Publish at October 02 2024 Updated October 02 2024
We need to save the planet, that's for sure, but how? In the early 90s, the Brundtland Report, overseen by Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, highlighted the concept of sustainable development: "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" (1987).
For many years, this fine phrase has guided the speeches of many authorities, leaders and researchers, but has not prevented the deterioration of the environment. In the same vein, that of environmental protection, we have seen the birth of the concept of "green jobs" which, according to the International Labour Organization(ILO), "are decent jobs that contribute to the preservation and restoration of the environment". This other sentence is as beautiful as the previous one; but is it feasible? If so, in every region of the world, especially as the environmental issue is a global one? Isn't it a contradiction to want to create green jobs at a time of rising unemployment? How can we reconcile the fight against unemployment with environmental objectives?
Using mining in Africa and Latin America as a starting point, we will first demonstrate that there is a certain contradiction between the two concepts, and then suggest ways of reconciling them.
How can we ask people who are having trouble finding work to choose what kind of jobs they want to do? Very often, you have to survive, not live. In Cameroon, according to an article written by Mathias DJOUMESSI WAMBA and DONTSI DONTSI entitled "Contribution du capital humain à la réduction du chômage au Cameroun" and published in the Revue française d'économie et de gestion in 2024, the real unemployment rate would be estimated at around 74.6% in Cameroon. In Colombia, in 2023, the unemployment rate stood at 10.1%, according to the Statista website, and the poverty rate would be 36%. These aren't the worst places in the world, but the figures give us cause for concern.
With unemployment and poverty rates like these, the question of ecology in the workplace is a pressing one, but one that is not being taken seriously by the general public. It remains a slogan that appeals in the West, but has difficulty being implemented in other parts of the world, where the ecological consequences are just as visible.
In fact, according to the course "Fair and green: the ecological question at work" set up by the Global Labour University and available on the Iversity website, the biggest polluters come from the North, but it's in the South that the consequences are the most catastrophic, since it's in these areas that the lack of quality infrastructures prevents us from anticipating the consequences of global warming and the changes it brings.
In Colombia, mining, one of the most environmentally disastrous industries, is the main driver of the economy:
"In 2023, it contributed 25% of the country's annual income and 32% of total industrial production. Mining industry exports accounted for 35% of the total value of exports, reaching 16.2 billion USD (+4.5%/2022). The main minerals mined remain coal, nickel, iron, copper, precious metals, emeralds and materials for industry and construction." (Business France).
These figures speak for themselves when it comes to the economy, but are frightening when it comes to the environment. A choice is presented: continue mining and promote growth, thereby reducing unemployment, or put an end to mining? Catalina Caro Galvis, from CENSAT Agua Viva (Friends of the Earth Colombia), in a video broadcast as part of the above-mentioned course, after presenting the disastrous consequences of the activity on indigenous communities, believes that we need to think about the post-extractive transition, which is the only way to reduce the damage caused. It should be remembered that these operations are in the energy sector, which is likely to provide green jobs. In Cameroon, local populations are also involved in mining operations.
In eastern Cameroon, mining is a real destroyer of the environment. While artisanal mining had less impact on environmental destruction, industrial mining by the Chinese is wreaking havoc. In addition to destroying forests, toxic products pollute water and affect people's health, according to a France 24 report.
In such a context, you'd be tempted to ask people to give up, but they retort, "What's the point? These precarious jobs are the only way for them to make a living. Can we talk to them about green jobs? In addition to the local populations, the state, which subcontracts with Chinese companies, earns income from this business, and the environment pays the price.
Green jobs would find their niches in growth sectors such as renewable energies and the circular economy. While the latter requires enormous resources, the former is possible in a context where the authorities have the will. But not everyone can work in the same field. So, the first action is mainly linked to changes in government priorities.
Local populations in the countries in question do not have the capacity to seriously affect the environment in the context of their exploitation, which is very often artisanal and limited to the search for daily bread. It's up to the State to reorient its priorities and propose less polluting activities to communities. With the right transition, we could move from mining in East Cameroon to less polluting farming that would make the population self-sufficient in terms of nutrition.
How to convince people accustomed to a specific activity to switch to another without training. It is important to provide people with training in the targeted fields that are less destructive of the environment, so that they can be better integrated. To this end, a number of trades need to be promoted in training schools: renewable energy engineer, organic farmer, agroecology advisor, recycling specialist, waste management technician, ecologist, environmental protection project manager, sustainable architect, energy efficiency engineer, urban planner, environmental educator, sustainable development trainer, etc.
These professions can only be better understood by the population if awareness-raising within communities and in the media is carried out effectively as part of environmental education and the sustainable economy. This just transition cannot be made without the contribution of citizens. It's not a question of imposing, but of discussing and demonstrating the merits of actions.
Polluting companies very often find a favorable environment in a context of advanced poverty. Workers, often victims, have no choice but to work for them; this is mainly the case in the mining industry. As a result, tax incentives can be used to reinvest their contributions in the management of post-extractive transitions. Reforesting a forest destroyed in this way, for example.
In conclusion, trying to save the environment through green jobs in a context of unemployment can be contradictory. Insofar as we're asking people who are only trying to survive to choose a decent job in order to protect their environment.
However, if public policies take the issue seriously, a synergy of action with local communities, nature conservation organizations and workers' unions can help find sustainable solutions. The actions to be taken must be preceded by a reflection on the importance of an integrative and educational approach to combating unemployment while protecting the environment.
Image: Copilot, "Green jobs?
Bibliography
Mathias Djoumessi and Wamba Dontsi Dontsi, "Contribution du capital humain à la réduction du chômage au Cameroun", Vol. 5 No 5, Revue française d'Economie et de Gestion, 2024.
Edlira-Xhafa et al, "Juste et Vert: La Question Écologique du Travail",
https://glu.iversity.org/fr/courses/juste-et-vert-la-question-ecologique-du-travail
ILO, "Green jobs become a reality, Progress and prospects 2013", 2013,
https://webapps.ilo.org/public/libdoc/ilo/2013/113B09_76_fren.pdf
UN, "The 5 main factors fuelling the nature crisis",
https://www.unep.org/fr/actualites-et-recits/recit/les-5-principaux-facteurs-qui-alimentent-la-crise-de-la-nature
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