gender pay gap isn’t going to solve all the world’s problems – but it appears to be a more important indicator than you might think!