More than a century ago, fossil fuels provided power to our cities, transformed transportation and spawned new professions ranging from oil drilling to electromechanical engineering. This age was a watershed moment in human history, enabling enormous economic expansion and technical improvement. However, the fossil fuels that drove this advancement also produced massive volumes of CO2. This greenhouse gas traps heat in the atmosphere, causing climate change and increasing the frequency of extreme weather. The repercussions of these emissions have been more apparent, with rising global temperatures, melting polar ice caps, and increased natural disasters disrupting lives and livelihoods worldwide.
The social and economic costs of climate change are astounding. An estimated 120 million people have been forced into extreme poverty in the last four years alone, worsening global inequality and jeopardising the delicate gains gained in poverty reduction. The globe is still far from meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, with climate change offering substantial challenges to achievement. The linked concerns of climate change, poverty, and inequality highlight the critical need for a coordinated global response.
Multiple overlapping shocks have hampered countries’ abilities to combat hunger, poverty, and inequality, create resilience, and invest in their futures. The COVID-19 pandemic, continuous wars, and economic downturns have exacerbated the consequences of climate change, resulting in a perfect storm that hinders attempts to build a sustainable and fair future. Debt vulnerabilities in low- and middle-income nations impede economic recovery and limit their capacity to undertake vital long-term investments. The load of debt limits these countries’ capacity to provide basic services, create infrastructure, and engage in the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Climate change will increase the frequency of disasters, disproportionately affecting the world’s poorest and most vulnerable communities. As extreme weather events grow more regular, societies’ ability to recover from these shocks will be tested. Climate change poses cross-border threats to society and economies, threatening to overturn decades of development achievements and driving millions into poverty.
In acknowledgement of the high consequences of inactivity, governments and corporations have promised to reach aggressive climate change objectives, mostly through the transition to renewable energy. The global energy transition has already started, with renewable energy investment increasing by 40% since 2020, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). This increase in investment reflects a growing understanding that switching to renewable energy is both an environmental necessity and an economic opportunity. Like the fossil-fuel revolution before it, the green energy transition transforms how we heat our homes and light our cities and the huge behind-the-scenes workforces that keep the lights on.
The transition to renewable energy signifies a profound restructuring of the global economy. Companies at the vanguard of this energy revolution, such as Iberdrola, which has constructed millions of kilometres of digitised grids critical to bringing more sustainable energy online, have also invested in a new workforce for the new era. This vast project necessitates the retraining and expansion of the global energy workforce. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimates that the green energy transition could generate 25 million jobs by 2030 to support the expansion of clean energy infrastructure, the scaling of new technologies such as green hydrogen, and the day-to-day operation of the planet’s new power systems.
At the human level, the transformation represents a change for millions of workers. The ILO anticipates that 6 million employment in traditional fossil fuel industries will be eliminated in the next years. However, new employment in the renewable energy sector is projected to counteract these losses. However, new employment will necessitate skills that differ from those previously required in the fossil fuel economy. According to Boston Consulting Group, the green energy transition confronts a “critical shortage” of 7 million trained personnel, with the main gaps being solar panel installers, wind farm operators, and research and development engineers for solar and battery technologies.
Addressing this skills gap is critical for ensuring a seamless and equitable transition. Although companies can fill some of these gaps by retraining fossil-fuel workers to do broadly comparable green jobs (for example, teaching offshore oil rig technicians how to maintain offshore wind turbines), the entire energy industry must work to close a larger computer science and digital skills gap. The new reality opens up a new opportunity for data scientists, data engineers, and programmers who want to apply their skills—particularly their AI skills—to renewable energy. This trend towards digitisation is crucial because smart grids, predictive maintenance, and other technologies will be required to optimise renewable energy systems and ensure their dependability and efficiency.
Beyond IT professionals, energy firms want more individuals with advanced degrees to scale developing sustainable energy solutions like green hydrogen. Green hydrogen has enormous promise but is still in the early stages of development compared to wind and solar energy sources. Green hydrogen, in particular, has the potential to transform industries such as heavy manufacturing and transportation, which have proven challenging to decarbonise using current technology. However, achieving this promise would require enormous investments in research and development and training a new generation of scientists, engineers, and technicians.
The transition to a “net-zero” society and the aims of the Paris Climate Accord provide a chance for this generation to usher in a new era of sustainable global economic development. Ecological transitions that leave no one behind can significantly reduce poverty and promote inclusive and sustainable development. Long-term investment worldwide is needed to ensure all nations can grab this opportunity. Inspired by the historic Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, new economic models are required to reflect nature’s great importance to society. These models must balance economic growth and environmental stewardship, ensuring that progress does not come at the expense of the planet’s health.
Poverty alleviation and environmental conservation are inextricably linked goals. Just and inclusive transitions must guarantee that the poor and most vulnerable benefit fully from this opportunity rather than incur disproportionately high costs. Depending on their national circumstances, countries may need to adopt a variety of transition courses to meet the 1.5° Celsius limit set by the Paris Agreement. There will be no transformation without solidarity, economic possibilities, or long-term growth to fund it. Achieving a just transition would need technical and financial assistance and a commitment to social justice to ensure that all people, regardless of background or circumstances, have access to and benefit from the green economy.
