Green skills gap predicted to affect 7 million workers by 2030
Discover the looming challenge of the green skills gap impacting seven million workers globally by 2030. Explore the hurdles faced by Gen Z in understanding green skills and the rising demand for environmentally conscious expertise. Uncover insights from the Future of Jobs Survey and LinkedIn on the
The green skills gap— the majority counting within the field of renewable energy is on track to impact seven million workers by 2030 globally, out of which more than 70% belong to the top ten carbon-emitting economies.
Many countries have pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. This is a part of the global effort to restrain temperature increases to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. While governments and businesses have initiated substantial commitments to green transition, numerous obstacles still lie ahead— the green skills gap being the major one.
YouthSight surveyed the UK-based Gen Z about skills for a net-zero economy. Out of 1162 respondents, 53% said they never heard of green skills and didn’t know what they were about. Similar outcomes could be assumed for other countries.
For the generation who hold huge responsibilities taking over net zero pledges from their predecessors, the numbers look concerning. The green skills gap is there for sure.
What are green skills?
Green skills are needed for green jobs to shift the current economy towards a resource-efficient economy. That will yield not only novel products and services but also modify production methods and corporate frameworks.
The ILO states the responsibilities of green jobs include the reduction of energy and raw material consumption. Also in addition are the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, the reduction of waste, and the preservation of ecosystems.
For example, a job of carbon accounting involves estimating the carbon footprint of different organizations in a wide spectrum of sectors. However, LinkedIn published a concerning report recently stating the demand for green skills is surpassing the available supply. From 2022 to 2023, job listings requiring at least one green skill increased by 22.4%. But the proportion of green talent within the workforce expanded by only 12.3%.
Related: Sustainability jobs: 42 million renewable energy jobs by 2050
Demand for green skills
In May 2023, the Future of Jobs Survey collected insights from 803 companies, employing over 11.3 million workers. These companies represent a diverse array of 27 industry clusters, expanding 45 economies across all regions of the world. The survey inquired about technological adoption that businesses intend to implement throughout the 2023-2027 period.
Figure 2 offers an overview of the outcome. Prominent technologies, such as digital platforms, big data analytics, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence (AI) are at the front, with more than 70% of companies intending to incorporate these innovations within the next five years.
Environmental management technologies and climate-change mitigation technology follow along with 64.5% and 62.8%, respectively. However, as LinkedIn figured out, many green skills surprisingly are not typically categorized as "green". The role of energy efficiency may prove indispensable for positions such as plumbing engineer or utilities manager.
Demand surpasses the supply
The United Nations believes the worldwide economy is currently undergoing a process of "greening," characterized by industries such as energy, transportation, and construction embracing more environmentally sustainable practices.
This transformative shift has the potential to generate an additional 24 million job opportunities on a global scale by the year 2030. So it increases the demand for individuals possessing green skills to a considerable extent.
However, the current demand for individuals with green expertise outpaces the available talent pool.
Even though the U.S. and the UK are among the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, they are showing slow development in the growth of green talent from 2015 to 2023 (Figure 3).
Johann Harnoss, an innovation and global talent specialist at Boston Consulting Group Henderson believes this global shortage of skills can be achieved by positioning individuals where their skills are most required, in the appropriate locations.
Fastest-growing green skills
In the U.S., as shown in Figure 4, fields like carbon accounting, drinking water quality management, and energy engineering are experiencing notable growth. Meanwhile, in the EU (Figure 5), the top three in-demand green skills include sustainability education, carbon emissions management, and climate action planning.
LinkedIn highlights that one of the critical domains within sustainability is finance. However, the swift rise of ESG (environment, social, and governance) investment strategies and portfolio management is presenting fresh employment opportunities within the field. Nonetheless, between 2021 and 2022, the proportion of green jobs within the finance sector surged by 17%.
Why green skills gap is growing?
Economist Impact conducted an extensive survey on 1,375 employees throughout the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. This survey, spanning from November 2022 to January 2023 gained insights into employees' viewpoints regarding the prevalent skills gaps within the region. The survey touched upon the top three obstacles to acquiring green skills, as shown in Figure 6.
‘Not enough time to spend time on learning new courses’ is the top obstacle to acquiring green skills. This aligns with the fact that certain demographic groups, such as women or people of color, are notably underrepresented in green careers due to various reasons.
Related: Chief Sustainability Officers: women are more favorable for the role
The second point ‘not sure how new skills will benefit me’ could equally apply to employers, who fail to encourage and support employees to gain new skills. Employers not appreciating green skills could easily impact earning opportunities for employees. A London School of Economics study found that low-carbon jobs often demanded higher technical skills but were not necessarily better paid than average.
How businesses can help close the green skills gap
The companies can prioritize adopting new technology while also closing the green skills gap simultaneously by:
- Expanding training initiatives aimed at enhancing the green skills of the workforce. The BCG's projections indicate that approximately 40% of the necessary workforce may require only minimal training.
- Utilizing digital tools to evaluate the employee's skill sets regularly.
- Collaborating with external partners to facilitate cross-border talent access and upskilling opportunities.
- Offering competitive compensation packages, flexible work schedules, and pathways for upward career advancement.
The green skills gap should be perceived as an opportunity to extend fresh economic prospects to those seven million workers and their communities, both locally and globally.
