Digitalization and Climate-Smart-Technologies Drive Sustainable Rural Women Entrepreneurship

Abstract

Globalization is reshaping rural economies through digital transformation and increasing environmental pressures, creating both opportunities and challenges for women-led entrepreneurship. In this context, technological innovation has emerged as a key mechanism for promoting sustainability, competitiveness, and inclusion. The objective of this study is to analyze two emerging global trends—namely inclusive digitalization and climate-smart technologies—and their implications for rural women entrepreneurship within a prospective horizon of 2026–2031. The research adopts a qualitative approach with an interpretative and prospective orientation, based on documentary analysis of academic literature and international institutional reports. The findings reveal that inclusive digitalization facilitates market access, enhances business visibility, and improves productivity by enabling rural women entrepreneurs to overcome structural and geographical barriers. At the same time, climate-smart technologies contribute to strengthening resilience and sustainability in rural production systems by optimizing resource use and improving adaptive capacity in the face of climate change. However, the results also indicate that persistent structural inequalities, particularly in terms of gender, access to technology, and digital capabilities, continue to limit the full potential of these innovations. The study concludes that technological innovation plays a multidimensional role in rural development, simultaneously influencing economic performance, environmental sustainability, and social equity. It also highlights the need for inclusive innovation ecosystems and targeted policies to ensure that technological transformation leads to equitable and sustainable outcomes for rural women entrepreneurs.