While delivering his speech on the occasion of World Environment Day, the Prime Minister of our country highlighted the efforts that India should take towards the development of 'green jobs.'
- Green jobs are a class of jobs that directly have a positive impact on the planet, and contribute to the overall environmental welfare.
- They are aimed at reducing the negative environmental impact of economic sectors and furthering the process of creating a low-carbon economy.
- Jobs involving renewable energy, conservation of resources, and ensuring energy-efficient means are categorised under the same.
Green jobs can prove immensely useful to the country with sectors like renewable energy, waste management, green transport, and urban farming all having great potential to employ a trained workforce.
Skill Council for Green Jobs:
- Launched on Oct 1, 2015.
- It was set up to be a not-for-profit, independent, industry-led initiative.
- It was aligned with the National Skill Development Missions.
- Promoted by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
- The aim of the 'green jobs' is to help manufacturers and other service providers in India's 'green business sector'.
The International Labour Organisation, the International Trade Union Confederation, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the International Employers Organisation collectively launched the Green Jobs Initiative in 2008. This initiative is aimed at bettering placements, training, and creating opportunities for individuals to work in 'green jobs'.
It is any job of self-employment that genuinely contributes to a more sustainable world. It is the coming together of a company of organisation, with an individual motivated and capable of performing the role. The company or organisation can either be in a 'green' sector ( e.g, solar energy), or in a conventional sector but making genuine and substantial efforts to green it's operations. A green job can be with businesses, non-profit organisations, government, or education. Small business, self-employment, and entrepreneurship are very much a part of the new green economy.
'Green' encompasses virtually all sectors of society: food, energy, transportation, education, government, etc. There are so many companies, organisations and jobs that it would be impossible to list them all in one place. Because 'green' is so broad, it can be helpful to focus on one or more environmental issues, career classifications or sectors of society. Not all players think of themselves as 'green' on are affiliated with the green or environmental community. The issue of sustainability is complex and ever-changing. It's not always obvious what is truly 'green' and sustainable, and what is not. Techniques such as ecological footprint analysis, cradle-to-grave analysis, or environmental impact assessment should be applied to determine just how green any organization, product, service, or job actually is. Some green jobs require specific 'green' skills or education, such as a solar engineer, an environmental educator, or an organic gardener.
Green jobs are considered important as people are now concerned and motivated both about the environment and energies around green work full-time. Without green jobs, these people are often trapped in jobs perpetuating the unsustainable status quo.
The ILO's Green Jobs Programme includes knowledge sharing, knowledge creation, advocacy, capacity building, diagnostics and priortization, pilot projects, policy formulation, and implementation.
Green jobs help:
- Improve energy and raw materials efficiency.
- Limit greenhouse gas emissions.
- Minimise waste and pollution.
- Protect and restore ecosystems.
- Support adaptation to the effects of climate change.
Lastly, we must remember that 'a green recovery can boost the economy, protect the environment and invigorate the workforce.'
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