Green jobs will soon take the professional world by storm by replacing the cliched ‘white collar jobs’. The question arises-What are green jobs? How can we encourage people to thrive in green jobs ? Green jobs (green-collar jobs, sustainability jobs, eco jobs or environmental jobs) are, according to the United Nations Environment Program, "work in agricultural, manufacturing, research and development (R&D), administrative, and service activities that contribute(s) substantially to preserving or restoring environmental quality. Specifically, but not exclusively, this includes jobs that help to protect ecosystems and biodiversity; reduce energy, materials, and water consumption through high efficiency strategies; de-carbonize the economy; and minimize or altogether avoid generation of all forms of waste and pollution. (ref- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_job)
It is rightly said “Environment isn’t something you have inherited from your ancestors , it is something you have borrowed from the future generations” It is imperative that the present generation realises the gravity of the situation and takes responsibility to work towards sustainability and growth. Being an eco-ambassador or a Good Samaritan isn’t enough ,one needs to look at the situation from a professional perspective.
What convinces a young man to bequeath his life when he joins an army-money, rank, position , power or the will to sacrifice for the sake of the motherland. The passion ,perseverance , dedication and commitment is just the beginning for a larger cause of protecting your country against an enemy. This is just a small parallel when one talks about saving the human race from annihilation and the tragedy is that one has to fight every commercial and environmental practice across the globe. Humans presume it to be their birth right to abuse and exploit all the natural resources and take it for granted that divine nature will continue to bestow its bounties on us .
There is no debating the fact that the clarion call of the day is ‘Save Mother Earth’. The youth need to be educated and motivated to take up this challenging task to ensure longevity of human race. Green jobs seem to be the ideal solution. It is rightly said “The best career advice you can give someone is to find something they love doing and then to find someone who will pay them to do that”.
The question arises ‘How to motivate and support young people to thrive in green jobs?’ Having said that ,education must aim towards sensitising the young minds towards processes which are environment friendly, sustainable and economically affordable. Processes and programs in the field of conservation of natural resources like water, forests ,bio fuels etc need to be taken up with the futuristic vision of having minimal depletion and continuous replenishment.
World wide organisations must conceptualise, draft and execute programs which sensitise, encourage and empower the youth towards this responsibility. Once equipped with the requisite knowledge they can take on the mantle of being eco ambassadors and execute these programs in their areas of work.Every organisation must make it mandatory to include one such profile in their scheme of hiring and make CER (Corporate Environmental responsibility) an equivalent part of their CSR program. This will ensure employability for the youth who are passionate about taking up Green Jobs.
Rewards and recognitions go a long way in motivating anyone.Corporates and the government alike should start working in this direction so that every effort is acknowledged and examples set like this become benchmarks for others to follow. Electronic and social media can play a pivotal role in spreading the message, acknowledging the efforts and highlighting the outcomes.
To summarise , every sector has to contribute in its own little way to ensure that the picture becomes perfect. Meaningfully saying that the youth takes up Green Jobs as a lucrative professional prospect and feels honoured to be the torch bearer in these difficult times environmentally. The onus lies with the present day governments , policy makers, educationists, environmentalists and corporates.
Show them the right way and the youth will happily , enthusiastically and zestfully walk the talk and lead the world to the right destination. Green will once again symbolise growth and prosperity in a sustainable way.
