Green Skills Reports Roundup, May-22
Our selection of reports and other publications from this month’s reading list
The Time is Now: Smart charging of electric vehicles
Regulatory Assistance Project, April 2022
This is a robust and comprehensive review of the development of smart charging systems and applications across multiple countries and shows the complexity of the decisions that need to be taken now to ensure an ability to move seamlessly across national boundaries. Our skills take on this report is the need to take a full view of what EV charging and EV smart charging means, and how it is developing, and so, prepare a local area for its future. While the report focuses on EV charging, please note there might be some alternatives e.g. hydrogen fuel cells, battery swapping, and, different forms of car ownership (car clubs).
The Net-Zero Transition. What it would cost, what it could bring
McKinsey and Co, January 2022
A very thorough and extensive report which highlights the very significant global shift in employment: a gain of 200mn jobs (direct and indirect) balanced against a loss of 185mn. This is further analysed by sector and country. The key message on the jobs and skills front is for the need to a manage approach to support impacted sectors and communities. It picks out the approach in Scotland to support the transition away from oil and gas exploration and development to next zero (page 180). Towards the end of the report there is a decision-making framework for companies (Exhibit 30, pages 176-177) which picks-up on the strategic and operational questions to address around employment, skills, and organisational change.
Mobility’s net zero transition: a look at opportunities and risks
McKinsey and Co, April 2022
Very useful brief overview of the employment levels across the global auto industry and shows the net changes to 2050 (Exhibit 4) and suggests a period of adjustment and a speed that would allow for a managed change.
Space/Geoinformation Sector Skills Strategy
Prepared for EO4FEO Alliance, November 2021
Detailed piece of work covering a series of changing occupations and skills required to maximise the opportunities created by remote observation and geo-information data. Skills remaining as key is that of geoinformation data handling, and the related ones: analytical methods, visualisation and cartography, and programming and development skill sets. These skills are usually found in three main occupations: EO*GI developers, EO*GI data analysts, and EO*GI project managers. Why important to net zero? The use of remote sensing, earth observation and geo-information are core to the monitoring and management of the earth surface, and the management of critical infrastructure. The report shows the convergence of digital competence with data collection technologies.
Road to Zero Carbon: Council action on green jobs and skills
Friends of the Earth and Ashden, February 2022
This report brings together information from the current literature, conversations, and roundtables with a reference group, and comes to simple, important conclusion: councils can deliver ambitions around green jobs and skills. It is a document all local authorities should do well read, and we share the six recommendations here: [1] geography matters: identify the most effective geographic area for action to deliver green jobs and skills outcomes. Develop a governance arrangement to deliver across respective actions; [2] a diverse green workforce: increase green job opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds using the levers available to local government including procurement, social value and by working with local education providers, employers and grassroots networks; [3] develop and publish an evidence base using a clear chosen definition of green jobs and skills, which sets out challenges, opportunities and growth needs across industries for the locality. This should be developed with key partners across an economic geography which makes sense to the locality and positions opportunities within the wider sub region; [4] strengthen green skills and knowledge across the council so that all council departments can play a role in boosting green jobs and skills; [5] work across local anchor organisations including local government, education, trade unions and business to stimulate demand and pathways for green jobs and skills; and, [6] use the evidence base and dialogue to take advantage of funding opportunities, build confidence in the market and deliver advocacy to ensure core investment priority messages are heard by central government.
Global Green Skills Report 2022
LinkedIn Economic Graph, 2022
Over the years job posting and personal attributes and capabilities data have shown their potential to help us track changes occurring in the labour market. It is now fully coming of age, and this latest report from LinkedIn picks up on the core point: greening the economy is a human capital issue. The greening of skills and jobs are a critical factor in realising the success and speed of the green transition. This LinkedIn data and analysis shows hiring for green skills talent is rising globally but nowhere near what is needed. In addition to diagnosing where we need to make more progress, the report provides recommendations on how to close the green skills gap, upskill workers and enable the shift to more green jobs. Both differences and changes are shown at country and sector levels. It is also worth noting that the vast majority of green skills are being used in jobs outside the traditional green sphere - jobs like fleet manager, data scientist, and health care worker.
Future Skill Needs in the Albanian Energy Sector and Case Studies on the Future of Skills – Methodological Note for Conducting Case Studies
European Training Foundation, February 2022 and October 2020
While the study of the transition to net zero in Albania is interesting, of particular note is the methodology used. Extraction of technical trends from patent data (or other sources) and which is then connected to related skills and profiles. Additionally used to track the evolution of occupations where it is possible to study the changes over time of concepts associated with a technology. In this piece of work European patents are used alongside the European Skills, Competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO) data set. It would be good to see this methodology further refined in the UK possibly by combining the work sponsored by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation with the High Value Manufacturing Catapult and that of Nesta on future occupational development.
Preparing for Take Off. Speeding up the switch to sustainable aviation fuel.
Green Alliance, May 2022
Useful track on developments with sustainable aviation fuel and hydrogen with only a little on employment and skills (page 22) which needs updating from the initial employment numbers being promoted by the Green Jobs Taskforce and its successor body.
Own Your Impact. Practical pathways to transformational sustainability.
Global C-suite Series 25th Edition. The CEO Study.
IBM Institute for Business Value, May 2022
Provides a useful context and within organisation change and development process into which specific net zero/green skills and roles need to be developed and deployed. Also gives a way of seeing where you are in the journey, and which C-suite executives are leading the process and how they change through time.
A road map for cities
The Urban Lab of Europol, April 2022
Skills for Net-Zero in Lancashire. Building the carbon workforce of the future
Work Foundation and Lancashire Enterprise Partnership, June 2021
Building skills for the low-carbon transition: evidence from job ads data
A Saussay et al, February 2021
Skills for the low carbon transition
Vivid Economics prepared for HSBC Centre for Sustainable Finance, June 2021
Two particularly really helpful elements in this report which looks at skills, knowledge, work activities, and abilities across four major elements of the economy and society that are core at the transition to a low carbon future: electrification of transport, net zero generation, land use, and net zero construction. First, these four transitions are mapped in terms of unique and shared skills, knowledge, work activities and abilities (See Figure 5, p 20) and shows the relatively high level of overlapping skills. This suggests a potential core curriculum and development path for several of the critical emerging and new green jobs. Second, the analysis looks at which occupations gain most from the transitions, and then which ones can be filled easily, moderately easily, and hard to fill (Table 2, p 23). Together these two pieces of information alone is a good start to inform the development of an initial green skills plan. Well worth reading and combining with the most recent green skills report from LinkedIn.
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