October 17th, 2008
Rick Hunter, a St. Louis homebuilder, says he’s always been interested in green construction, but in the past decade has become a true believer that green is the future of building. For him and his three-year-old company, Sage Homebuilders, a green collar job is the whole package.
“We’re small and growing quickly,” says Hunter, a co-founder of the 12-employee company. “It’s fun to see how many people want to be part of this movement. People are getting excited about green collar jobs. They’re meaningful. They make people happier in their jobs and make people feel better about what they’re doing. And you can earn a living.”
In St. Louis, Hunter says, green collar jobs are “absolutely the trend, particularly in green construction.” Sage Homebuilders uses green products in new construction and renovation projects, focusing on upgraded energy systems (like the solar panels pictured on this “Near Zero” energy-saving home).
As the country struggles with an economic downturn and job uncertainty, talk of green collar jobs is becoming a larger part of the national dialogue. Late last month, a national rally Green Jobs Now: A Day to Build the New Economy prompted events in 48 states. The rally, sponsored by Green for All, 1Sky and Al Gore’s WE campaign, focused on the dual cause of social justice and a green economy with events ranging from block parties to solution fairs.
A book on the subject, The Green Collar Economy, by Van Jones hit the book stores Oct. 7 and is already on the New Y
ork Times’ best seller list. The Oakland, California-based social activist and Yale Law School graduate is president and co-founder (along with Majora Carter of Sustainable South Bronx) of the jobs-oriented Green For All.
Both Green for All and Jones’ book promote an inclusive green economy that will not only be good for the environment but will help people out of poverty.
Sponsor 1Sky is a new national campaign which promotes federal action in combating global warming. Its scientific-based agenda urges that solutions be put into effect right away to avoid further climate change disasters and to develop a clean energy economy.
The WE campaign, started by Al Gore’s Alliance for Climate Protection, brings together advertising, online organizing and partnerships to inform the American people of the urgency to address the climate crisis.
So, what exactly is a green-collar job? According to Green For All, it’s a job that will preserve and enhance the planet. These jobs can be found in growing industries that will help reduce our dependency on oil, stop greenhouse gas emissions, remove toxins and shelter natural systems.
Think: People working in the recycling industries; green energy technicians; builders, masons and roofers with LEED know-how; solar panel installers; steel workers who make wind turbines; electricity company employees who counsel homeowners; hybrid car manufacturers; organic farmers; green landscapers; waste water workers; printers using green techniques; environmental science teachers and sustainability advisers in towns everywhere.
Green collar jobs will require some new skills or rethinking of old skills. Many green collar jobs are middle-skill positions that require more than a high school diploma but maybe less than a college degree. Not only are these jobs well-paying and career-tracked, but they are also domestic. And, says Van Jones, a green job should be within reach for the lower-skilled and low-income worker by giving them access to good training and support programs.
A green-collar job could include, for instance, cleaning up “brownfields,” abandoned or under-used industrial and commercial facilities, or even decaying open urban fields, that are available for re-use.
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