She Thinks Green: Understanding Chinese Women’s Perception of Green Living

Women at the Heart of Green Living

Chinese women, historically associated with thrift, care, and family stewardship, are now reinterpreting these traditional values through a modern ecological lens. They are not only participants in the country’s sustainability journey but also key influencers shaping how “green living” is understood and practiced at home and in society.

During fieldwork in Shenzhen, China, as part of our project’s work on sharing and sharing economies, a particular involvement of women in activities advancing sustainable practices and “green living” became apparent which we chose to investigate further. Therefore, two focus group interviews were organized targeting female participants, with the aim of giving a greater voice to ordinary women in China and include their perspectives. One focus group was held in Nanyuan Village, where participants were selected from women who engage in vegetable and flower cultivation in the village’s rooftop gardens. The other focus group was conducted in Meilin Village, involving women who were invited to share their daily environmental protection activities and thoughts on environmental ideas and concepts. Each group consisted of 6 female participants aged from 25-50. It is worth noting that urban villages, as a unique product of Shenzhen’s reform and opening-up drive, are a special spatial and social phenomenon formed in the process of the city’s rapid urbanization. They are former rural settlements that became engulfed by rapid urban expansion. These neighborhoods retain collective land ownership under village committees (or „shareholding cooperatives “) but are physically and economically integrated into the city.

Property and Green Living: Spatial Practice of Women’s Environmental Awareness

Property, both in the form of private residential space and collective communal property, serves as a core carrier for Chinese women’s practice of green living. Their perception of property rights and space use deeply shapes their green behavior. In the urban villages of Shenzhen, the unique property attribute of rooftop space—belonging to the collective community yet usable by individual households—has become a key starting point for women to carry out green practices. The female participants in Nanyuan Village pointed out that the rooftop, as a shared but operable property space of the village, is not only a neglected idle area but also a “green blank slate” that they can transform through collective efforts. They have obtained the right to use the rooftop property with the approval of the village committee, and through joint planning and maintenance, they have turned this public-private mixed property space into a rooftop garden with ecological and social value.

For women living in Meilin Village, private residential property is the main field for their green living practice. They carry out energy conservation, waste classification, and small-scale planting in their own houses, and at the same time, they actively promote the sharing of green property management experience in the community owners’ groups, such as advocating the property company to set up special hazardous waste recycling points and build community green plant sharing areas. It is worth noting that women’s attention to property space is not only limited to the use of the space itself but also includes the environmental responsibility attached to the property. They believe that owning or using a property means taking on the obligation of protecting the ecological environment of the space, whether it is a private house or a collective community property. This connection between property and environmental responsibility makes women become important promoters of green property management and ecological space construction in the community.

Women’s role in green living

Women play a decisive and leading role in promoting green practices within the household. They set the rules for waste sorting, monitor family members’ behaviour, and teach their children how to sort waste correctly. Several women emphasized that environmental protection is “more important for the next generation,” arguing that awareness must be cultivated from primary school age—or even earlier.

In the rooftop garden project, participants often act as initiators and organizers, taking the lead in setting up the garden and involving children in watering and taking care of the plants. This hands-on approach doesn’t just create greenery—it sparks curiosity about nature among kids. Some mothers shared that their children happily head upstairs on their own to water the plants during their free time.

Meanwhile, husbands tend to enjoy the harvest and the green space but are generally less involved in the practical, day-to-day work of maintaining the garden. For the participants, these gardens have become more than a hobby – they’re a personal “retreat”, a space that helps them relieve stress from work and daily life.

Women’s perception of green living

Beyond their household roles, the interviewed women in Shenzhen generally express highly positive and proactive attitudes toward green living. Many see green practices not only as personal responsibilities but also as a collective duty toward society and future generations. Respondents frequently connected green living with values such as health, community well-being, and long-term sustainability.

These core value alignments further crystallized into distinct, overarching thematic insights that emerged from a systematic interpretation and analysis of all focus group interview data, and these key themes are detailed and unpacked in the sections that follow to elaborate on the nature of Chinese women’s perception of green living. The group discussions revealed a number of common themes among the women with regards to adopting a greener, more sustainable lifestyle:

Green living as identity and empowerment: In both interviews, green living is tied to self-identity and empowerment. The interviewed women view environmentally friendly behaviour. such as waste sorting, community gardening, reducing plastic use, or choosing public transportation, as a way to make meaningful contributions to their families and their neighbourhoods, especially when participating in shared gardening or environmental education activities. Many perceive green living as a responsibility that extends beyond individual actions. They associate environmental consciousness with caring for the family and the community. Cultural norms play a role here: as household managers and caregivers, women often lead recycling, food waste sorting, and energy-saving efforts at home. For them, green living isn’t just about protecting the planet - it’s about creating a healthy environment for their children and elderly relatives.

Knowledge vs. practice: The interviewed women’s perception of green living is influenced by both knowledge and accessibility. Many participants express awareness of the environmental impact of plastics, disposable items, and chemical pollutants. However, knowledge does not always translate into consistent green behaviour. For instance, they understand that batteries, electronics, and other hazardous waste should be handled carefully, while the uncertainty about proper disposal channels can cause confusion and frustration. Similarly, some women report challenges in convincing family members, particularly husbands, to follow recycling and sorting rules. These barriers reveal that perception is not merely cognitive awareness but also involves navigating social and infrastructural limitations.

Health and lifestyle connections: Women’s perception of sustainability often integrates health and lifestyle considerations. Many of the women I spoke with equate green practices with healthier diets, less chemical exposure, and a cleaner living environment. For example, buying organic or locally produced food has been seen as part of a green lifestyle, as it reduces household waste and supports eco-friendly products.

The role of community and social media: Shenzhen women’s perception of green is shaped by community policy promotion and social media (Tiktok etc.). During the interview, participants often discussed green practices in social circles, share tips, and encourage each other to adopt sustainable habits. This communal dimension highlights that perception is not static; it evolves through interaction, observation, and social validation.

Looking Ahead: A Greener, More Inclusive Future

Chinese women’s perception of green living reflects a fascinating intersection of tradition, modernity, and transformation. From ancestral values of thrift and balance to digital-age sustainability trends, women have continuously reinterpreted what it means to live responsibly. They are caregivers, consumers, and changemakers—connecting family, community, and planet.

From the interviews conducted within the research project, women emerge as essential in the green transition at the micro level because of their social role and the idea of care that comes with it, because they care for their families and their living community. This inherent care, rooted in traditional family stewardship and redefined by modern ecological awareness, has made Chinese women the most steadfast practitioners and core promoters of green living in daily life and community construction. Whether it is transforming collective rooftop property into ecological gardens in urban villages, or practicing green living and advocating for environmental protection in private residential spaces, their practices bridge the gap between individual life and collective development, and link traditional family values with modern sustainable development concepts. Their understanding and practice of green living are not only a personal choice of lifestyle, but also a social practice that drives the whole family and community to participate in ecological construction.

Yet, their engagement is not without contradictions. Economic barriers, time constraints, and cultural expectations still shape how far green ideals can go in practice. Recognizing these challenges is essential for designing policies and initiatives that empower women as active participants in China’s ecological transition. Future green development policies should take into account the practical needs and difficulties of women in green practice, improve the supporting environmental infrastructure of communities, strengthen the popularization of environmental protection knowledge, and create a social environment that encourages and supports women’s green practices. Only by giving full play to the unique role of women as the link between family and community, and releasing their potential in green development, can we truly realize the popularization of green living, and build a more inclusive, sustainable and people-centered green future for society.