Page 280 - Special Topic Session (STS) - Volume 1

STS429 Catherine S.

Greening with jobs
Catherine Saget
International Labour Office (ILO)

Abstract
Twenty-four million new jobs will be created globally by 2030 if the right
policie to promote a greener economy are put in place. Action to limit global
warming to 2 degrees Celsius will result insufficient job creation to more than
offset job losses of 6 million elsewhere. New jobs will be created by adopting
sustainable practices in the energy sector, including changes in the energy
mix, promoting the use of electric vehicles and improving the efficiency of
buildings.
Ecosystem services, including air and water purification-soil renewal and
fertilization, pest control, pollination and protection against extreme weather
conditions-sustain, among others, farming, fishing, forestry and tourism
activities, which employ 1.2 billion workers.
But projected temperature increases will benefit from net job creation: of the
163 economic sectors analysed, only 14 will suffer employment losses of more
than 10,000 jobs worldwide. Only two sectors, petroleum extraction and
petroleum refining, show losses of 1 million or more jobs. 2.5 million jobs will
be created in renewables-based electricity, offsetting some 400,000 jobs lost
in fossil fuel-based electricity generation.
Although measures to address climate change may result in short-term
employment losses in some cases, their negative impact can be reduced
through appropriate policies.
Urgent action to train workers in the skills needed for the transition to a
greener economy needs to be taken and provide them with social protection
that facilitates the transition to new a jobs, contributes to preventing poverty
and the vulnerability of households and communities.
Low- and some middle- income countries still need support to develop data
collection, and adopt and finance strategies towards a just transition to an
environmentally sustainable economy and society that includes everyone from
all groups of society.

Executive summary

1. Action to limit global warming to 2°C will create jobs
The long-term goal of the 2015 Paris Agreement is to keep the increase in
global average temperature to less than 2°C above pre-industrial levels. The

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