Green Jobs: Towards Sustainable Work in a Low-Carbon World

Worldwatch Institute

Green Jobs: Towards Sustainable Work in a Low-Carbon World

Abstract

[Excerpt] The latest assessment report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the widely noted Stern report on The Economics of Climate Change have lent new urgency to countering the challenge of global warming—a calamitous development in its own right and a phenomenon that further aggravates existing environmental challenges. There is now a virtual avalanche of reports by international agencies, governments, business, labor unions, environmental groups, and consultancies on the technical and economic implications of climate change as well as the consequences of mitigation and adaptation strategies. Many declaim a future of green jobs—but few present specifics. This is no accident. There are still huge gaps in our knowledge and available data, especially as they pertain to the developing world. The present report assembles evidence—quantitative and conceptual—for currently existing green jobs in sectors such as renewable energy, energy efficiency in buildings and vehicles, sustainable transportation, and organic agriculture, and presents various estimates for future green employment. (A future version will provide expanded coverage in additional parts of the economy.)

Date Issued

2007-12-21

Keywords

Climate change; environment; green practices; green jobs; renewable energy; sustainable transportation; energy efficiency; green employment

Types

article