evidence that women are more sensitive to environmental matters. according to oecd research, the most environmentally - aware consumers are women. they are more likely than men to recycle domestic waste, buy organic food and green products, and place greater value on fuel - efficient means of transport. 12 these results are confirmed by other studies. a survey conducted by eurobarometro found that in 2007 the share of women who said they had done something to improve the environment was six percentage points higher than for men ; the international social survey programme ’ s 1993 study of attitudes to the environment found, in the sample of countries surveyed, a large gap between women and men in terms of willingness to pay more for ecofriendly consumer goods, particularly in italy, australia and norway. 13 recent behavioural studies give further support to these results. 14 can this greater willingness to consider the effects of one ’ s actions on the environment be integrated in the transformation process that is “ greening ” our economies? in brief, does the green economy represent an opportunity to capitalize on the strong bond between women and nature? the answer is yes – but only if the necessary policies are implemented to ensure that this opportunity is realizable and we can reap the dual dividends of more sustainable, less discriminatory, economic growth. for this to happen, actions must be taken to increase women ’ s presence in the work force in general and in the green economy in particular. the lisbon agenda indicated the affirmative action that should be taken to prevent discrimination against women in their professional development. among these, those making it easier for women to combine career and family are particularly important. for example, a study of the development of the photovoltaic sector in southern italy underlines the fact that despite very high female employment potential ( among recent architecture graduates, women outnumber men ), the realization of this potential could be blocked by the lack of preschool facilities for young children. 15 other measures relate specifically to the possibilities offered by the new green sectors with the greatest growth potential ( renewable energy, construction techniques, and agricultural biomass ). in these sectors, women represent a very small part of the total work force and they rarely hold the top positions. 16 this is due primarily to cultural factors, which have perpetuated a high level of segregation in these industries. even in traditional energy sectors, female participation is extremely low – 14 per cent according to the latest survey of firms. oecd, survey on household environmental

act as contrarian investors in times of market stress. conclusions these works and debates matter not only in countries where the non - bank financial sector is large. in a globally interconnected financial system, countries with small non - bank financial sectors are often the most vulnerable to these risks. in light of the rapid expansion of asset management activities, the authorities need to be provided with instruments to prevent or mitigate consequent systemic risks, especially for situations where the measures available to asset managers alone would not be sufficient. managers of individual funds have a mandate to act in the best interests of their own investors and may not be in a position to act in the interest of financial stability. supervisors of individual funds may not have the information or means necessary to properly assess different funds ’ contribution to systemic risk. thus, a macroprudential approach to the supervision of non - bank financial intermediation should be developed. different authorities need to work together for a better understanding of the risk of fire sales, spillovers to other financial counterparties and disruptions in credit intermediation, and to design and test potential tools to prevent and mitigate systemic risk. designed and printed by the printing and publishing division of the bank of italy