Unit 2: Green Careers

While the government does have a big role to play in making London NetZero, there are also many other people who contribute towards that goal. In this section of the course, we will explore the different ways that people contribute towards making the world more sustainable.

Part 1: What Are Green Jobs?

Watch the video below and discuss what your understanding of ‘green jobs’ is, and which ones you might have already heard of.

As can be seen in the video, green jobs can be any job that has a focus on positively contributing to the environment and decreasing carbon emissions. The UK government is actively working towards creating more green jobs by 2050, as this will not only help the environment, but also help reduce the unemployment rate. 

According to WPI Economics, the total number of green jobs in London (in 11 priority sectors) is projected to increase from 234,000 in 2020 to 505,000 in 2030. The aim is to place homes, workplaces, schools and hospitals at the heart of the green economic recovery, which will build new supply chains and factories in the UK. The government plans to engage construction workers and engineers to create and use clean energy and forge new green industries by harnessing British science and technology. Through the Lifetime Skills Guarantee, the government will equip people with the training they need to be ready for such opportunities. 

A common misconception with green jobs is that people think it needs to be directly related to helping the environment and only associate it with careers in wildlife conservation, recycling, etc. However, as was mentioned in the video, any job can be a green job! Whether you decide to be a lawyer, teacher, nurse, or construction worker, you can come up with ways to make your job sustainable. This could simply be by talking to your colleagues about NetZero, or creating small changes at your workplace! 

Part 2: Careers In The Green Sector

We’re now going to explore a few more professions and people working  in the Green Sector, while reflecting on the following questions. Please note, these are fictional characters. 

In your groups, research the following questions for one or two of the following characters: 

• What are the different elements of this person’s job? 
• What are some skills and qualifications needed for this job? 
• How much does this person earn annually? 
• How does their job make a difference to the environment?

Part 3: Challenges In The Field

Meet entrepreneur Anjali Devadasan, and listen to her talk about her company Treeva (previously called Synergy) and the work they do to build more green energy.

The work that Anjali does is very important and contributes towards London’s 2030 NetZero goal, though it does come with its own set of challenges. As she mentioned, many times wind turbines end up in landfills and create a lot of waste which isn’t very beneficial to the environment. Additionally, wind energy is often overlooked as compared to other renewable forms of energy such as solar power which is considered more cost-effective. 

In your groups, discuss possible solutions for the challenges that people working in the field of wind energy face. What are some ways that they can increase the usage of this form of renewable energy?

Part 4: Creating A Career Roadmap

Although we are faced with a challenge and some daunting information about our city, country and the world we live in, this is actually an exciting opportunity to make effective and life changing differences. 

While we can start making changes to our lifestyle immediately, it is also important to think about how we can continue to live in a sustainable way through the course of our lives. 

Think about some of the green jobs you learnt about in Section 2. Taking inspiration from them, think about your own career now and how you can add an element of sustainability and turn it into a green job. 

Use the template below, to work on your career roadmap. You can also add these steps to the Blue Line of your Tube Map.