Green Jobs for Canadians

by Khaled Islaih

As governments, groups and individuals around the world work to ease the impact of climate change on our lives and planet, new environment-friendly policies, products and lifestyles are emerging.  This worldwide environmental awareness is accelerating demand for new jobs, new practices and new skills. In fact, it is creating a new economy driven by an emerging workforce and green technologies.

The growing green economy has many sectors including green construction, renewable energy, recycling, and sustainability education, which are responding to the increasing demand for environmentally friendly products and services. This article reviews online resources that can enhance green job awareness among career practitioners and job-seekers.

Green Jobs

One might ask, “What are green jobs?” Basically, any job that contributes to conserving and enhancing environmental quality and awareness falls in this category. To join the green workforce, workers and job-seekers need specialized or re-purposed skills that fit green-oriented fields. For example, a roof installer may become a solar installer or an electrician may become a building retrofitter.

Now is a great time for job-seekers to transit into new green jobs. By making this shift, they build a sustainable career future, earn a decent living and save the planet. Here is list of great resources for finding and learning about green employment opportunities in Canada:

• WorkCabin.ca is a great site to help job-seekers find environmentally friendly jobs or environmentally conscious employers. The listings cover many positions including coordinators, program managers, journalists, directors, engineers, biologists, educators, and social marketers. Users can post their resumes, connect with prospective employers, register for green job alerts and receive a wealth of information about the new trends in green work.
• GoodWorkCanada.com is another popular site for positions in the growing Canadian green economy. The site also lists green events for those interested in networking with employers and workers in various industries. Furthermore, the site has job search tips for landing an environmentally-friendly job or creating a green oriented self-employment opportunity.
• Eco.ca is an excellent website from the Environmental Careers Organization for anyone interested in green career development in Canada. The site provides students with links to educational opportunities, schools with environmental programs and information on new trends in the green job market. Job-seekers can search a large listing of current jobs available, post a resume and find information for networking events across Canada. This site also offers a unique email service for career advisors and educators to receive relevant information on green career development.
• Green-jobs.ca focuses on helping people build their dream jobs in the growing Canadian green economy. Users can find links to job search strategies, listings for green jobs and subscribe for e-mail notification about new jobs when they are listed.

The green economy offers hope and opportunity for job-seekers who have lost employment in mainstream industries. The sustained increase in demand for workers is a call to career educators. We need to invest time and effort in integrating a green focus into our professional practice and to advocate a green shift among clients and job-seekers. By doing so we not only help people and regenerate economies, but also help our planet. In other words, we can turn career development into a real opportunity for a planetary stewardship.

Khaled Islaih is a diversity trainer and workplace educator who recently re-purposed his career after completing a green economy course at the Transformative Learning Centre, University of Toronto. He was formerly an immigrant settlement worker and language trainer for newcomers to Canada. He can be reached by email info@smartdiversity.ca