Imagine a world in which the activities of virtually everyone help transform the global economy, contributes to preserving or restoring the environment. The International Labor Organization defines such activities as green job.
Green jobs have an important role to play in realizing the vision for the future. It is they that have to provide fair wages, social protection, equal opportunities for men and women, that is, to protect the planet, and at the same time provide decent opportunities for all.
Sustainable Development Goal 8 is about “higher levels of productivity, employment and decent work for all” that benefits everyone and is less harmful to the environment.
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) defines green jobs as “positions in agriculture, production, administration and services aimed at substantially maintaining or restoring the quality of the environment”.
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), this type of job: increases the efficient use of energy and raw materials, limits greenhouse gas emissions, minimizes waste and pollution, protects and restores ecosystems, and contributes to adaptation to climate change.
In developing countries, the ILO’s Green Jobs Programme helps communities adopt sustainable work practices. For example, in Zambia, as part of the Programme women have learned to build houses using environmentally friendly technologies, as well as assemble and install solar panels.
Countries around the world are trying to move to a cleaner economy and away from the dependence on energy produced from fossil fuels towards wider use of renewable energy sources. In this regard, the ILO is optimistic about the benefits of a green economy for the labor market.
According to experts, by 2030, 18 million new jobs will be created as a result of the measures necessary to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees.
Jobs that have a direct positive impact on the planet are traditionally linked to renewable energy sources, electric transport, energy efficiency or nature conservation. But right now, as more and more sectors are moving to low-carbon models, every job can turn “green”.