Green Economy

How are we (the American Society) going to move forward and live into the future? Will we have a legacy beyond trash? Beyond the short-sightedness of a consumer life-style? Is there a way to combine the all-mighty consumer behavior with a sustainable future?

The buzz words this week in the media have been green collar jobs. Both Demorcatric hopefuls have used the words, yet give over optimistic statistics on creating jobs in this 'new' job replacement for those displaced blue collar workers. The key thing that these two hopefuls are doing is feeding into the hope they have a source for jobs that not only will be good for economy, but good for the planet. While I'd like to believe them, the proof will be once time has marched on.

I have a dream that all sustainable technology will be affordable and easily accessible to all people. A bit a kin to Ford's dream that a car should be priced for every American to afford. Right now those things that are good for the planet, good for people such as organic food and solar panels are so out of reach for the poor. I sit and wonder, is this once again going to be a class struggle of those that have and those that have not. Right now I am amongst the have nots. I have a strong desire to expend less petroleum, but must drive long distances to gain my education. I desire to eat healthier foods, but a frozen dinner, which is overly processed wasting energy and loosing the nutritional value in which they must enrich it with nutritions costs less than a dollar where as to buy an organic meal costs much more. Not to mention that same meal has produced waste that now must be either recycled or left to the future generations to deal with.

Depressing. I know.
Still wondering about these green collar jobs? Me too.

MSNBC reports that "by 2030, nearly a half-million new jobs could be created in green industries." I don't know about you, but I need a job now, not in 2030. By 2030 I hope to be approaching retirement.

So I did a Google search for "green collar jobs" and got a rather large hit for possibilities. Here are some of the results that looked more promising:
Sustainable Energy Jobs
GreenBiz.com has a job link

Alternative Energy News has and article from October 17, 2007 on jobs. It is interesting to note that this article points out that Senator Clinton and Senator Sanders want to combine jobs and energy bills together, yet no federal grants for green collar initiatives have made it off the congressional floor.

Amongst this search I was very excited to land on a page with an academic understanding. "Green Collar Jobs" by Raquel Pinderhughes published on the web site for Urban Habitat under the site's Race, Poverty, and Environment sub section.

Business Week also talks about this movement in the economy in an article published on January 10, 2008. "Switching To Green-Collar Jobs" by Douglas MacMillan. This article gives some information on who are the types of people opting for a mid-life career switch.

You think only white middle class are getting into the Green-living activism or jumping on the green movement ban wagon? Think again some of the most brilliant grass roots movements for green living were born in the inner-city. And some just were born. An October 17, 2007 New York Times Op-Ed Column article by Thomas L. Friedman, introduces us to Van Jones. "Van Jones is a black social activist in Oakland, Calif., and as green an environmentalist as they come." The Green-Collar Solution is about one man and his innovations for creating solutions for more than just the environment but for the next generation to become empowered citizens.

Still need more information about what green living and equal rights have in common? Check out Green For All.

Want to know about what Universities are doing? Here's one place to start:
The UCSC Green Enterprise Initiative

Green collar jobs, I will suspect we will continue to hear as the new platform the candidates will speak hope of. I maintain that these jobs will be local, small businesses. That these jobs will be created with or without the help of the federal government, because our society has awakened to the facts that our only way of life is on planet earth. If we continue to consume and throw away and use only corn for our additives we will perish, not only as society but as a planet. We can not be like the pests that feast on a field and move on. There is no where else to move.