Green Skills in a Lifelong Learning Perspective

Francesca SperottiAdapt Researcher

Karlsruhe, 29 October 2010

Outline:

1.The shift to a low-carbon economy: impacts on the labour market

2.Defining and identifying «green jobs»

3.Defining and identifying «green skills»

4.Lifelong learning perspective

5.Recommendations: the role of the social dialogue

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1. The shift to a low-carbon economy is affecting labour markets

It has been acknowledged that…

Open questions

some additional jobs will be created

How many?

some employment will be substituted

Why? which is the main driver?

jobs may be eliminated without direct replacement

Will they really disappear?

many existing jobs will simply be transformed

Why?

3(UNEP, ILO, 2008)

One common variable

CHANGE in SKILLS New Skills?

Which skills? Traditional skills?

A mix?

“Topping – up”

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2. Defining and identifying «green jobs»

• How can we define «green jobs»?

Ambiguity

«Any jobs that help the improvement of current environmental conditions towards an economy that does not generate pollution or waste and it is hyper-efficient in its use of energy, water, and materials» (OECD,2010)

Any jobs?5

EC, Monthly Monitor, October, 2010

Can «green jobs» reduce EU unemployment rates?

How many jobs will be created?

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EC, Monthly Monitor, October, 2010

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• How can we define «green skills»?« traditional skills that are put in use in

environmental related sectors and activities» (OECD, 2010)

« a new set of skills absent in the current labour markets but that will be needed in the future, such as knowledge of sustainable materials, carbon foot-printing skills and environmental impact assessment skills» (CEDEFOP, 2010)

« Generic? Specific? technical? »(CEDEFOP, 2010)

3. Defining and identifying «green skills»

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«Green Skills»

Generic

•strategic planning•Leadership•adaptability/transferability•systems and risk analysis•Coordination•Entrepreneurship

«Green Skills» as such do not exist

Specific

•knowledge of sustainable materials•carbon foot printing skills•environmental impact assessment skills

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«Green skills»

Lifelong learning

perspective

Skills for green jobs are not only something narrowly limited to fulfil a job profile’s requirements. They go beyond, including an increased awareness of climate change,

commitment to a more sustainable life style, and eco-sustainable behaviours. They can be developed both in the working place as well as in the other learning experiences that

characterize people’s course of life

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4. Lifelong learning perspective

• “skills mismatch”

• The educational and working life of individuals are both fertile field of active and

continuous process of skills expression and development

• focus should be on human capital development, conceived as a lifelong learning process

• What about “greening lifelong learning”?

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DID YOU KNOW?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sXQ0iGUiHM&feature=related

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Adult worker young workers students

all segments of population

Lifelong Learning

Educational system Work-based /in-job training

Formal/informal/non formal

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GREENING LIFELONG LEARNING

Long-term Perspective: education and training throughout people’s lives

• Investment in human capital = main driver for change

• shared responsibility = continuity

• empowers people to develop and use their potential and to manage change

• combine different education and training types and levels, work and life experience

• to value learning experiences

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5. Recommendations: the role of the social dialogue

1. Promoting green awareness in education;

2. Supporting education system in the promotion of multidisciplinary learning environments

and in undertaking broader view of how competences are defined and acquired;

3. Support and encourage continuous acquisition of additional competences;

4. Support a framework that includes the recognition of informal learning mechanisms,

accreditation of prior learning, and increasing scope for “train the trainer” programmes;

5. Develop a closer working relationship between needs of industry and the formal

education and training system;

6. Better coordination between those developing environmental policies, those managing

the transition to a low-carbon economy, and those developing skills training; in particular

support training of trainers through rapidly developed “greening” of technological module;

7. Greening the working environments through green representatives at work. 17

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REFERENCES Cristina Martinez Fernandez, Carlos Hinojosa, Gabriela Miranda, Greening Jobs and Skills. The local labour market implications of addressing climate change, Paris: OECD, 8 February 2010BEGG Iain, ERHEL Christine and MORTENSEN Jørgen, Medium-term Employment challenges. CEPS Special Report, January 2010 G.A. CALZADA, R.M. JARA, J.R. RALLO JULIAN, Study of the effects on employment of public aid to renewable energy sources. Universidad “Rey Juan Carlos”, Madrid, 2009CEDEFOP, Skills for Green Jobs. European Synthesis Report. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2010CEDEFOP, Skills for Green Jobs. Country report: United Kingdom, Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. 2010CEDEFOP, Skillsnet Sectoral Flash. Green economy. June 2009CEDEFOP, Future skills needs for the green economy. Thessaloniki, Greece, 6-7 October 2008. Greenpeace, Working for the Climate. Renewable Energy & Green Job Revolution. 2009ECORYS, Programmes to promote environmental skills - Final Report. ECORYS Netherlands BV, Rotterdam, 30 June 2010ETUC, The Climate Change, the Industrial Policies and the Way out of Crisis. 2009European Commission, New Skills for New Jobs Anticipating and matching labour market and skills needs. COM(2008) 868 final, Brussels, 16 December 2008Expert Group on New Skills for New Jobs, New Skills for New Jobs: Action Now. A Report prepared for the European Commission, February 2010.ILO, World of Work Report. The Global Jobs Crisis and Beyond. 2009Peter Szovics, Manfred Tessaring, Clive Walmsley, John McGrath, Identification of future skill needs for the green economy. CEDEFOP, 7 October 2008.UNEP, ILO (2008), Green Jobs – Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable, Low-Carbon World. Report produced by Worldwatch Institute and

commissioned by UNEP, ILO, IOE, ITUC, Nairobi

Thank you for your attention

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For further information:

www.adapt.itfrancesca.sperotti@adapt.it

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