INDUSTRY NEWS
Action vital for the green transition
A green skills shortage across the OECD is holding back growth in sustainable development jobs and could jeopardise the race to reach net zero by 2050 , according to a new OECD report .
“ Bridging the Great Green Divide ” shows the share of workers in green-task jobs , defined as jobs where at least 10 % of tasks directly supports sustainable development , grew just two percentage points across 30 OECD countries over the last decade , from 16 % in 2011 to 18 % in 2021 , with significant differences within countries . Without urgent action to boost skills , the green transition could deepen inequalities and threaten progress towards 2050 net-zero goals , said the OECD .
“ Capital cities such as Paris , Stockholm and Vilnius usually have a greater concentration of highly skilled workers , with the share of green-task jobs as high as 30 %. In comparison , this figure can be as low as 5 % in more remote regions . This difference risks exacerbating a social divide ,” commented the OECD .
“ The geography of the green transition is uneven across the OECD . There is increasing convergence between countries but increasing divergence within countries in the creation of green job opportunities ,” OECD Deputy Secretary-General , Yoshiki Takeuchi , said . “ Bridging this divide will be vital if we are to reach net zero by 2050 . Investing in skills and , with women also underrepresented in green jobs , tackling gender biases can pave the way for a just transition .” The green transition also risks widening the gap between workers . More than half of workers in green jobs have completed higher education , compared to about one-third of those in non-green jobs , and enjoy a 20 % wage premium compared with non-green jobs . Women account for only 28 % of green jobs , reflecting their under-representation in key fields of study — less than 25 % of graduates in engineering and less than 20 % in computing are women .
While men predominate in green jobs , they also make up 83 % of work in industries with the highest share of polluting jobs . n
Meeting the circular economy challenge
On 28 February 2023 , Women Innovators in Foundation Industries ( WINFI ) held its first in-person event in collaboration with the UKRI Circular Economy Hub at the University of Exeter in the UK . The aims of this event were to educate attendees on circular economy principles and practice for the foundation industries , bring together materials sector businesses implementing circular economy with early career researchers and inspire businesses and the next generation of circular economy enablers through interactive workshops .
Bruce Adderley , Challenge Director for the Transforming Foundation Industries Challenge , reminded the audience that resource and energy efficiency will have an increasingly important part to play in the UK ’ s drive to Net Zero , as well as scaling up innovative technologies and processes to support significant decarbonisation of these industries in a commercially sustainable manner .
Professor Fiona Charnley , co-director of both the Exeter Centre for Circular Economy and the UKRI Circular Economy Hub ( CE-Hub ), reiterated that circular economy requires systems change and how important it is to consolidate activities across different resource streams . The CE-Hub also looks to integrate other cross-cutting themes as enablers for circularity such as policy , data , design , business models and equality and diversity , which are important considerations for businesses in any sector .
Adopting circular materials management is key , as this creates and retains more value from less material and for longer , whilst closing the loop . Sophie Jackson , Head of Circular
Economy Strategy at Circular & Co , highlighted that circular materials management cannot be achieved without partners and cross-sector collaboration .
Lucy Crane , ESG & Sustainability Manager , Cornish Lithium , focused on resource efficiency and the environmental impact of the primary extraction industries .
Sonja Peacock , Sustainability Specialist , D . S . Smith , shared her passion and enthusiasm for sustainable choices and shared D . S . Smith ’ s ‘ Now and Next Sustainability Strategy ’ to address circularity for paper and packaging . Some of the company ’ s key circular economy principles include closing the loop through better design ( e . g . shape of packaging for more efficient transportation ) and protecting natural resources by making the most of every fibre ( D . S . Smith ’ s packaging fibres can be reused 25 times ).
The first workshop was a mini-Hackathon designed and facilitated by Debbie Ward ( Cirklo Consult ) and Clare Ollerenshaw ( Accelar ). The workshop focused on the role of different circular economy strategies and business models in reducing emissions , but to be conscious of other sustainability factors such as overconsumption , biodiversity and water scarcity ( for example ). Attendees split into teams to formulate an idea to embed circular economy principles into a new business model to improve a current product or create a new one .
The final workshop was led by Dr . Halid Abu-Bakr and Dr . Zaneta Muranko of the UKRI Circular Economy Hub ( CE-Hub ) who provided an insight into the principles of roadmapping to create a circular economy strategy . They highlighted the three main layers of a circular economy roadmap : drivers , actions and measurement .
Key takeaways from the event included :
■ The foundation and mining industries are often overlooked as they are incorrectly perceived as not being innovative industries . However , they form a strategically significant part of the UK ’ s manufacturing supply chain . We need to change the image of these industries to attract the next generation of workforce who care about the environment and want to make a positive impact in these fundamental industries .
■ Skills and education are key to enabling transitions to circular business models , not just technical expertise for the material or product but also expertise to consider the social , financial and regional impacts .
■ The circular economy cannot be achieved by any one individual or business . Cross-sector collaboration and strategic partnerships are vital to making a difference at scale for materials and manufacturing industries . n
16 | ismr . net | ISMR May 2023