Schools are failing to let young people know that green jobs are an option (Photo credit: Shutterstock)
Schools should be preparing our children for the green jobs of the future, argues Philippa Ward, a partner at environmental charity Global Action Plan which specialises in behaviour change
Airline manager. Fishmonger. Vet’s assistant. Lawyer. Dance instructor. History teacher.
It might not seem that anything links these jobs. Yet if the careers advice in school had been accurate, that is what my colleagues should be doing right now. Instead we work for Global Action Plan, the UK’s leading environmental behaviour change charity, which helps businesses and communities make practical changes towards a more sustainable world. As an organisation, we are at the heart of the ‘green economy’. According to the CBI, even in difficult economic times, this low-carbon sector has continued to grow. Currently it employs around a million people, with predictions of hundreds of thousands more in the coming years, and it is being relied on to roughly halve the UK’s trade deficit in 2014/15.
Despite this potential, the majority of school leavers have no idea that jobs like ours exist. Instead they are being directed to jobs that don’t have any links with this rapidly growing green economy. This is where the growth is, this is where the jobs are, yet we are failing to tell the next generation the secret.
Philippa Ward, GAP: ‘Youth unemployment stands at nearly 1 million. We need to act now if the number isn’t to grow.’
Recent research shows that not much has changed on careers advice since GAP staff were at school. Half of teachers nationwide think that their school is failing to prepare students for the growth in green jobs, according to a YouGov survey commissioned by GAP. Just 10 per cent of teachers think that their school has updated the careers advice they offer students to get them fit for this new area.
Green engineers. Smart travel co-ordinator. Landfill miner. Living roof gardener.
According to 10 leading businesses, such as Bosch, Siemens and Sainsbury’s, these are the kinds of new careers that that we will see emerging in the future. Strange and unfamiliar, some of them – but it makes sense that in the future we’ll need someone adept at using smart technology to stop transport congestion in real-time, or someone who can manage the complex task of extracting now-valuable resources from rubbish tips. Other potential careers include car mechanics specialising in electric vehicles, and traceability managers to stop horsemeat or sweatshop scandals.
Simply, it is a different way to think about the world - and potentially a very exciting one to discuss with schoolchildren. This is their future and we need to make it come alive for them, through advice and engagement. Global Action Plan already works on programmes to bridge the gap between young people and business – but on a small scale and with a few clear-sighted businesses. We all need to go much further.
Youth unemployment stands at nearly 1 million. We need to act now if the number isn’t to grow. Educators, the third sector and businesses need work together to design programmes that will help plug the green skills gap. Otherwise we are cutting young people off from their own potential – and their own futures.
