When Women Talk about the Environment: MPs’ Characteristics and Time Trends in Italian Legislative Speeches (1948-2020)

In recent decades, environmental concerns have become increasingly prominent within legislative bodies. Our study illuminates this trend by examining the link between socio-demographic and ideological characteristics of legislators and their engagement with environmental issues in the Italian Chamber of Deputies from 1948 to 2020. Utilizing computational text-analytic techniques, we found that gender significantly influences environmental priorities. Female legislators consistently prioritize environmental concerns across party lines, ages, professions, and electoral districts. Additionally, the growing presence of women in parliament also encourages more environmental interest among male legislators. Employing Structural Topic Models, we analysed changes in environmental discourse across three distinct periods: 1948-1973, 1974-1999, and 2000-2020. Our findings indicate that while women tend to focus on ecological devastation and well-being, men predominantly address the management and economic aspects of environmental resources.