Policy Hub
An interim report published by the Global Climate Network (GCN) on 25 September 2009 argues that if governments are bold and ambitious in developing markets for low-carbon technologies, they will be able to maximise economic benefits and stand a greater chance of creating more jobs.
Early findings from the study suggest that creating markets for low-carbon technologies will in turn create new job opportunities and that these will be greater than the number of jobs lost in carbon-intensive sectors. The study also finds that the creation of markets for low-carbon technologies in one country will lead to greater opportunities in others. Interconnectedness means policy coordination is required.
Extensive reviews of literature and data analysis conducted by the GCN’s nine member think tanks point to the need for bold government policy. GCN’s analysis also suggests politicians should adopt a guarded approach to predictions of job numbers and targets and focus on measures to stimulate low-carbon technology markets. At present, all such data is uncertain and based on sets of assumptions that, as technologies and technology markets mature, may prove unreliable.
The report notes that examining the experiences of other technology sectors, such as information and communication technologies, reveals that the dynamism of technology is inherently unpredictable and that numbers of jobs created by prioritising technology could well be many times greater than current predictions suggest.
Creating opportunity: low-carbon jobs in an interconnected world (PDF)