U.S. Conference of Mayors Study Validate Green Collar Jobs

The United States Conference of Mayors released a report stating that 4.2 million green collar jobs could be created by the year 2038 if we gradually convert to renewable energy sources. In addition to renewable energy jobs would be created by opening fields like sustainable agriculture, and green building. The Mayors are right, if we calmly pursue this strategy, then there would be over four million jobs in 2038. However we don't have that much time. We must pursue this alternative aggressively, the writing is on the wall.


The leading presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama and many in the scientific community believe that 5 million new jobs could be achieved in the next decade. Senator Obama is closer to what we as a nation actually need. We cannot let this problem linger on for over two generations. Some in the scientific community predict triple this outcome if we aggressively pursue alternative energy policies, utilizing solar and wind power.

The report completed by Global Insight, Inc., states that currently 750,000 people work in the green collar job sector. This ranges from scientists and engineers to makers of energy efficient products. That is one half of one percent of total employment. Taking this report into account 10 percent new job growth would occur over the next three decades. That could make it the fastest growing job segment of this country.

This growth cannot be realized without a shift away from our current use of fossil fuels. This would be the main hindrance to this solution no matter how much growth we attempt to pursue from these methods. There must also be an increase in energy efficiency.

The report assumes that by 2038 40 percent of all electricity produced in this country will come from alternative sources, half of this electrical power will come from solar and wind energy. Thirty percent of motor fuels it is assumed will come from ethanol and biodiesel. There is the assumption that there would be a 35 percent reduction of electrical power use by retrofitting buildings to achieve optimal energy efficiency. The report envisions 30 percent of motor fuels will come from ethanol and biodiesel at that juncture.

The report states currently only three percent of electrical power is generated by the use of alternative sources (solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass) of energy. Nonfossil fuels (ethanol and biodiesel) are currently providing only 5 percent of motor fuels according to this report.

The conference according to it's president (Miami's Mayor Manny Diaz) feel that the investment of funds to bring alternative sources of energy to the forefront is a sound one and that it will pay huge dividends. They also feel that the federal government must embrace this solution as well.

The report states that the largest gains in employment would be in the use of alternative sources of transportation fuels generating 1.5 million new jobs, renewable energy according to the report would generate another 1.2 million new jobs. A little over 80,000 jobs would be gained in the industry that concerns making homes and buildings energy efficient according to the report. The gains in research, consulting, legal, and engineering would be around 1.4 million jobs.

The report was presented at a Mayor's conference in Miami. The main issue was that alternative energy must be embraced and most Americans would agree with that judgement. The time frame is the only point that even Senator Obama does not agree with nor myself. I feel as most of the scientific community does that the time frame for this solution should be the next decade, not the next three.