Context
Climate-compatible growth cannot succeed without inclusive infrastructure that addresses the unique needs and vulnerabilities of marginalised groups.
A GESI Strategy (right) has been created to ensure that the aims of CCG are achieved through more equitable infrastructure and decision-making. It serves to guide CCG internally, and to communicate our objects to our partners, with a clear framework and set of objectives. Separate, context-specific strategies are being created to guide how we can best achieve these aims with our partner countries.
This strategy is complemented by a GESI Unit to oversee the overall progress of CCG, and a GESI Taskforce to implement the activities and serve as a point of contact for the programme.
Vision Statement:
CCG will lead pioneering change in climate-compatible growth by embedding Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) at the heart of our initiatives, ensuring that every investment in energy systems and transport systems is inclusive and equitable, and sets a global standard for best practices in GESI integration.
Through workshops, projects, research, and country strategies, CCG aims to be GESI-responsive and transformative at each stage of the programme. This page provides updates of some of the work done across CCG to promote the needs of marginalised communities in the context of energy and transport infrastructure.
COuntry GESI REPORTS
For Ghana, Kenya, India, Lao PDR, Vietnam, Zambia
CCG works across very different country contexts and, while developing our GESI Strategy, it became clear that we needed a clearer picture of the specific GESI landscape in each country: which groups are most likely to face exclusion, the barriers they encounter in energy and transport, and how context (geography, norms, institutions) shapes risks and opportunities. At the end of Phase 2, we have now completed reports for each of our six partner countries, short forms of which are available below.
The reports were commissioned by the GESI Unit, to guide how we engage with partner countries in ways that are culturally appropriate: demand-led, locally-anchored, and guided by a do-no-harm approach. The GESI Unit partnered with in-country consultants to bring strong local expertise to the reports and help expand CCG’s network of practitioners and researchers working on GESI, energy, and transport across our partner countries. Each report draws on desk-based policy and literature review and consultations (key informant interviews, focus group discussions) with a range of stakeholders relevant to energy, transport, and inclusion.
The reports will be used as a shared baseline to support programme planning and partner engagement, including:
- Grounding discussions on inclusive energy and transport in country realities
- Informing stakeholder engagement and consultation approaches
- Helping teams identify research priorities (e.g., where data gaps constrain inclusive planning)
- Supporting consistent, context-aware messaging when engaging government and sector partners
We are delighted with the support we have received from our colleagues in each country:
Achievements
Aid for Community-led Energy
Involvement in UK Government Parliamentary Committee
CCG researchers submitted written evidence to UK Parliament International Development Committee, which has now been published for use in the inquiry.
Alycia Leonard (pictured), provided oral evidence on the engagement of vulnerable groups in aid-funded energy projects.
Topics addressed included the impacts of energy and transport systems on different marginalised groups. This work on to be cited as part of the International Development Committee’s Empowering Development: Energy Access for Communities Report.
Watch the Session on Parliament TV.
Past Events
30 March 2026 | Location: Oxford
Second ANNUAL GESI Workshop
Inclusive infrastructure under pressure: The business case for GESI
Researchers, policymakers, and practitioners gathered in Oxford to explore how gender equality and social inclusion can be better integrated into infrastructure and development projects. How can the business case for GESI be strengthened and how can we move from commitments to implementation? Real-world examples of inclusive approaches were presented, before breakout sessions examined the business case audience, pitches, and gaps.
The event was jointly organised by the GESI unit of CCG and the Sustainable, Resilient, and Inclusive Infrastructure Team of UNOPS. Read the blog by one of the event coordinators, Marissa Bergman, to find out more.
Read the full workshop report here.
26 March 2025 | Location: Oxford
First Annual GESI workshop
Implementing GESI in Energy and Transport Infrastructure Workshop
Researchers, policymakers, and practitioners gathered in Oxford to explore how gender equality and social inclusion can be better integrated into infrastructure and development projects. How can the business case for GESI be strengthened and how can we move from commitments to implementation? Real-world examples of inclusive approaches were presented, before breakout sessions examined the business case audience, pitches, and gaps.
The event was jointly organised by the GESI unit of CCG and the Sustainable, Resilient, and Inclusive Infrastructure Team of UNOPS. Read the blog by one of the event coordinators, Marissa Bergman, to find out more.
This workshop gathered stakeholders to explore how gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) can be more effectively integrated into energy and transport systems modelling, design, and delivery. Participants from research, policy, private and philanthropic finance, and development, engaged in a mix of panel discussions, presentations, and breakout sessions designed to identify key barriers, explore emerging frameworks, and propose practical solutions.
The event was attended by representatives from BII, Climate Parliament, ENERGIA, FCDO, GIZ, the Global Disability Innovation Hub, the Global Alliance for People and Planet, Green Grids Initiative, the Green Cities and Infrastructure Programme, IFC, International Transport Workers’ Federation, MECS, ODI, PIDG, Redwheel, SEforALL, Shell Foundation, UNOPS, World Bank/ESMAP, and the Universities of Oxford, Loughborough, and University College London.
Read the full report from the workshop here.
13 March 2025 | Location: Nairobi, Kenya
Disability in Energy Transition Workshop
Organised and led by Dr Gerald Arhin, this workshop aimed to initiate a pan-African dialogue on improving disability sensitivity and advocacy within low-carbon energy planning. In doing so the opportunities and challenges for Persons with Disabilities can be better understood.
The event was co-organised by CCG, Loughborough University and the Strathmore Energy Research Centre and had over 20 participants from Zambia, Malawi, Ghana, and Kenya. The audio commentary on this event is available through a series of videos posted on our YouTube channel here.
Publications
February 2026: Marissa Bergman, Stephanie Hirmer, Julia Tomei, Beatrice Stockport, Gerald Arhin
December 2025: Janina Fuchs, Lucille Akelo Onyango, Stephanie Hirmer, Julia Tomei
September 2025: Marissa Bergman, Julia Tomei, Stephanie Hirmer, Beatrice Stockport, Fatima Afifah, James Dixon, Leonhard Hofbauer, Alycia Leonard, Pietro Lubello, Elena Pierard Manzano, Brunilde Verrier, Margaux Daly, Neve Fields, Francesco Gardumi, Steve Pye, Mourice Kausya, Kirsty Mackinlay, Kevin Nayema, Elsie Onsongo, Divya Subash Kumar
September 2025: Neve Fields, Alycia Leonard, Martin Mutembei, Anne Nganga, Leigh Martindale, Marissa Bergman, Mwansa Kaoma, Mark Howells, Ed Brown
April 2025: Alycia Leonard, Kuthea Nguti, Micaela Flores Lanza, Stephanie Hirmer
September 2024: Tonny Kukeera, Alycia Leonard, Pu Yang, Stephanie Hirmer
August 2022: Lucille Onyango, Stephanie Hirmer, Julia Tomei
March 2022: Stephanie Hirmer, Antonella Mazzone, Alycia Leonard, Costanza Conforti
Feb 2022: Stephanie Hirmer, Alycia Leonard, Sofia Conforti, Costanza Conforti
Feb 2022: Stephanie Hirmer, Alycia Leonard, Sofia Conforti, Costanza Conforti
GESI Unit
Prof. Stephanie Hirmer
Research Chair + Equity and Governance Community Co-Lead
University of Oxford
