in my field (librarianship) as soon as it became a women's profession it became cheapened, paid less, and perceived as less than. The big scary problem with women caring more about the planet is that now being eco-friendly is viewed as "less than"...maybe we need to call it "Father Earth" so people can give a fuck

Environmentalism is basically like doing chores, but for the planet. Men tend to believe doing chores is beneath them, even if they try to pretend otherwise. If you won’t even bother to pick up your own dirty socks, chances are you think that cleaning up the planet is someone else’s responsibility. It also requires the same kind of skills involved in all the thankless, domestic mental labor that women are used to doing and men take for granted. You aren’t about to start making sustainable choices for your home when you don’t even know what kind of soap is required for dishes vs laundry. Let alone do you give a crap about researching the ingredients. Also, women tend to care about their children more. And by care I don’t mean only mothers love their kids, but mothers definitely are more conscious of the actual material needs required for their children to survive because women do all the day to day tasks of caretaking. Let’s not even try to pretend this division of labor is anywhere near equal. As a result, I think women are more acutely aware of the physical realities of a living in a damaged world where their kids might not have everything they need to live and be healthy. They see the value in at least trying to prevent that from happening.

I live with 3 guys and I am a woman. I just realised while watching your video that I am the person who created an easy sorting/recycling system for our garbage at home, I buy stuff for our home second hand, I remind my roommates about extra food that we can share so it doesn't go bad and the list goes on and on.

Im a guy and the people I talk about zero waste with our predominantly women and men are the ones who often question my efforts. I hope this can change!!

My husband was in San Francisco a few years ago for a conference and got a free tote bag which he carried around with him when touring the city. In passing, someone said under their breath, “Nice purse.” It was clearly an attack on his masculinity.

I'm a design engineering major. Engineering is often more associated with males, but my class is 70% females. I remember how I overheard two of my male classmates talking about how one of them wanted to switch majors and get into business because engineering is "feminine", the other guy said that he took a business class and most of it was girls so he stopped going. My mind was literally blown away. Like these dudes couldn't handle the fact that most of their classes were females. Imagine this happening to all important fields (one of them being sustainability and caring for the environment). Everything that women become dominant in becomes less valued and it is frustrating. Like there are actual KZfaqrs with million-something followers talking about how school is girls work now and boys shouldn't go to schools and instead start a podcast or get into coding from youtube (and coincidently podcasters are becoming paid more?).

Seeing this reminds of so many shocked reactions from all sorts of people we know around Europe when they notice that my (tall and study) boyfriend is vegan, carrying his super colourful tote bag around or not wanting to own a car again as long as it is not absolutely necessary.

When it comes to this "one party, one dress" thing... I had this conversation (few) time (s) ago with my grandmother... Nah, it is absolutely beyond her understanding. When she said "all people will know that you have old dress" I answered "No. Only my partner, groom and bride and maybe few our friends will know. And generally, I don't care". Oh boi, she was so offended! And the thing why women are generally "better" clients is also connected with the history. In 19th century when capitalism, marketing and advertising begun, it was directed mainly to the women of the upper and middle class because they were this part of the society who could afford this - they had money, time and need. Time passed, reality changed but some things stayed the same or just slightly different.

I grew up in Eastern Europe, in a kinda poor, one income family and for quite a while using a canvas bag felt like a symbol of being poor, since we didn't have money to waste on plastic bags when I was a kid. Nothing gender based, my dad has always proudly used canvas bags while I, a girl, was ashamed of being seen carrying one. 😂 I obviously can't speak for everyone in this country, but this is how I felt until I grew up and found the idea of zero waste. I still use the two bags I made out of a thrifted pillow case a few years ago.

man oh man did i luck out with my dude 😂 super compassionate about the planet, people, and animals and not afraid to show it. couldn't care less if anyone perceives him as being "unmanly". i suppose it might've helped that he was raised by lesbians lmao

Perhaps we need to have more sexy masculine characters in TV and movies that are just casually sustainable

Even as a kid in school boys would prefer to bring their lunch in a plastic bag because a real lunch box ‘would make them look gay’ and sadly I’ve seen that continue on in my adult work life

Great video! I was raised in a family with a lot of traditional gender roles and toxic masculine thinking. It's very difficult for my older family members to wrap their heads around anything like sustainable living or vegetarian eating (I wouldn't even mention plant based because they would self implode). However, as a mom of two young boys, I have noticed some positive steps in how people are parenting by using less focus on gender and more focus on empathy. I think the millennials are a middle generation between the hard line gender roles and a more inclusive approach. This is just my non scientific observation of course 😅

Another thing that just came to my mind is how plant-based food is marketed in the bakery near to my workplace. They do have some (actually quite tasty) vegan options but all of them seem to assume that people who buy them are also on a diet, as they are about half the size (in terms of the bun and toppings being used) than the meat options. For the same price / sometimes even more expensive than the meat option... So you can reduce your impact on the planet, the space you take up and the content of your wallet at the same time. Very eco-feminine indeed 🤦🏼‍♀️

loved this video! def noticed it myself - how womens shopping habits are way more 'policed' for how sustainable they are. like do football fans (generalising these are typically males) ask 'who made my clothes?' or call out the clubs for bringing out new kits every year?

Thank you for this video ! I have a Masters in Gender Studies and discovering ecofeminism really allowed me to understand that the binaries that fuel our western society are at the root of why women* seem to 'care' more about the environment (binaries such as nature/culture where men = culture / women = nature). Comes down to essentializing women as 'closer to nature' and making everything that is female something to avoid for men (perfect example with the tote bag...). Definitely recommend reading into ecofeminist literature and into the movement, super duper inspiring ! Thanks for this and love from Paris

Male subscriber here: please remember that decades of marketing to men has connected our purchases to our masculinity. This has been especially true in the United States with truck and SUV marketing. I think one of the biggest things we can do to correct this is promote DIY repair and buying durable items among men.

Ok so one thing: cycling. I’m in the US living in the Midwest, I’m Wisconsin which is very meaty and dairy, and football etc etc. boring. But cycling is super made dominated I noticed. I do see women riding and scootering all the time, but you wouldn’t know it from the websites selling bikes or talking about cycling stuff around Wisconsin. I’m trying to ditch my car and it’s something I’ve very much noticed.

I think restricting things and giving up things are concepts that people who are raised as women are asked to engage with very early on, whereas men and boys are taught that it's more masculine to take what's yours. Being asked to cut down on consumption for the planet might be the first time a lot of men have been asked to hold back, and it probably feels demeaning. That's a huge over-generalization, but it's my initial thought.

This was SO interesting, and gosh the tote bag issue you mentioned is just infuriating! How is possible that some people still think that way in 2023...? 😮

Anywhere me and my son go, he picks up trash to "Help Nature"! I Love his big 🩵for the planet!

I'm nonbinary, and sometimes when I'm trying to present as masculine, I've noticed that I try to not use my (beloved) tote bag, because I might be automatically perceived as femme for carrying it...which is an idea that's annoyed me. Didn't think about all this subtle messaging around that but I see it now. I believe tote bags are neutral, too, but the idea still affects me. Crazy.

A few years ago me and my boyfriend were going to visit his friends, chill night, everyone brings smth and their own drinks. I had bought my drinks earlier so I was literally waiting outside of the store, when my bf bought his own. So we arrived at the friend's place and my bf takes out the beers he has bought. One or two of them are also marked as 'vegan'. Now, we are not vegans and I am 100% sure he chose them based on taste and wanting to try smth new. BUT I swear all his male friends stare at ME as it was def my doing that hea has vegan beer. It was just really funny at that point. I mean, yes, I am the one who pushes us to eat less meat and does more plant-based food and overall, beer is usually vegan anyways 🙃 But the looks... Also, as I said, I ma the one who makes more plant-based food home. So sometimes when I talk with relatives, parents of mine that 'oh, I did this or that for dinner' (without meat but not emphasizing it usually) I get the concern that I should still at least give my boyfriend meat or let him eat meat products. Y'know, bc he is a man. And then I have to assure them that yes, we still eat meat, just not AlWaYs. And now I have started to make jokes about myself as the evil woman who makes a pie or smth without meat. For others. My boyfriend at the same time is totally ok and understands as well, why we should eat more plant-based. And that smth is not falling off from him when he does not eat meat every day. 😂

🍵 There is a strong public association of women going along with nature and men "defying" nature in order to be more desirable on the relationship market. Take one simple example. Since girls are taught to be aware of their health and take care of themselves (and later of children), psychologically it is easier for them to project the same attitude towards nature. For guys taking care of themselves is only regarded acceptable if it's related to sport (which is strongly associated with consuming animal products), otherwise self-care is regarded as being sybaritic/inactive, so it is unlikely that men will pay even more attention to the environment than they do to themselves. Also, zero waste lifestyle is often perceived as a hobby and something guys do not have time for (I'm speaking as a Russian, where gender stereotypes are pretty enduring). Men are expected to be concerned about other, more "traditional" and "pragmatic" issues e.g. buying a car/useful gadgets or getting a job promotion (preferably, a highly paid one) and sadly NONE of those is likely to be sustainable. Tbh I'm pessimistic about guys getting involved in a sustainable lifestyle in the foreseeable future as it's not associated with profit and utilitarianism at this point.

Very thought-provoking GitteMary. I have found that this is also an age issue. I am 64 and people think sustainability is an issue for young people!

Hey, I am a newer follow of your work, but I find this topic super interesting, especially because I was a sociology major in college. I definitely find it to be true that more sustainable products are marketed to me than my partner and also that being vegetarian and not eating meat is seem to be a negative for men more than women.

In the US, there's been a big move towards homesteading and living more sustainably. A big part of it seems to be women, who want to make changes in their lives: to work differently outside of corporate america, to eat and feed family homegrown healthier food, to use less stuff and care more about experiences than things. A strange meme has developed from this, where the "men" say smtg like if you think your wife's expensive, wait until she discovers chickens, or gardens, or plants... and it still reeks of consumerism and implies OVER-consumption. As if they're saying that women can't help themselves but to buy too much of anything, even when that's blatantly not true in that instance.

Wow, I didn’t even think to look at it from this lens until you spoke of it! Idk how we’re going to get the guys onboard, but they better come around soon 😬

so much of the individual actions we can take for the environment are related to the domestic labour typically done by women. food shopping, cooking, laundry, interior design, clothing, child related items, healthy ingredients etc. the marketing goes hard to attract women looking for solutions. meanwhile men see nothing relevant for them. I'm speaking in stereotypes of course but to me it makes perfect sense that women do "care work" daily and extend that to the environment as well.

Yep, that eco gender gap is everywhere!! I also see it in my field as a naturopath (natural health), the vast majority of my clients are women. Taking care of one's health is very much intertwined with ecology principles : food quality, water purity, less plastic, etc. There's no resolution on sight if people keep equating men as needing to be "tough" and any type of care as being "weak"...

Agree with everything in this video. I've had male roommates and I always did more (often all) of the household chores while they didn't. To be fair, I also cooked more while they frequently ate takeout, so it made sense for me to clean the kitchen more frequently, but contribution to other parts of the house would have been nice. I also notice that men scrutinize women's spending habits more than the other way around. I've lost count of the times men who made higher salaries than me criticized me for my "exorbitant" spending on yoga classes and moisturizer while they ate steaks, collected the latest tech gadgets, and bought video games. Men spend too, and sometimes more, but it's just not scrutinized as much. And at least in my field, men still earn a higher average salary than women, so they CAN spend more. (FTR, I follow a lot of the zero waste habits promoted in this channel, including eating plant-based.) P.S. In the U.S., there is a special brand of masculinity in the form of white American "PATRIOTIC" masculinity that is bizarrely obsessed with stupidly giant pick-up trucks and BBQ, and any lifestyle that excludes these things is anti-American *eyeroll*

Women(cis) are an oppressed class. And as an oppressed class, they’re more likely to be liberal and less likely to be egoistic and self centred. As opposed to men(cis) which benefit from male supremacy and as part of a group which sits on top, you’re less likely to care about anything other then yourself. Women are also less inclined to be queerphobic, racist and are more inclined to be open minded. And unfortunately, environmental activism is still mostly driven by liberal minded people.

THANK YOU for talking about this! I hate that its so stigmatized by men as a feminine thing. It is so upsetting

this was so funny in a sad way. Maybe 'cos I'm part of the queer community I've never cared about this. I am a more feminine guy, sure, but my own health (what I eat) and the environment are priorities, unlike other peoples opinions. Now having said that, I do try to emphatise with the guys working in "manly men" jobs etc.the pressure to conform to stereotypical binary gender roles is completely different than it's for someone like me; an introvert who always was one of the artsy weird "hippie" kids. It shouldn't be, but it is, and so I try to influence them in a positive way, mainly just by being who I am, but also sometimes gently challenging them. I mean, you do need silk gloves when handling fragile masculinity, but it's such a joy when you see a guy blossom after they give up the toxic norms and finally gather the courage to be themselves. But yeah, most of the other guys I know who care are queer. And I gotta say, girls inherently don't care any more than guys, it's just the culture we live in. Also some men who care you just won't recognise because they don't fit the "aesthetic" but they do care and do a lot for the environment. Not to mention the old people still living without the modern luxuries, many who probably can't be reached by questionaries.

I could relate to this the moment I saw the title. I recently moved in with my partner and I am way more willing to purchase second hand/wait a bit longer to find exactly what I’m looking for/need while he very much just want to buy the first and best/newest/most convenient. Now, I understand that newer technology also tend to be more environmental friendly so it’s not necessarily about that, but for example if I needed a new set of cups,he’d probably order them online and have them shipped while I would check out the local vintage shop. It kinda drives me nuts because I feel like I constantly have to take care of everything so we don’t end up with a bunch of new shit while perfectly nice things never gets sold and go to the landfill. We also have a local zero waste shop where you can bring your own containers and stuff and I ALWAYS have to be the one to go. If I ask him to go he REFUSES to bring containers which defeats the whole purpose. I love him but it drives me crazy sometimes.

I thought alot about this idea during your video and I thought holy shit. that makes alot of sense. women are socialized to be nurturing, caring and put others needs before out own. that's basically what it takes to be a sustainability consumer. along with all your other points of course I think it's a perfect storm of gender norming in action

I haven't really thought about this topic until now, now that you talk about it, I'm realising that most sustainability content that I watch at KZfaq is made by women, and products marketed as sustainable are often in womansection in drugstores. There aren't much advertisements that come to my mind that are targeted to women, that would make sense for men (period products, underwear, bras) so I would be really interested to see some ads you've seen :) Also I find this topic and really interesting in general, and would be glad to get to know more about it through your videos! :) And since we reached the 1,5 °C goal warming this summer - at least that is what I've read on Linked-in today - it is an even more important topic, since men are still overrepresented in the positions that can acchieve real change in a bigger scale! 😅

Since a young age, I felt guilt from the amount of waste created from single use menstrual products. Or even daily pantyliners. Thank goodness for the reusable alternatives that have come into the market over the last few years! But I often think back to how I felt motivated to find more environmentally friendly alternatives to period products because of the amount of waste I was creating. Perhaps this is another factor into how/why females are more proactive / tempted into buying sustainable alternatives? Thoughts?

I'm so lucky, growing up in a house where both my parents were (and still are) very environmentally conscious.

I have the same conundrum with my husband, but it seems to come down to convenience and comfort for him. It’s extra effort to do zero waste things and the bamboo TP isn’t cushy enough for his royal heiney. I’m curious as to what your take is on what we can do to get more men involved in zero waste. For me, growing up, my understanding today of zero waste was shaped by Christian tradition, with a view of humans as custodians of the planet and my parents’ upbringing on farms and as children of immigrants and of parents who lived through the Great Depression. A lot of the “zero waste“ things they did were cost-saving measures or old practices that their parents brought over from the old country that I learned. A lot of what I do is returning to the old ways.

video idea: would you like to make a video about the Germany ticket (the 49 euro ticket), a little about how it works, are there more people who have started using the collective traffic, and should other countries acquire something similar, etc.

Unfortunately I’ve noticed these issues a lot in my personal life, but loved the video and would love more on this topic!

Please, talk more about this!

Thanks for this message, this video was such an epiphany for me! I'd always instinctively felt the difference between men and women when it comes to sustainability, but you did an amazing job of rationalizing and explaining it!

Wow, thank you for this video, you presented a lot of great points and it is quite disturbing. Appreciate your content, especially this video with research and heavier topic discussed!

Genuinely gasped reading title and thumbnail Ahhhh so realll

Thank you for talking about this. 👏 It’s a topic that can easily be expanded upon, and I’d love to see it! 💯❤

Great video! Touches on things in Sustainably Vegan's video which is great. I'm finding the eco-gender gap very interesting especially when you consider eco-feminism being associated with women when we need everybody involved :)

I think in the mainstream it's slightly more common for women to develop some amount of their identity around being eco-conscious, & so it becomes more common for their to be a mixture of subtle competition & social incentives in groups of women to demonstrate certain kinds of sustainable behaviours. There's also the socialized feminine pressure to appear disciplined in diet (which can show up as veganism, local diet, etc) & standards of motherhood (we talk a lot about crunchy moms & we don't really have an equivalent term for dads). But then you get subcultures (like hippies) where there's as much if not more social competition between men (& across genders) to be seen as eco-conscious. But in my experience the more masculinized version leans more towards the ascetic. Like it's very divorced dad living in an off-grid cabin. Which definitely holds some status & admiration within these social circles, but isn't super marketable or an appealing lifestyle for most people.

Such interesting content on your channel lately!!

Another interesting video with sources, thank you!!!

One of my fav topics

So true!!

YES PLSSS talk about how we get the guys on board 😭

Omg thank you for talking about this it drives me crazy. Petropatriarchy

I read a study a few years ago that noticed even eco-friendly guys will do something environmentally helpful... but then non-consciously feel the need, after that, to reassert their masculinity by doing something stupidly "toxic masculine." The denigration of the feminine, in order to establish one's masculinity, is a *huge* problem. I don't know how to fix it, but I think it's the first thing we need to dump if we're going to save our planet and ourselves.

Do have a look at the concept of 'ecofemininity', it really helped me understand the root cause for femininity and the environment being tied together (also Carol Adams' book 'The Sexual Politics of Meat' for why meat is masculinised)

I've experienced this in a very specific example: My boyfriend (who is also very focused on sustainability) and I were looking to buy deodorants in a supermarket. I was naturally looking at the different female options that looked most eco friendly and vegan meanwhile my partner was just struggling to find anything with the slightest hint of "Ethical" at the men's section! It was really just all black 😱 I continued to browse the women's section and found one a scoop up deo with a green lid that looked promising. To my surprise it actually said "MEN" on the label! I'm guessing that purely because of the "sustainable look" the staff had placed it in the women's section of deodorants. I was so frustrated that I rearranged the shelves so it would fit in the men's area! 😅 #supermarketactivism ? This strange experience opened my eyes to this topic that I hadn't really thought of before - thanks for sharing your thoughts on this!

Very interesting topic! Would love to see some examples of different adverts. One of the reasons why I chose my husband, was because he cares about the planet (he works for a wildlife charity). It seemed sadly very rare to find this quality, at least in the people I've met

I am a man that cares about the planet who feels like the only person who cares in my area. It is true that I find many more KZfaq videos made by women. Being a man watching videos that include menstrual cups can be a little daunting, but I understand it.

I have never thought about it this way. My husband refuses to use a totebag and instead reuses one of the sturdy plasticbags from a grocery store. And he was a vegan for 7 years, and he used to be a bodybuilder. We heard so many strange comments: well he can't have too much estrogen with these muscles, how can such a tough looking guy be such a softie...

I’m in the States and I’m currently writing a paper on eco gender gap and I argue that a solution to being men into the conversation is to have our National Football League adopt a version of Pledgeball like you have in the UK! Have you heard of it? Do you know any men Who participate?

Well I am pleased to be working like a woman then :). Personally I feel that this may be due to the fact that in this world, profits unfortunately come before the environment. For example, I am a keen angler. I take out all exotic alien invader fish that I catch, not because I am inherently bloodthirsty or cruel but because these fish, which were introduced into areas of the world by sport anglers, have a disastrous effect on the ecosystems where they have become established. But just try to get other fishermen to help nature out by taking their prized sporting fishes out. I have been told that the entire fishing industry would collapse if all of the aliens species were removed, as well as being told in no uncertain terms what to go and do to myself for daring to suggest this (logical and vitally necessary) course of action. A microcosmic observation, however the same can be said of many industries, including the weapons industry and the fossil fuel and fast food industries, which are dominated by men who quite frankly don't give a sh.. about nature so long as they can turn over what makes them happy. But Mother Earth can only take so much abuse before her self regulating system takes over. This may end up being our undoing - let's try to encourage more men and women to make the right choices and ensure the future of this current Age of Civilization.

As far as I know, Tesla's the only company who have successfully advertised a environmentally friendly (ish) product for men.

First comment❤ sending love from uruguay

It seems like a toxic masculinity is one of the issues that is fueling the issue with climate change. I think it a good idea to normalize taking care of our environment allowing men to feel comfortable to do that. My grandfather who is completely on the right side, is starting to make changes for the environment.

Kan du ikke lave en fordrags tour? Og spørger Kulturmødet om du kan komme at holde foredrag til næste år?

Sending love from Arizona, USA 😘❤❤❤

Yes yes yes!

My experience with the hardcore crowd of environmentalists is that it's very mixed gender for men/women/non-binary. I suppose that in the non-activist groups it's a bit more normal to see women doing things like having reusable cups and bags than men, but it's definitely not the big gap that you seem to be experiencing

I am a man who reduces waste as much as possible, though I’m more anti-plastic than pro sustainability per se. I am concerned that almost all zero waste resources are clearly made by and for women. Men may do the same things but it will often be for vastly different reasons. We are not as interested in certain lines of reasoning or justification. There’s a big market gap for male-focused zero waste content… though I’m sure people would find it problematic for many of the usual reasons. I am almost completely sure that you would consider my reasons for being zero waste to be “toxic masculinity”.

It's not a secret, that NGOs tend to give microloans to women rather than men, because of a more long-term/general society mindset.

❤

Here is how we convince them to bring their own canvas shopping bags. Only sissy men let someone else bag their groceries in flimsy plastic. Real men bring their own heavy-duty duck canvas bags and bag their own groceries.

I'm glad to see this topic being looked into more. OCC also has a really good video on the topic: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/msqpgsho29OZgmQ.html

Carrying a tote bag is gay :))) How ridiculous. I carry a tote bag every day and I don't give any attetion to what others say. And the habit to carry a tote bag I inherited from my father and no one said anything back then. But today, sometimes I meet people that looks strange to me when they that I carry a tote bag.

I'm a (trans) guy and I have discovered that being eco-friendly, feminist, sustainability-oriented etc etc makes me super sexy in the eyes of women. Playing "who is the most masculine" is a men with men activity. THAT is the gayest thing ever in the history of all that is gay. And it's the heterosexual men who plays this game. It makes me puzzled. Seriously, if you want ladies to rush towards you and be friendly with you, learn to knit, use a tote bag, respect boundaries and consent, recycle, etc.

Don't jugde me, but i think its because Mother Earth is a woman❤

Couple points - yes zero waste is feminine, it became an instagrammable/pinterest aesthetic which is very feminine. Consumerism is feminine - guys don't buy as many clothes and if anything are mocked for bare apartments and using bar soap for everything. Building things is cool for guys - it's guys building nuclear, wind, solar, tidal, EV companies, guys doing CDR, the allam cycle gas turbine. I mean Tesla fan*BOYS* are ridiculed for basically all being tech bros wayy into EV hype. All the train/High Speed Rail stuff I see on twitter is also being done by guys. Just different mindsets.

A lot of women don't care about the environment. A lot of men do. It's nowhere near as rigid as you say it is.