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Expanding the green economy

A crystallizing moment came at the end of a 13-hour long business day for the team which launched the "Green Jobs" report, written by the ILR School's Global Labor Institute.

An MBA student at the Columbia Business School, asked during a panel discussion in New York City, "What can we do as individuals to move this trend forward?"

Buy and use with a green economy in mind, he was told.

But, a unified, international framework for climate change policy is what it will take to boost the greening trend, according to people such as Michael Renner.  He is a senior researcher at the Worldwatch Institute, which produced the report written by Jill Kubit and Sean Sweeney of Cornell’s Global Labor Institute.

Renner said, "It ultimately has to be a global deal … the big question is what will be the big international agreement?"

The Green Jobs report, nine months in the making, is the world's first comprehensive data base of the green economy.  It was unveiled at the United Nations in New York City on Sept. 24.  It is aimed at helping policymakers prepare for the 2009 United Nations' climate change conference in Copenhagen

As the report was presented at union, academic and other forums during the past two weeks, Kubit, Sweeney and others have noted that the level of investment required to generate mass-level green jobs has not yet materialized.

Many billions of dollars, Kubit said, are needed to drive investment in green buildings, public transit systems and clean energy.

The United Nations Environment Programme commissioned and funded the Green Jobs report as part of its Green Jobs Initiative with the International Labour Organization and international worker and employer organizations. 

Juan Somavia, director-general of the International Labour Organization said, building a green economy is "essentially … about leadership … partnering in the political world … (it) requires a multi-state consciousness."

The BBC, Reuters, the International Herald Tribune and others carried news of a key report finding -- millions of jobs will be created by the green economy.

Some of them will be dirty, dangerous jobs, according to the United Nations.

The Columbia students were eager to know if and how they could fit professionally into the green jobs economy. 

There is demand in the green economy for sophisticated business planning skills and acumen, said panelist Peter Poschen, senior policy specialist for the International Labour Organization.

Audience member Nora Simpson, vice president of RWD Executive Search in Manhattan, echoed his input.  "They are absolutely desperate for strategic planners," she said, referring to biofuels, wind energy and other green industries.

Members of the international development community, researchers and others were debriefed at a Carnegie Council Policy Dialogue meeting in New York City this week by members of the Green Jobs report team, including Kubit, assistant director of the Global Labor Institute, and Sweeney, institute director.

The report is available for download at www.unep.org/civil_society/Publications/index.asp.  Partners in its creation include:

  • Worldwatch Institute, an independent research organization, based in Washington, D.C., www.worldwatch.org
  • United Nations Environment Programme, coordinates international environmental action, based in Nairobi, www.unep.org
  • International Labour Organization, works with governments, employers and workers to promote decent work throughout the world, based in Geneva, www.ilo.org
  • International Trade Union Confederation, world's largest trade union federation, based in Brussels, www.ituc-csi.org
  • International Organisation of Employers, represents employer organizations from 139 countries in the labor and social policy fields, based in Geneva, http://ioe-emp.org

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