The Green Edge Take – December 2024
Our take on the crop of green reports from this months reading list.
Starting this month, we present The Green Edge Take—a rebranding of The Green Edge Reports Roundup, reflecting our views on the crop of sustainability-related publications that crossed our desk last month.
֎ Reports we feel are particularly worth a look.
Skills and Workforce Development
Tackling the skills crisis for a sustainable future. AMS, December 2024
Author/Publisher: AMS
Date: December 2024
Link (online only)
An interesting set of findings and charts from a global survey. In particular, a sector chart and the degree of “greenness” of jobs as their acquire skills. Well worth a delve.
֎ Clean Power 2030: Assessment of the Clean Energy Skills Challenge
Author/Publisher: UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ)
Date: December 2024
It is good to see the work of the Green Jobs Delivery Group see the light of day, if only in a reduced form. Here we see an important statement being made: “Most clean energy jobs will need to be filled by the existing workforce, with the skills and expertise of workers in carbon intensive sectors playing a crucial role in filling that demand.” (page 11). Given the immediacy of demand for net zero skills this calls for upskilling and reskilling, and the high cross-over of skills between existing and new and emerging greener roles. One point we would make is that as skills are a critical constraint alternative delivery options should be developed.
֎ Glasgow Just Transition Skills Action Plan
Author/Publisher: Glasgow Economic Leadership
Date: 2024
An excellent example of the work being undertaken in Scotland to ensure the current transition creates realistic opportunities for all. This is a model that could be adopted by others across the UK. Contained in here is a strong set of statements reasoning the case for skills. Well worth reading.
15 Green Skills
Author/Publisher: AimHi Earth
Date: 2023
Covers 15 core green skills and a sub-set of 3 skills for each. Would be perfect for any career advisor or information provider.
The Significance of Green Skills and Competencies
Author/Publisher: Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies
Date: 2021
Draws on data from “green” business operating in renewable energy, water management, clean transportation, waste management, and green building sectors located in Lithuania, Poland, Denmark, Germany and Sweden. One finding that strikes us: the green credentials required of candidates wanting to be appointed to a green role relies heavily on those required for many other roles and are not unique to the specifics green work.
Kaleidoscope: October 2024 Edition
Author/Publisher: Kaleidoscope Initiative
Date: October 2024
Works through multiple sectors (12 in all) giving examples of both technical and soft green skills before focusing on India in some detail. What is good to see is the coalescence of understanding of what are green skills and where they are needed most.
Green Skills for Sustainability Transitions
Author/Publisher: Martina Fuchs, Geography Compass
Date: 2024
Excellent literature review and seeks to explore a series of key questions around the definition of green skills and the value they provide to the whole net zero transition. It would be excellent if this literature review was now built on with empirical information.
Teaching Green Skills: Post-Secondary Actions
Author/Publisher: Future Skills Centre and The Conference Board of Canada
Date: August 2024
Finds that sustainability and green skills are working their way into both the formal and informal curriculum but there is a need for greater alignment between employer needs and college teaching. Would be good to see a similar (but more detailed) status report be prepared each year for the various parts of the UK education and training system.
EuropeOn Sector Report 2024
Author/Publisher: EuropeOn
Date: November 2024
We see this report from Europe On as a statement on a core occupation that enables the transition. One fact which struck us was that 81% of decarbonisation targets for 2030 depend on electrical contractors. Virtually all of the main activities of electrical contractors are growing.
Green Skills Atlas
Author/Publisher: Economist
Date: November 2022
Link (online only)
A 29-country database using indicators across 16 factors. A quick and easy way to view the preparedness for the green transition at the national level.
Green Skills 2030 Strategy
Author/Publisher: SOLAS, Ireland
Date: October 2024
A substantial report covering seven sectors in Ireland: construction and the built environment (including water and waste management); engineering, energy and manufacturing; transport and logistics; agriculture, forestry and marine (including the bioeconomy); biodiversity and environment; tourism and hospitality; and accounting and business. Also contains a good set of summary charts which allow for quick comparisons.
Generic Green Skills
Author/Publisher: Margarita Pavlova, Griffith University
Date: 2024
See pages 49-57. A useful discussion (ahead of its time) of addressing many of the more general green skills requirements across multiple occupations.
Net-Zero Skills: Jobs, Skills, and Training for the Net-Zero Energy Transition
Author/Publisher: Imperial College London – Energy Futures Lab
Date: October 2024
This report collates and presents much of the published research on net zero skills and jobs (see Table 1: Current and future workforce estimates for sectors in the UK low carbon energy system) but falls foul of unfortunate timing. Several developments during September with the consultation for the development of Skills England, the Growth and Skills Levy (replacing the apprenticeship levy), and the setting up of the Office for Clean Energy Jobs have superseded many of the observations offered here. In examining the net zero skills and jobs, the analysis does not consider how the operating of the non-green specific (clean energy) part of the economy interacts and demands the same skills as required for the clean energy e.g. construction and the raising of the homes building targets by 100,000, and changes in building and retrofit methods.
A Green Skills Framework for Climate Action, Gender Empowerment, and Climate Justice
Author/Publisher: Christina Kwauk and Olivia Casey, Brookings Institution
Date: 2022
This paper develops a useful framework covering skills for green jobs, green life skills, and skills for a green transformation. Lists specific, generic, and transformative capacities. The division of green capacities is helpful as it captures not just the narrow set of green skills we hear about repeatedly, but also those skills that we all need, and those that bring about the net zero transition e.g. the capacities needed within a combined authority to drive forward, for example, the decarbonisation of buildings
Lifelong Learning for Green Skills and Sustainable Development: Southern European Perspective
Author/Publisher: Springer Nature/Palgrave Macmillan
Date: November 2024
Link (book)
Charts the mainstreaming of green skills into EU learning policies.
Recognizing Green Skills Through Non-formal Learning: A Comparative Study in Asia
Author/Publisher: Margarita Pavlova and Madhu Singh, UNESCO
Date: 2022
Helpful for those seeking to integrate sustainability-related content into teaching. Draws from experiences in the Philippines, Nepal, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, India, Hong Kong, China, and Bangladesh.
Sustainability Toolkit
Author/Publisher: Engineering Professors’ Council
Date: March 2024
Link (online only)
Shifting Skills: Moving Targets and Remaking the Workforce
Author/Publisher: Boston Consulting Group and Burning Glass Institute
Date: May 2022
While the overall focus of occupations might remain relatively static, the top 20 skills required to successfully hold down an occupation is changing. The report establishes the average shift is 37% but higher in the most disrupted occupations (76%) and some occupations are only slightly impacted (13%). The appendix contains a full listing of the occupations that are ranked by the derived skills disruption index (pages 27-38). From a training point of view, one message from the disruption index suggests a need to rebalance and refocus curriculum on a frequent basis.
Labour Market
֎ The uneven foundations of a just transition for workers: a UK perspective
Author/Publisher: Dave Reay, University of Edinburgh
Date: November 2024
This is an important paper drawing on UK and international data, highlighting the need to bake in a series of guidelines into any plans and policies supporting the Just Transition to Net Zero. Without adopting the recommended guidelines listed here, the new jobs and careers opened-up by the net zero transition will reflect the current racial, gender and disability biases.
֎ Measuring and Evaluating Success in the Scottish Just Transition
Author/Publisher: Tavistock Institute and University of Edinburgh
Date: December 2024
An important document which needs to be widely read as it seeks to move forward the development and delivery of key net zero policies, and learn from their impact. We have seen from the work of the Just Transition Commission how it is seeking to learn how to engage, gain traction of actions in dispersed and often neglected communities, and the learning in relevant across the UK and elsewhere. The theory of change presented here is very useful and it would be good to map on to it the range of other ones which underpin poverty reduction, health improvement, housing quality, and then into skills and sustainable employment. A milestone document for us.
Ensuring Equity in the Green Transition
Author/Publisher: Equity Institute
Date: 2024
Looks at the pathways into the green economy and highlights two schemes: new to nature, and, new to net zero and the circular economy. Having practical schemes and learning from them is so important if we are to avoid repeating the exclusion of too many people from accessing careers in the emerging green economy.
Workforce planning to deliver clean, secure energy
Author/Publisher: Energy Security and Net Zero Committee, House of Commons
Date: December 2024
Link (online only)
A timely inquiry probing three areas: exploring the difficulties in recruiting and retaining the workforce to deliver a clean energy sector and retrofit homes and businesses; assessing how the new Office for Clean Energy Jobs can contribute to workforce planning; and gaining an understanding of the specific role of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero in delivering clean energy jobs. This work will hopefully move beyond traditional solutions in order to start progressing towards the key net zero targets.
Growing Green Careers
Author/Publisher: Groundwork UK
Date: April 2022
Builds on the extensive practical experience of Groundwork and contains multiple case studies. Probably useful to careers advisors.
The Green New Deal and the Future of Work
Author/Publisher: Columbia University Press
Date: August 2022
Link (book)
Splits into five sections: the new deal and the green new deal, what is the crisis of work, delivering jobs and empowering workers, transforming infrastructure, and the work of building a better society. The focus is the green deal in the USA, showing the impact it has already had. For those interested in the politics of the deal, it is the Republican states that have gained the greatest levels of investment, several times more than the Democrat ones. It will be interesting to return to this book in 3-4 years’ time after the influence of new President has been felt.
Overcoming Barriers and Unlocking Supply in UK Apprenticeships
Author/Publisher: St Martin’s Group
Date: September 2024
A good list of recommendations to reshape the Apprenticeships Levy into becoming the Growth and Skills Levy. We would suggest there is also a need to improve the responsiveness in terms of the content of apprenticeships to meet changing requirements at work. But perhaps it is time to rethink the whole balance of the apprenticeship and rather than have it fully front loaded and moved to more distributed model.
Migration Advisory Committee Annual Report 2024
Author/Publisher: Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), UK
Date: December 2024
Movements of people for work in the UK is a critical supply of skills, and here the MAC takes a reflective view across 2024. Worth a look at the section ‘Skills and work migration’ (pages 15-22). Given the steep wall of work developing with the wide range of infrastructure and installation projects over the next 10 years migration has a key role to play.
Just Sustainability Transitions: From Concept to Practice
Author/Publisher: European Environment Agency (EEA)
Date: 2024
Skills lie at the heart of what is said here. We suggest a look at Pack for Skills which is all about reskilling and upskilling of adults. One of the less well-developed areas of policy is ensuring those people most disadvantaged by the transition to net zero are equipped to cope and fully raise the opportunities and benefits arising from the transition.
Adecco Labour Market Outlook (ALMO): Autumn 2024
Author/Publisher: Adecco Group UK and Ireland
Date: November 2024
While some of the employment projections might be questionable given recent ONS statements on the health of the UK labour market and economy, the ranking of cities using the PWC good growth for cities index is interesting (62 are listed), and it would be useful to how much clean tech is behind these cities growth.
Exploring the Emergence of Microcredentials in Vocational Education and Training (VET)
Author/Publisher: CEDEFOP
Date: June 2024
Micro-credentials are potentially very important to the greening of work and jobs as individuals seek to reskill and upskill. It is clear that both education and training institutions, awarding and standards bodies will have to respond to this demand whilst realising the potential of digital/AI technologies. If there is no formal response by incumbents, then new entrants will appear (which they are), and they will meet a growing need, not just for green skills but for also other rapidly emerging skills areas at work.
Green Borders: Policy Recommendations to Improve Talent Mobility
Author/Publisher: International Organisation of Employers (IOE)
Date: November 2024
We have argued for several years that there needs to be a global perspective to green skills migration which benefits both the origin country and the new temporary host country (as we have seen between India and Germany). The point we would make is that the transition to net zero needs to be managed across the world, and not just to the temporary benefit of single host country (or group of countries).
Navigating the Future: Colours of the Economy
Author/Publisher: ETF and ITC-ILO
Date: 2024
We really like the illustrations used in this brief European Training Foundation document, and for us it makes a key point: the economy and labour market is becoming increasingly green, but there are other colours (waves of change) impacting both at the same time, and this should be borne in mind when seeking to look for patterns of skills change and development. The other colours covered here are blue (marine and water), gold (technological developments and digitalisation), orange (cultural and creative), white (health-related goods and services), silver (aging population), and yellow (the world’s desert regions).
Sofia Offshore Wind Farm Socio-Economic Research Study
Author/Publisher: Wavehill Research for RWE
Date: November 2024
A useful study of the impact of the £6bn, 100 wind turbine windfarm in Dogger Bank which requires 8,810 person years of employment during the development and construction phase. It would be useful to compare these figures to those we have seen generated for several similar investment in the USA to establish the current ratio of jobs related to the output of the wind farm.
Skills for Labour Markets in the Green and Digital Transition
Institute of Socio-Economic Research, Luxembourg
Link (ongoing project)
This project has three core objects: indicators of shortages and mismatches, drivers of these gaps and shortages, and pathways to reduce the gaps and mismatches. The project will be completed in December 2026.
Green Jobs: A Guide to Ecofriendly Employment
Author/Publisher: Adams Media/Simon & Schuster
Date: March 2008
Link (book)
A dated book but one containing many useful messages and advice that still holds true today. It would be good to see this book updated as careers advisors would find it very helpful.
Climate Literacy Amongst School Leavers
Author/Publisher: Department for Education, UK
Date: December 2024
Around half of school leavers are concerned about climate change, and a near equal number think they will personally be affected by climate change. So, some key messages are being understood and remembered by school leavers but there are many others which are not understood, and likewise progress not being fully recognised. It would be good to repeat this survey for college and university students when they are leaving as increasingly higher-level education institutions are pursuing sustainability across the curriculum for all students.
֎ Agency in the Anthropocene: OECD Education Working Paper
Author/Publisher: OECD
Date: December 2024
An important paper which looks at the agency of 15-year-olds in terms of their knowledge of, concerned about, able to act on environmental issues because of their science education. The paper also describes and explains the competencies needed by 15-year-olds, and many others too.
Mission Accepted: The Role of Colleges Across Government’s Five Missions
Author/Publisher: Association of Colleges (AoC)
Date: December 2024
Three of the missions are of direct interest to us: economic growth (investment), clean energy, and breaking down barriers to opportunity. We see here the key enabling role of “the local college” and how that can be harnessed to drive wider community engagement and uptake of all things green, and providing the skills for the future economy.
Integrating Green Skills into Education and Research
Author/Publisher: Union for the Mediterranean (UfM)
Date: 2024
While universities are playing an important role in the education and training of the new and current generation of sustainability leaders, this report takes us a little further, and also provides a great listing of resources drawn from Europe.
AI Skills in Canada: The Changing Demand for Skills
Author/Publisher: OECD
Date: May 2024
There is a distinct cross-over between environmental and digital skills but this is not found here. In fact, the general categories used does not have one covering environment or sustainability, which is surprising and disappointing.
Data on Our Minds: Affective Computing at Work
Author/Publisher: Institute for the Future of Work
Date: 2024
The report highlights several significant implications for the emerging green economy and the transition to net zero, particularly regarding skills development: Technological Integration in Green Jobs: As Algorithmic Affect Management (AAM) and affective computing become more pervasive, they could be integrated into green economy sectors, such as renewable energy and sustainable construction, to optimize productivity and safety. This requires upskilling workers to use and navigate these technologies responsibly. Focus on Wellbeing in Sustainable Work: The green economy prioritises human-centred approaches and sustainable practices. AAM's focus on wellbeing metrics could align with this, but workers must be equipped with skills to critically assess how these technologies impact their health, autonomy, and environmental goals. Cross-disciplinary Skills for Net Zero Transition: The transition to net zero will demand skills combining technical expertise in green technologies, digital literacy for AAM systems, and emotional resilience to cope with monitoring. Policymakers must ensure training programmes integrate these competencies to foster equitable and sustainable workforce transformation.
The Student Experience of Transnational Education
Author/Publisher: Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI)
Date: 2024
Well over 500,000 students are classified as being transnational, and 15 UK providers dominate the market. About 150,000 of these students are “true” online students. Our interest here is in the potential role of UK universities driving global sustainability education, and it would be good to see this potential fully explored as a part of the UK’s contribution to the net zero transition.
The Future of Talent Acquisition: AI in Recruitment
Author/Publisher: AMS
Date: 2024
Simple message for us: as AI brings automation and the ability to access hard to reach candidates, it is important to have an effective and unbiased taxonomy allow the matching of candidate skills with the requirements of the job being filled.
TIMSS 2023: National Report for England
Author/Publisher: UCL Institute of Education
Date: December 2024
The TIMSS 2023 National Report for England contains implications for developing a green skills pipeline in several ways: Strength in Mathematics and Science Education; Identified Gaps in Specific Domains; Focus on Higher-Order Cognitive Skills; Policy and Curriculum Opportunities; Role of High Performers and Gender Equity. Leveraging TIMSS data, educators and policymakers should integrate targeted, sustainability-oriented STEM initiatives to build a pipeline of skilled individuals ready for green technology sectors. Enhanced focus on reasoning, problem-solving, and applied science could address current gaps and align education outcomes with the UK's green economy goals.
Devolution and Regional Development
֎ English Devolution White Paper: Power and Partnership
Author/Publisher: UK Government
Date: December 2024
An important White Paper on skills. Section 3.4 (pages 54-60) shows how the ownership of LSIPs model (along with the ERBs) remains with the new “local” strategic body and its Links to Skills England. Equally helpful is the Devolution Framework Summary Table (Section 3.10, pages 87-88) on skills. What would be good to see the funding and numbers of people engaging with training related to this structural and change in local roles for skills. And one plea we would make is to have a system to capture and share learning about skills interventions across England (and the rest of the UK) to boost the impact of all skills investment.
֎ Realising Regional Potential: CBI Economics Report
Author/Publisher: CBI and Lloyds Banking Group
Date: December 2024
A powerful and insightful analysis across the main regions of England and the nations of the UK, plus a helpful appendix dropping down to the local authority level. Net Zero is identified as being a key growth sector across multiple parts of the UK (Scotland, Yorkshire and Humberside, North-West England, London, and South-East England) with over 21,500 businesses employing nearly 820,000 people. A great resource which anyone revising their LSIP should certainly refer to and actively use.
Policy Brief: The Case for Local Planning of Energy and Heat
Author/Publisher: Nesta
Date: 2024
During 2025 we should see the fruit of the current local heat and energy plans, and also if there will be any significant take up of heat networks. In both cases there is a need for skills within local government (or available to them) to tackle this important area of the net zero transition. Based on the current projections for heat pump installations, we can only assume that local schemes will become a major area of focus to accelerate the installation rate.
Reforming Local Government Funding in England
Author/Publisher: Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS)
Date: December 2024
As part of the whole local government reform, there is a good chance skills funding will feature well beyond handling the adult skills budget, and this should become really clear during 2025. For us, this shift in skills funding will require the development of appropriate capacity and capability at the local level to handle the issues, and to build effective networks.
MHCLG Overview: 2023-24 Parliamentary Report
Author/Publisher: National Audit Office (NAO)
Date: December 2024
Two key elements for us here around devolution and the development of local government’s role across England, and also the role in net zero and sustainability around housing. Excellent document and briefing on a key Government department.
Townscapes: Making Innovation Inclusive
Author/Publisher: Bennett Institute for Public Policy, University of Cambridge
Date: October 2024
An interesting report which helps to move on the thinking behind spreading the benefits of innovation beyond the hotspots. Clearly shows the value of having post code level datasets to support detailed local analyses to pinpoint investment and policy interventions.
Mapping Public Engagement in the Heat Transition in Scotland
Author/Publisher: ClimateXChange, Ipsos Scotland
Date: September 2024
A helpful piece of work in that it identifies a series of under-engaged groups as regards domestic heat transition. This needs building on as no group and no individual can be left behind as we need everyone to engage to both take decisions, and to take on new roles with a different mindset.
The Transition Handbook
Author/Publisher: Appropedia
Date: 2024
For those planning to develop a community group to support the net zero transition (and beyond), this handbook will be of help as it is a guide to setting up a group, building local momentum and engagement in support of local action. This handbook takes us beyond energy and more fully into sustainability and the circular economy. Despite it being written in 2008 it is equally relevant today.
CleanTech Directory: June 2023 Edition
Author/Publisher: CleanTech Connect
Date: June 2023
Interesting resource developed by the Institute for Sustainable Communities (India) with support by the Ellen Macarthur Foundation. Seeks to cover 18 sectors with a series of successful and vetted business with proven solutions. We have to wonder if this type of resource would be useful in the UK at a local level to drive progress, understand and demand.
Local Growth Plans: Supporting Place-Based Growth
Author/Publisher: Institute for Government
Date: October 2024
We have held to be true that devolution is a key part not just for growth, but also for the whole net zero transition due to the complexity of the issues to be addressed and the need for whole community engagement. Here we see the growth side being discussed, with three main points being made: the need for local capacity (and its support and development for the long term); the importance of access to robust data (like that developed by Data City); and the need for sequencing and integration (local and national, and see Figure 1, page 9).
True North: Defining Northern Ambition
Author/Publisher: Brabners LLP
Date: 2024
A mix of a report and a set of resources (e.g. a data explorer driven by Data City data), and a great set of initiatives to develop and channel skills. Highlights accessing talent (by using technology), the importance of connecting (business to capital, person to person), and provides a series of case studies. One point made by the report is importance of retaining talent within a region and them achieving their ambitions.
Midlands Engine Energy Security White Paper
Author/Publisher: Midlands Engine Partnership
Date: December 2024
Identifies the employment prize for the net transition (196,000 jobs by 2041) and the scale of skills redundancy occurring at the jobs level (30-40%) due to move away from fossil fuels. We find multiple case studies here illustrating the capability of the Midlands Region to support the skills required over the coming years. Education and training centres are called “assets” and their role is explained across 11 core clean energy technologies (pages 44-45).
Green Innovation and Employability in the Mediterranean
Author/Publisher: Union for the Mediterranean (UfM)
Date: 2024
A study looking at three countries (Jordan, Italy, and Tunisia) and examining the potential of greater cooperation and developing networks to accelerate and deepen both green skills and innovation. This is a constant theme of the transition to net zero: co-operation, pooling and risk sharing across education and training bodies, Governments, and industries.
Pot Pourri
Climate Policy Factbook: COP29 Edition
Author/Publisher: BloombergNEF
Date: November 2024
A great status report of national progress across three policy areas. Spoiler alert: the UK does well, but could do better and particularly on buildings. The summary charts of policy areas across multiple countries are excellent and tell the story of patchy, and contradictory progress.
Tracking Engagement in the Global Private Sector
Author/Publisher: IIED
Date: 2024
Understanding public attitudes and behaviour as regards their engagement and support for the emerging green economy is important as so much lasting progress is based on a series of personal choices (and decisions). This study draws data from 10,000+ people across countries in Asia, Europe, Central and South America, and Africa and shows the difficult balance that needs to be walked to make progress.
Inside the Race to the Top
Author/Publisher: Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI)
Date: December 2024
These multi-country tracking studies are useful to provide a status update across four areas: renewables, EVs, other electrification, and clean tech manufacturing. The UK is middling: in the leadership group for renewables, but a clear runner-up as regards EVs and electrification. One skills point we’d make is that for clean tech skills to get to critical mass the UK would need to be in the leadership group across all four areas.
Partnership for Action on Green Economy: 2023 Annual Progress Report
Author/Publisher: UNEP, ILO, UNDP, UNIDO, UNITAR
Date: 2023
Covers 22 countries and provides insights into what they are progressing. Our interest was particular taken by the training programmes to build individual and institutional capacity.
Energy - General
Clean Energy Tracker
Author/Publisher: Clean Energy Tracker (CET)
Date: Ongoing
Link (online only)
We think this USA based tracker service is excellent, and it would be good to see the Office for Clean Energy Jobs consider a similar data collection system to underpin its own work and inform others about the levels and location of clean energy across the UK.
֎ Energy Security and Net Zero: 2023–24 Overview
Author/Publisher: National Audit Office (NAO), UK
Date: November 2024
For those pressed for time but wanting to know what DESNZ does, how it is structured and where it applies its funds. We wonder how the word ‘nuclear’ does not appear in its title.
Servitisation of Cooling: Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS)
Author/Publisher: Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford
Date: December 2024
An idea with potential, the servitisation of energy supply, and one that could be more widely developed for both heating, energy capture and storage, and cooling. Perhaps this could be a way to boost the uptake of key technologies.
Toward a Shared Zero-Carbon Energy Future
Author/Publisher: Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI)
Date: November 2024
A growing movement where communities take charge in developing workable renewable energy solutions. Countries covered here are the USA, EU, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, UK, and Japan. Shows the plethora of volunteers learning to master the way to boost local approaches. This is an under-covered area of the net zero transition.
Residential Energy Transition: Market State of 2024
Author/Publisher: LCP Delta
Date: October 2024
A Europe-wide, four scenario study across five domestic energy technologies (solar, storage, heat pumps, EV charging points, home energy management systems). But no mention of skills nor employment which would be great to see building on this analysis.
Energy Parks: A New Strategy to Meet Rising Electricity Demand
Author/Publisher: Energy Innovation Policy & Technology LLC
Date: December 2024
Energy parks offer a way of integrating multiple renewable energy sources with storage solutions and potentially co-located them close to points of demand. This paper takes us through the evolution of energy parks, and raises opportunities perhaps in high renewable generating points (e.g. Scotland) to attract new, high energy users (e.g. AI/data processing centres).
Electricity
Some Like It Hot: Moving Industrial Electrification from Potential to Practice
Author/Publisher: Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)
Date: December 2024
An excellent report on the net zero transition for high energy users in industry. Highlights specific skills challenges along the supply chain including businesses directly supporting users in steel, cement, paper, etc. Electrical engineers and installers are the two occupations picked out as being in highest demand and in shortage.
Net Zero Industry Tracker 2024
Author/Publisher: World Economic Forum (WEF) in collaboration with Accenture
Date: December 2024
Takes us through multiple high energy using sectors across aviation, shipping, trucking, steel, cement, aluminium, chemicals, and oil and gas. Really useful backdrop if you are seeking to understand the current status and the rate of progress to electrification and decarbonising hard to decarbonise sectors.
Electricity Market Reform Evaluation
Author/Publisher: Energy Systems Catapult
Date: 2024
The UK has an important and influential network of Catapults, and this report logically shows the key role one of them—Energy Systems—has had upon the electricity market and its reform. We would like to see the Catapults playing an even larger role in skills policy development for the transition to net zero as they bring with them growing networks of businesses, and a huge pool of expertise.
Energy Efficiency
Reforms to the Energy Performance of Buildings Regime
Author/Publisher: Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government
Date: December 2024
Energy performance rating of buildings has the potential to drive significant energy efficiency and reductions in emissions. The consultation period is 12 weeks and well worth tracking as it will probably drive a demand for skills.
Geothermal
The Future of Geothermal Energy
Author/Publisher: International Energy Agency (IEA)
Date: December 2024
The geothermal sector currently employs 145,000 people worldwide (versus oil and gas at 12mn), and there is a high transferability of skills from oil and gas workers into geothermal (like several other renewable sectors). Skills and its pipeline are well covered here (pages 70-73 and 125-126). Potentially very relevant to the UK with its significant geoscience capability.
Hydrogen
On Hydrogen
Author/Publisher: University of Manchester
Date: 2024
A useful primer on hydrogen and its applications across the UK economy.
Meta-Review on Hydrogen Heating
Author/Publisher: University of Oxford
Date: January 2024
Simple message here: hydrogen does not have a role in domestic heating. The economics does not work for hydrogen in this use case.
Scotland’s Hydrogen Potential – Export Plan
Author/Publisher: Scottish Government
Date: 2024
The workforce issues are noted (but only just) as regards the need to expand and transition the workforce to support hydrogen. This is an interesting angle not recognised by the hydrogen hubs in England. Given the chemicals, and oil and gas expertise in Scotland many of the key skills are already well established and known.
Renewables Supply Chain
Scotland’s Renewable Energy Industry: Supply Chain Impact Statement
Author/Publisher: Scottish Renewables
Date: 2024
Really helpful snapshot of a key part of the net zero transition, and for those wanting to understand the individual companies that make-up the renewable energy sector. From a data point of view, it also means understanding how forward skills demand (numbers and content) can be acquired quite quickly at the workplace level which can inform policy and funding allocations.
Solar Power
EU Solar Market Outlook 2024–2028
Author/Publisher: SolarPower Europe
Date: 2024
Simple message as regards employment: continued growth at 6-8 per cent per year. Sadly, the UK is not included in this report, but the country and country reviews are insightful highlighting how issues vary. We would point out that by far the bulk of employment is directly and indirectly Linked to installation, and this must peak at some point (in the late 2030s?).
Integrating Solar and Wind: Global Experience and Challenges
Author/Publisher: International Energy Agency (IEA)
Date: 2024
Simple message: integrate early and to plan for this bringing together solar and wind. This report presents a six-phase model of integration developed across multiple installations. The broader point for us is the flexibility and responsiveness of renewable energy once integrated across the whole energy supply chain (including storage).
Solarize Your Community: Residential Solar Adoption Guide
Author/Publisher: U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative
Date: 2024
We only recently came across this piece of work, and the role of pioneers and contagion in spreading the installation of solar panels from house to house, and road to road. There is a lot to learn here for UK community schemes and the pioneering role of Community Energy Groups.
Wind Power
Wind Power and Devolved Governments: A Coordinated Approach
Author/Publisher: Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)
Date: December 2024
Skills are seen as a major challenge across all stages of the supply chain, and the support infrastructure (e.g. planning), and calls for a workforce plan for the sector. Wind is a subset of the Clean Power Action Plan (in England) and needs to be integrated into other shifts occurring in the net zero transition. This also calls for a shift in education and training provision which is more compressed to support upskilling and reskilling.
Clean Energy Made in the UK
Author/Publisher: Uplift
Date: November 2024
Looks at the transition of the workforce into renewables, and in particular offshore wind manufacturing, which could create 10,000 direct manufacturing jobs and 13,300 indirect jobs. For us the important part of this report is looking at the long-term development of a core technology applicable across the world, and so of huge export potential. If this work is of interest it is worth also looking at the detailed work behind it done by Transition Economics.
Food and Agriculture
DEFRA Overview 2023–24
Author/Publisher: National Audit Office (NAO)
Date: December 2024
Really helpful guide to DEFRA and its role across the wider sustainability strategy, policy and its delivery in the UK. Also included is the helpful timetable for waste and resource management (circular economy) and carbon storage (tree planning and seeking to get it back, at least, to the 1971 levels which is 7500 hectares).
ELM Upland Analysis
Author/Publisher: Environmental Land Management (ELM) Program
Date: 2024
There are numerous schemes impacting how farmers can run their land: the Sustainable Farming Incentives, Higher Level Stewardship, Diversity Net Gain schemes etc. As soon as a scheme comes into place, there is a need for expertise, advice and skills. From our understanding of this situation, there is a need for a low cost education scheme to support this skills demand.
Agricultural Universities Council UK Research Strategy
Author/Publisher: Agricultural Universities Council UK
Date: 2023
Two aspects of this strategy struck us: the large number of farms and farmers engaged with research work (see Figure 12), and the increasing number of university-based staff involved in agricultural research. One of the major priorities is the establishment of a “what works centre” to share best practices. A Catapult for agriculture perhaps? Boosting the capability of the farming community (and supply chain) is critical if the biodiversity net gain options are to be realised. Contains an excellent annex of supporting evidence.
Transforming to a Regenerative Farming System in Yorkshire
Author/Publisher: White Rose Research Consortium
Date: November 2022
Uses a three horizons map to work from the present, through transformation and to the future for agriculture taking it into a regenerative phase. Neatly describes the turmoil much of agriculture is going through as it seeks to establish a new normal for food production, and valuing of food for health (which is growing).
Chemicals and Petrochemicals
Petrochemical Imbalance
Author/Publisher: Carbon Tracker Initiative
Date: December 2024
Challenges the four core assumptions which underpin petrochemical growth (all optimistic in the extreme) which might mean there are sets of transferable skills which could be applied in the transition to clean power.
Circular Economy
Financing a Circular Chemical Economy
Author/Publisher: Policy White Paper, Green Alliance
Date: November 2024
Skills feature here from a number of perspectives, from those needed to support the transition to those needed to rethink chemicals from a circular point of view and future. It will be good to track the work here and its future view over the coming few years.
Green Growth
Author/Publisher: New Statesman and SUEZ
Date: November 2024
Great to see communication documents like this bringing key people together (Skills Minister, Chris Skidmore, the Director General of the CBI), and getting the messages across around the potential of the transition to net zero and beyond to the circular economy. It is also good to see a consistent view across political parties and business.
Planning for the Future: Recruiting Diverse Talent into Waste and Resource Management
Author/Publisher: CIWM and Resource Futures
Date: 2024
The repair and repurposing sector is projected to generate 550,000 jobs by 2030. To meet this rapid rate of growth, the sector needs to attract new entrants and career changes. This reports explores this issue.
Beyond Linear: Moving Towards a Circular Economy
Author/Publisher: British Chambers of Commerce (BCC)
Date: 2024
Working with IEMA, the British Chamber has produced a policy-focused report which highlights to us the mindset shift required to really make progress towards a circular economy.
Construction and Built Environment
CITB Annual Report and Accounts 2023–24
Author/Publisher: Construction Industry Training Board (CITB)
Date: 2024
Always worth a read. On pages 18-19 we find the status of skills and skills development for the construction sector summarised. Net zero is present throughout.
Revolutionising offsite construction skills: a catalyst for industry 5.0 transformation in construction
Conference being run in 2025.
Link (online only)
Worth tracking this event as the papers covering the topic have great relevance to the skills for net zero and the retrofitting of buildings and homes.
Developing a Global Energy Efficiency Workforce in the Buildings Sector
Author/Publisher: International Energy Agency (IEA)
Date: October 2024
Identifies the key occupations and their certification requirements, covering not just insulation but also cooling.
Better Homes, Cooler Planet
Author/Publisher: WWF and ScottishPower
Date: August 2022
Detailed report into the core costs of installing key domestic low-carbon technologies (solar panels, heat pumps, EV charging points) with a series of case studies. Despite some progress there is clearly a need for a greater shift in the market for both energy and in the cost of installing low carbon technologies. There is also clearly a role here for the finance sector to develop products that help fund the process.
B5 Interim Report – Near-Zero Emission Buildings
Author/Publisher: Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction
Date: November 2024
Link (Google Drive)
Useful series of maps charting out the necessary competences required for the transition to net zero.
Design
Beyond-HCD to EarthXDesign
Author/Publisher: Grotzer and Cao
Date: April 2023
Design is central to the shift to a sustainable and circular economy-based world, and this paper describes aspects of this shift which we have been tracking for some time. The current work of the Design Council in developing the green design skills framework fits well with what is written here.
Engineering and Manufacturing
Engineering the Future of Sustainability
Author/Publisher: National Academy of Engineering
Date: 2024
Two charts here really caught our intention: the first covered the integration of sustainability agenda across all undergraduate programmes (Figure 2). The other was the rise in the number of $1 billion plus natural disasters since 1980: the growth has been huge with the biggest category being severe storms. From an education and training perspective the Stanford approach might have a lot to learn from the UK where environmental and sustainability education is starting to move from being specialist courses into being spread across all programmes.
Green Skills for the Manufacturing Sector
Author/Publisher: University of Bergamo
Date: 2024
Makes use of ESCO data and finds that almost half of 3,000 occupations include green skills. Also presents green skills for manufacturing across five categories, and highlights the need to consider cross-over areas with other technologies e.g. digital. We think ESCO is a useful resource for mapping green skills and their development across an economy, and their Links to occupations standards.
Finance
Financing Innovative CleanTech
Author/Publisher: EU Sustainable Finance Conference
Date: January 2023
We list this document as it relates the current call by the HM Treasury for input to the development of a potential UK taxonomy. Having a taxonomy is useful from a skills perspective and is very useful if there is commonality and agreement across the EU (and the UK). It is worth also looking at the International Sustainability Standards Board and the Transition Plan Taskforce Disclosure Framework.
Paying for Good for All
Author/Publisher: PwC and London Business School
Date: 2024
Our one takeaway from this is simple: ESG is important to attracting and retaining the skills required to operate and develop a business. But there is far more to the report than just this.
Metals
Testing the Mettle – Steel Industry Decarbonization
Author/Publisher: SteelWatch
Date: November 2024
Excellent guide to where steel companies stand as regards their renewable energy use. It would be really helpful if the next step was taken to see what skills have been needed to start and develop the decarbonisation of steel.
Nature and Biodiversity
Aldersgate Group Nature Briefing
Author/Publisher: Aldersgate Group
Date: December 2024
Slowly but surely, the role of nature and the skills that underpin it are being raised up in the UK’s net zero transition thinking. Here we see ecology and planning being identified as being important for Biodiversity Net Gain work undertaken by local authorities.
New to Nature – Groundworks Report
Author/Publisher: Groundwork
Date: November 2024
Describes New to Nature which is a national programme of work placements to boost capacity for nature restoration.
Decent Work in Nature-Based Solutions
Author/Publisher: International Labour Organization (ILO)
Date: 2024
While much of the focus over green jobs is on clean energy, we see here the potential of job creation through nature-based solutions across the world. The potential is for 32mn jobs by 2030 which is huge but consistent if we look at the employment numbers being generated for nature-based work in the UK (most notably in Scotland).
Scottish Biodiversity Strategy 2045
Author/Publisher: Scottish Government
Date: 2024
Sets out the outcomes and objectives to move Scotland to being Nature Positive by 2030, and restoring and regenerating biodiversity by 2045. Skills do get a mention here as regards boosting understanding and the development of positive actions. It will be interesting to see the development of capital flows into biodiversity net gain and how this boosts developments across Scotland (remember Scotland is 70% agricultural in terms of land use).
Nexus Assessment Report
Author/Publisher: Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)
Date: December 2024
Simple message: biodiversity loss has a huge impact and value to us all across the world. When we read reports like this we have to wonder why the positive trade in biodiversity investment and protection is not already well established. By extension, the ELMs scheme for farmers could be further developed through the BNG requirements of new developments, allowing a flow of funds into both nature and agriculture. The next five years could see this finally happen.
It’s Now for Nature Handbook
Author/Publisher: Business for Nature Campaign
Date: November 2024
Built on the core model of ACT-D: assess, commit, transform, and disclose. Provides a useful set of prompts to help any business think their nature strategy through, and by default, identify the necessary skills.
Regenerative Neighbourhoods – Urban Insight by Sweco
Author/Publisher: Sweco
Date: December 2024
Shows the power of taking nature into the whole design of the urban environment.
Caring for God’s Acre – Annual Report 2024
Author/Publisher: Caring for God’s Acre
Date: 2024
A charity both improving biodiversity in urban areas (in the main) and developing a skilled volunteer workforce. We could ask whether graveyards will become part of the drive to improve biodiversity and become a new income stream for local churches.
The Climate Dictionary – Nature Edition
Author/Publisher: UNDP
Date: 2024
A useful set of definitions of key terms associated with nature. Might be useful for those developing education and training materials in this area.
Parish Nature Recovery Toolkit
Author/Publisher: John Clare Countryside Project
Date: 2024
For those wanting to understand what nature recovery means in terms of actions. The report covers this and so helps to define the skills needed.
Plastics
Plastic Promises Scorecard 2024
Author/Publisher: As You Sow
Date: June 2024
Looks across the 6 pillars of plastic pollution prevention and scores corporations across 8 factors. Finds that only 34 companies can be regarded as being “top” from 225 in total (all listed in Appendix 1). Progressing a plastics business (producer and user) requires distinct skill sets, and the evidence here suggest that they are not in too much evidence yet across the industry.
Textiles
Circular Gap Report – Ireland’s Textiles 2024
Author/Publisher: Circle Economy
Date: October 2024
On textiles the infrastructure is poorly developed (awareness, collection, sorting, repair, reuse) and a key part of this is down to a lack of key skills and their application to textiles. Excellent report and a great resource when considering the circular economy.
National Textile Advisory Group Recommendations
Author/Publisher: Irish Department of Environment, Climate and Communications
Date: July 2024
Raises the skills gap for both repair and repurposing and identifies the potential role of repair cafes in skilling-up people to do their own repairs. Shows the potential and power of the voluntary sector in addressing elements of the circular economy.
Transport
ZEV Mandate Fuels UK’s EV Boom
Author/Publisher: Transport & Environment
Date: November 2024
Classic example of stick-and-carrot policies to force and support the transition from ICE to EV vehicles which, while being challenged and reductions to the ZEV Mandate, to-date has seen £23bn invested in EV manufacturing and the supply chain, with a further £6bn committed to EV charging infrastructure. It takes these levels of investments to drive the development of green jobs.
Public Chargepoints for Electric Vehicles
Author/Publisher: National Audit Office
Date: December 2024
Two-word summary: On Track. There are severe reservations, though, around geographic spread and access for disabled drivers (around 1.3mn in the UK). For us the simple message is that skills were not raised as an issue or a drag on the rate of implementation (300,000 by 2030) or for the super-fast chargers on motorways and A roads (ahead of target). Concerns still remain around charging rates, availability, and reliability.
Phasing Out Petrol and Diesel Cars – Zero Emission Transition
Author/Publisher: UK Department for Transport
Date: December 2024
Another consultation process asking 17 questions for a critical part of the overall decarbonisation of personal transport. Note this is for cars only and not vans etc. Our expectation is for some reduction in the rate of uplift of the sales levels (%EVs) rather than any other major revision.
EV Charging and Cross-Sector Implications
Author/Publisher: UK Energy Research Centre
Date: November 2024
Understanding the challenges to progressing the installation of EV chargers is important for those trying to understand and plan suitable training for EV charger installation and maintenance. This report identifies six major challenges but doesn’t walk into innovative charging solutions (i.e. multiple charging points from a single point of power supply from a lamp pole).
Global Maps on Onshore Power Supply
Author/Publisher: OPS Study Group
Date: March 2024
Here we see Southampton has OPS in place, Portsmouth is coming (2025), and Tyne is planned. Worth remembering that around 40% of the energy required by cruise liners is to meet the needs of the hospitality component rather than sailing. The changing OPS requirements also says ports need to have the skills to handle the decarbonisation of the vessels using their services. What also strikes us here is the opportunity for alternative energy sources rather than creating Links to the local grid network by using sea-based battery or nuclear systems, or local generation systems (like tidal). Alternative energy sources could reduce the draw upon the grid.
Key Transport Policies for Growth and Climate
Author/Publisher: Transport and Environment
Date: 2024
Covers EVs (cars, trucks and buses), marine and shipping, and aviation and makes a few references to job, high quality jobs and employment arising from green investment.
Port Energy Demand Model – Onshore Power Implementation
Author/Publisher: University of Strathclyde
Date: 2024
The report on onshore power systems and their implementation at the Port of Plymouth identifies several challenges and skills-related issues necessary for developing and transitioning to greener operations. Here are the five main green skills issues highlighted: Need for Specialized Technical Expertise in Onshore Power Supply (OPS) Installation and Maintenance; Integration of Alternative Fuels and New Energy Systems; Environmental and Energy Efficiency Management; Port-Specific Energy Demand Analysis’ and, Policy Development and Implementation Expertise. These areas highlight the demand for upskilled workers and multidisciplinary teams to support sustainable development in maritime port operations.