Green Skills for the Jobs of Today and Tomorrow: Building a Sustainable Future

/ Future jobs, skills, STEM / By

Across Australia and the world, the green transition is reshaping economies, creating new industries, and fundamentally transforming the nature of work. From renewable energy to sustainable agriculture, and from eco-tourism to circular manufacturing, “green skills” are fast becoming essential across all sectors. These are not only the technical skills required to build solar farms or retrofit homes but also transferable abilities like systems thinking, sustainable decision-making, and adaptability.

What Are Green Skills?

Green skills refer to the knowledge, abilities, values, and attitudes needed to live and work in sustainable ways. According to Cedefop and UNESCO-UNEVOC, they fall into two main categories:

  • Technical skills, such as understanding energy efficiency standards, managing renewable energy systems, and using sustainable materials.
  • Transversal (transferable) skills, such as environmental awareness, systems thinking, and circular economy principles.

These capabilities are increasingly required across diverse job roles, not just in traditionally “green” industries. For instance, finance professionals now assess environmental risk in portfolios, and construction workers apply sustainability guidelines in building design and materials use.

The Growing Demand for Green Skills in Australia

Australia’s net-zero emissions target by 2050 and associated state-based initiatives (like South Australia’s push for 100% net renewable energy by 2027) have accelerated the need for green skills. Sectors such as energy, transport, manufacturing, construction, and land and water management are all facing urgent workforce transitions.

Organisations like Jobs and Skills Australia are tracking these shifts, and resources like the Australian Skills Classification now help define skill sets that will support Australia’s low-emissions future.

Global Trends and the Cedefop Approach

The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop), in partnership with UNESCO-UNEVOC, recently released a practical guide titled Meeting skill needs for the green transition (2025). The report outlines how skills anticipation tools—like surveys, big data, and scenario modelling—can forecast the evolving needs of green economies and inform vocational education and training (VET).

Their findings highlight the need to:

  • Embed sustainability in all occupations, not just green jobs.
  • Integrate microcredentials and validation of prior learning to help workers upskill or reskill quickly.
  • Use AI and big data, such as analysing online job ads, to track the emergence of green skill demands in real time.

To explore this further, see the full Cedefop report here: https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2801/6833866

Education and Training for a Greener Future

Australia’s VET sector has a crucial role to play. Courses in renewable energy, sustainable construction, and environmental management are growing in popularity. TAFEs and private providers are embedding green content into courses such as plumbing, automotive, agriculture, and building trades. Microcredentials offer a flexible way for workers to upskill without committing to full qualifications, while Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) can accelerate transitions for experienced workers.

Some practical initiatives include:

  • TAFE Queensland’s Hydrogen Energy courses.
  • Canberra Institute of Technology’s Centre of Excellence for EVs.
  • TAFE NSW’s course on Energy Efficiency Assessment.

What You Can Do

Whether you are a student, worker, employer, or policymaker, here’s how you can get involved:

  1. Explore your industry’s green future: Use tools like Cedefop’s Skills-OVATE to explore emerging green jobs.
  2. Upskill or reskill: Look for short courses, microcredentials, or qualifications related to sustainability through MySkills.
  3. Embed green practices in business: Employers can incorporate green job design, invest in training, and partner with training providers to support their workforce transition.
  4. Support policy and education alignment: Governments and industry bodies must work together to ensure skill strategies meet the pace of the green transition.

As the green transition accelerates, green skills are not just “nice to have”—they are essential for economic resilience, climate action, and social inclusion. For Australia to lead in a sustainable global economy, green skills must be at the heart of education, training, and workforce strategies.

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