We spend a lot of time debating the number of green jobs that are likely to be created in the not-too-distant future. What will they be? By when? How many? Where? How can I get one? How will I know a green job when I see it?
The problem is that we're debating the wrong issue. There are no green jobs. A green job is like a computer job. Today, it is nearly impossible in contemporary American society to professionally advance without being able to use a computer. Basic computer proficiency is part of what it means to be literate in modern society.
The same holds true for the new green economy. What are often listed as green jobs are traditional jobs that require a new world view -- a new way of understanding the world around us.
A recent glance at an online green-jobs website, greenjobsearch.org, revealed the following jobs: inside sales associate, Bosch Solar Energy; senior operations specialist, Carbon War Room; development associate, Geronimo Wind Energy; lead power electronics engineer, Motiv Power Systems; and energy conservation coordinator, Tri-City Community Action Program. None of these jobs are new. They are traditional positions: sales, investing, land development and engineering. What differentiates them from the same categories of jobs 20 years ago is that these jobs require a fundamentally new understanding of local, national, and international realities.
So the question becomes, how can business best equip an entire workforce with the knowledge to perform in this fundamentally new reality? One clear answer is education. The University of Wisconsin-Extension, the University of Wisconsin-Superior and three other University of Wisconsin campuses has created an online degree: Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Management. It is precisely this kind of degree that will help us prepare the workforce of the 21st century.
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Because this is a very dynamic and rapidly evolving area, the degree and its eventual graduates will have to be nimble, flexible, and highly multidisciplinary. In addition, there are five-course credit certificates for students who either don't want to pursue a bachelor's degree or who want to try the program and earn some credit in case they want to move into the bachelor's degree.
Whether it's a certificate or a two-year program leading to a Bachelor's of Science in Sustainable Management, understanding the intersections of the systems at work -- natural systems, social systems, and business systems -- is critical to every aspect of how we live and work.
So let's not ask what the new green jobs are. Let's ask, what do I need to know to have a good job in the future? The answer to that question includes an understanding of natural, social, and economic systems. This understanding is part of the emerging new eco-literacy. In addition to knowing how to read, write, do basic computation and use a computer, successful workers will need to know a bit about science and, in particular, how natural systems like climate, water, and energy impact all the things we do in our daily lives.
Recent events in the Gulf further reinforce that we must all understand the long term impact of our actions on the environment. We all must not just understand this concept, but live it.
That's not a green job. It's everyone's job.
David Schejbal is dean of Continuing Education, Outreach and E-Learning at the University of Wisconsin-Extension in Madison, is a member of the Council of Environmental Deans and Directors, and serves on the board of the University Continuing Education Association.
