“Injustices happen, because very few people make decisions for the majority”, according to professor Jennie C. Stephens. During the second event of the #JustSustainabilityTransition event series, Professor Stephens discussed insights from her book “Diversifying Power: Why we need antiracist, feminist leadership on climate and energy”, in which she elaborates on her view of power structures in our society. In this interview, she elaborates on unanswered questions asked during the webinar.
Your book argues that we need to change who is in power in order to be able to transform the energy system. So how can we shift current power structures?
To shift current power structures, we need a different kind of leadership. To confront current crises, in domains such as climate, economy and health, we need diversity among decision-makers so different things are prioritized. It is important to celebrate the wins of new leaders that make change. Often, in the United States (but not only!), those leaders get attacked or threatened. Hence, we need to be vigilant to support those leaders who do not fit the conventional mold. Also, we need to convince existing leadership to recognize the value of shifting power structures. However, there is often resistance to linking the problems in patriarchal leadership. By denying that there are problems, leaders deny that the problems are linked and that we need change.
Even though the new US administration is still in its early days, there has been more commitment to diversity in the initial appointments of representatives, which is more demonstrative of what the country looks like. It gives a lot of people hope and inspiration, but that is only the first step. For a systemic transformation to happen, we need to support new leaders, continue to hold the government accountable, and push for policies that are more integrated.
What are the existing tensions between inclusive leadership and patriarchal leadership? And how can we break out from patriarchal and polarized leadership?
My book is an open invitation for everyone to embrace a different kind of leadership which goes beyond the dichotomy of men versus women or white people versus people of color. This inclusive leadership is acknowledging the power dynamics and problematic systemic policies and processes giving advantage to some and marginalizing others. Everybody must recognize it, not solely the people who are being disadvantaged. Without this new leadership approach, we cannot be effective in tackling the most pressing societal challenges.
To deal with the tensions between those two types of leadership, my strategy is to convince people with compelling examples of how and why a more inclusive leadership is more effective. This way, people have new perspectives and ideas that they bring in their policy work, community work or political activism.
To what extent is antiracist and feminist leadership also anti-capitalist? How and to what extent can and should we connect issues of social justice to economic class struggle?
I have chosen to prioritize antiracist feminist principles, but in my view, that leads to anti-capitalist principles. By this, I mean investing in people, in communities, distributing resources, resisting the concentration of wealth and power that has resulted from our current capitalist system. So I do not see it as either/or, but as integrated. I think we should connect issues of social justice with economic class struggle. For this reason, the first chapter of my book is about economic injustice and the concentration of wealth and power of the elites, who are resisting transformation because they profit from it.
Does inclusive leadership have to be explicitly antiracist and feminist? Can there be inclusive leadership that is not explicitly anti-racist or feminist?
Antiracist and feminist leadership describes a kind of leadership that is aware of the legacy of exclusion. Those words are also inclusive of other problematic power dynamics, whether it is ableism, oppression on sexual orientation or class. In the United States, gender and race come to the top because they are directly connected to class: this is all integrated. Antiracist feminist leadership does not mean to call out gender and race over other problematic power structures that cause all kinds of disparities. Many people do not identify as antiracist or feminist, so in that sense, I recognize that those terms can exclude some people. However, my invitation is for everyone to consider themselves anti-racist and feminist, even people who may not be comfortable with those words.
In my opinion, there are many ways to describe inclusive participatory leadership that better represents people and communities. One approach could be: a leadership that comprehends problematic power dynamics that give privileges to some and marginalizes, oppresses or disadvantages others.
In your book, you mention Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Squad as antiracist and feminist leaders. Can you tell something about them and why they inspire you?
[Note from editors for non-US readers: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a Congress Representative of the 14th district of New York, one of the first female members of the Democratic Socialists to serve in Congress. The “squad” is a group of 4 women elected in the 2018 House of Representatives elections, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York, Ilhan Omar in Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley in Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib in Michigan, later joined in 2020 by Jamaal Bowman in New York and Cori Bush in Missouri, who strive for progressive, anti-racist and socially just political action in the United States].
I am inspired and impressed by these women who have put themselves forward and questioned processes that other leaders haven’t been questioning. The book raises a few examples of these bold, creative leaders who are making a difference by connecting these issues in a transformative way. Hopefully, Diversifying Power and these conversations I am having with different audiences after writing this book, are inspiring people and opening up new ideas for people.
Many people ask “What do all these leaders have in common?”. The individuals I mention in the book all have their own story. There is no specific characteristic other than courage, creativity and resourcefulness in the sense of trying to have an impact. I think it is about being brave enough to call out people and hold them accountable.
How to diffuse and upscale small initiatives to achieve systemic change?
There is no magic formula: depending on the initiative, there are a lot of mechanisms to achieve systemic change. The times of disruption in which we live now, offer more opportunities for scaling things up in a creative way, by connecting with other initiatives, such as COVID recovery initiatives. We should think in terms of how we integrate climate issues and investments needed into these other policies and initiatives. When we are talking about large transformations, it has to be unplanned and opportunistic because it’s iterative. The only way to achieve systemic change is to have small initiatives that are upscaled. In addition, I think that we need to hear from all voices including those whose voices are generally not prioritized. We have to integrate those voices into decision-making in better ways.
What are specific mechanisms to empower inclusive leadership on energy justice? How can citizens get involved in a just energy transition?
There are so many mechanisms and there is no magic bullet: from simple actions in your close circle and in your community, to branching out and getting involved nationally and internationally in new ways. That is what the last chapter of my book is really about: trying to get people to think about how individuals can engage with collective action for transformation
There are many different ways for people to get involved, such as advocating for getting involved in local energy projects and engaging politically. I believe that energy justice issues are not just about climate: it is about economic justice and the fact that low-income households allocate a larger share of their income toward energy. This is what we designate as energy poverty in Europe, while in the United States, we talk about energy justice and energy burden. We can all, in our community and organizations, be advocating for changes that reduce the energy burden, provide more investments and resources for lower income households and families. This transition is not only about energy: it is related to jobs, housing, food, health and more.
Broadening the conversations and the engagement strategies, is the way to engage more individuals. Obviously energy and climate are critical, but they are not what many people are most worried about. To effectively involve citizens, one must engage with people on their main concerns and connect it to energy in ways that make sense for them, rather than tackling it with a specific lens.
Injustices happen, because very few people make decisions for the majority. Some of the leaders of the organizations mentioned in the book are working with community groups and marginalized communities and they are helping them understand that there are ways to resist what is happening, like the fossil fuel infrastructure and the shut off of electricity. So there is a need for advocacy, self-advocacy and empowerment of people who have been marginalized for so long.
About
Prof. Jennie C. Stephens is the Director of the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs and the Dean’s Professor of Sustainability Science & Policy at Northeastern University. She is also the Director for Strategic Research Collaborations at Northeastern University’s Global Resilience Institute.
