The Climate Economy is an infinite and transformational opportunity for jobs. You can pursue your passions and develop your own business, develop your community, or you can participate in may of the industries at the helm of the Climate Economy.
For example, energy:
- From the 2017 Advanced Energy Economy report:
- This year’s edition shows global growth of 7% from 2015 to 2016, nearly twice the rate of the world economy overall. In 2016, advanced energy represented a $1.4 trillion global market and a U.S. market of $200 billion.
- The advanced energy industry is also a major employer, supporting more than 3 million U.S. jobs. That’s equal to the employment provided by retail stores, and twice the jobs in building construction.
- There’s a lot of news out there about clean energy jobs (renewables, energy efficiency, etc.) outnumbering jobs and job growth in fossil fuels. Fossil fuel-backed groups (check sources!) will try to tell you about all the job losses related to things like the Clean Power Plan, but they won’t tell you about the over-sized over-all net benefits.
- e2 is an organization that provides numerous reports on the state of clean energy jobs across the country.
- Whiskey waste to energy, anyone? Yes, please.
While energy is just one part of the climate economy, the trends are unmistakable.
The climate economy requires bold leadership from the business and investment community. Some organizations are taking the lead on this challenge; NetImpact is a good example. They help teach people about the kinds of career profiles that exist to help advance social (environmental) issues. They also provide a “career guide” for people interested in getting involved in impact investing, whether or not you have a financial background or not.
Climate economy jobs can come in industries across the spectrum and not yet in existence, as one can see by browsing the many categories on this very website. Many educational and investment groups are embracing entrepreneurship as the future of jobs, especially for millenials and retiring baby boomers. Whole new services, markets and funding models will arise; can you imagine a way you could assist companies who are under increasing pressure from markets, consumers and investors to prove their climate-friendliness? Or, you could use your expertise in other ways, such as teaching and working with your peers to make workable farming communities. And don’t even get me started on resilience planning. Hint: economic diversity, i.e. a variety of businesses and economic opportunities, is key. Things like this will be happening more and more (a prediction), and hopefully will not only benefit the climate economy, but help people to be more happy and healthy. Much more to come in this topic.
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