Characterizing the energy use of disabled people in the European Union towards inclusion in the energy transition

Abstract

Designing environmental policy to take account of social difference is increasingly recognized as essential to address both effectiveness and justice concerns. So far there is limited research on the experiences of disabled people in the environmental literature, amounting to a failure to recognize this substantial constituency. Here we compare disabled households’ embodied energy use, income, risk of poverty and energy poverty, and other socio-demographics with other households in the European Union. We find that households including an economically inactive disabled person earn less and consume 10% less energy than other households, and are more likely to experience energy poverty. Disabled households have lower consumption than other households in most categories, with the exception of basic consumption such as food, energy at home (gas and electricity), water and waste services: in effect they have less—and sometimes inadequate—access to resources. We conclude that more attention should be paid to disabled households needs to ensure a just energy transition.