A global shift to clean energy will require a huge workforce with new skills, making investments in training and human capital essential to ensure a "just transition" where no workers are left behind.
About 25 million jobs are expected to be created from the energy transition by 2030, but seven million jobs will be lost, experts told The National on the sidelines of Cop28 in Dubai.
"The transition to renewable energy potentially gives rise to more job opportunities, but we need to re-train and upskill people and this doesn't happen automatically," said Olga Strietska-Ilina, the International Labour Organisation's area lead on skills strategy for future labour markets.
At the climate summit, more than 100 countries have signed the Global Renewables And Energy Efficiency Pledge. The countries will commit to work together to triple the world’s current renewable energy generation capacity to at least 11,000 gigawatts by 2030.
Governments and industries should collaborate to develop curriculums and technical and vocational training programmes for workers to help transform industries, Ms Strietska-Ilina said.
Also crucial are social protection measures such as minimum wages and inclusive policies that ensure women are not left behind in the energy transition.
"You need efficient labour market institutions so that the person can go and receive career guidance on where to re-train, for what jobs to retrain and that the person is actually covered by social protection," she said.
"If you lose your job today and want to re-train for another job, you need to make sure that you have some minimum income. This is why we speak about a just transition."
A just transition for workers would feature a comprehensive policy package, she said. That includes skills development, pro-employment macroeconomic policies, occupational and safety regulations, workplace rights and industrial policies such as renewable energy implementation.
"You need, of course, social dialogue because you need to understand what the stakes are for businesses, trade unions and workers and how to make sure that no one is left behind in this transition," she said.
Gender imbalance
ILO figures suggest that the greatest impact of the transition will be on male-dominated, medium-skill occupations and that current occupational gender gaps are likely to persist.
Women will get only a fraction of the jobs created, unless adequate measures are taken to train them in relevant skills, so that they can benefit from new jobs.
The ILO advocates for gender equality to be at the core of countries’ efforts in developing forward-looking and inclusive skills strategies for the energy transition.
"More than half of the green jobs opportunities are taken by men and in the future, most of the demand will be for middle-skill level jobs and the ratio for men and women is uncomparable," Ms Strietska-Ilina said.
The ratio of renewable energy jobs for men to women is 19 to 6, she said.
Enacting policies aimed at re-skilling employees for the renewable energy sector would depend on labour circumstances at a country level, a Cop28 delegate from the International Organisation of Employers told The National.
"People often like to talk about the private sector, but there are thousands and millions of companies out there, from big to small to micro," said Robert Marinkovic.
"Some countries are doing more than others. Some companies have more capacity and resources to do more than others. But what we're seeing is definitely not enough," he said.
The Geneva-based organisation is the largest private sector network in the world and represents the interests of employers in social and labour matters at an international level.
Mr Marinkovic said that nationally determined contributions (NDCs), representing a country's climate mitigation targets, often leave out references to green skills and technical education.
"When it comes to green skills, we're not seeing enough dedicated frameworks and analysis of the needs of skills," he said.
“We often hear worries about skill shortages and lack of appropriate competencies to enable the transition.”
Meanwhile, developing economies are struggling with the financial resources required to re-skill their workforce.
For Barbados, an island country in the south-east of the Caribbean Sea, the lack of adequate resources is a real problem.
"You're looking at skills, you're looking at occupational standards training...but you still need to have the resources to implement and train persons," said Sheena Mayers-Granville , executive director at the Barbados Employers Confederation.
"For small island developing states such as mine, our stories seem to get very similar," said Ms Mayers-Granville.
Youth and green jobs
Mining jobs, especially those related to coal, will face significant challenges during the energy transition.
Abruptly closing coal mines will leave millions of direct and indirect jobs at stake, with a major impact on the national economies, Ms Strietska-Ilina said.
While coal mining workers cannot be trained overnight, they may be re-skilled for jobs in the extraction of critical minerals used for solar panels and lithium batteries, she said.
The transition to green jobs will also attract more young people who are interested in climate change mitigation efforts and environmentally-conscious companies, she added.
More than half of Gen Zs (55 per cent) and millennials (54 per cent) say they research a company’s environmental impact and policies before accepting a job from them, according to Deloitte.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
T20 World Cup Qualifier
October 18 – November 2
Opening fixtures
Friday, October 18
ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya
Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan
Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed
Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed
T20 World Cup Qualifier A, Muscat
Friday, February 18: 10am - Oman v Nepal, Canada v Philippines; 2pm - Ireland v UAE, Germany v Bahrain
Saturday, February 19: 10am - Oman v Canada, Nepal v Philippines; 2pm - UAE v Germany, Ireland v Bahrain
Monday, February 21: 10am - Ireland v Germany, UAE v Bahrain; 2pm - Nepal v Canada, Oman v Philippines
Tuesday, February 22: 2pm – semi-finals
Thursday, February 24: 2pm – final
UAE squad: Ahmed Raza (captain), Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Rahul Bhatia
All matches to be streamed live on icc.tv
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
What is a black hole?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Top financial tips for graduates
Araminta Robertson, of the Financially Mint blog, shares her financial advice for university leavers:
1. Build digital or technical skills: After graduation, people can find it extremely hard to find jobs. From programming to digital marketing, your early twenties are for building skills. Future employers will want people with tech skills.
2. Side hustle: At 16, I lived in a village and started teaching online, as well as doing work as a virtual assistant and marketer. There are six skills you can use online: translation; teaching; programming; digital marketing; design and writing. If you master two, you’ll always be able to make money.
3. Networking: Knowing how to make connections is extremely useful. Use LinkedIn to find people who have the job you want, connect and ask to meet for coffee. Ask how they did it and if they know anyone who can help you. I secured quite a few clients this way.
4. Pay yourself first: The minute you receive any income, put about 15 per cent aside into a savings account you won’t touch, to go towards your emergency fund or to start investing. I do 20 per cent. It helped me start saving immediately.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company%20Profile
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Where to apply
Applicants should send their completed applications - CV, covering letter, sample(s) of your work, letter of recommendation - to Nick March, Assistant Editor in Chief at The National and UAE programme administrator for the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for Mental Health Journalism, by 5pm on April 30, 2020.
Please send applications to nmarch@thenational.ae and please mark the subject line as “Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism (UAE programme application)”.
The local advisory board will consider all applications and will interview a short list of candidates in Abu Dhabi in June 2020. Successful candidates will be informed before July 30, 2020.
THE CLOWN OF GAZA
Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah
Starring: Alaa Meqdad
Rating: 4/5
SPECS
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%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Juice%20jacking%2C%20in%20the%20simplest%20terms%2C%20is%20using%20a%20rogue%20USB%20cable%20to%20access%20a%20device%20and%20compromise%20its%20contents%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20The%20exploit%20is%20taken%20advantage%20of%20by%20the%20fact%20that%20the%20data%20stream%20and%20power%20supply%20pass%20through%20the%20same%20cable.%20The%20most%20common%20example%20is%20connecting%20a%20smartphone%20to%20a%20PC%20to%20both%20transfer%20data%20and%20charge%20the%20former%20at%20the%20same%20time%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20The%20term%20was%20first%20coined%20in%202011%20after%20researchers%20created%20a%20compromised%20charging%20kiosk%20to%20bring%20awareness%20to%20the%20exploit%3B%20when%20users%20plugged%20in%20their%20devices%2C%20they%20received%20a%20security%20warning%20and%20discovered%20that%20their%20phones%20had%20paired%20to%20the%20kiosk%2C%20according%20to%20US%20cybersecurity%20company%20Norton%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20While%20juice%20jacking%20is%20a%20real%20threat%2C%20there%20have%20been%20no%20known%20widespread%20instances.%20Apple%20and%20Google%20have%20also%20added%20security%20layers%20to%20prevent%20this%20on%20the%20iOS%20and%20Android%20devices%2C%20respectively%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
