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An Action Plan for Climate Change LinkedIn’s Global Green Skills Report

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Note: This is a GitHub site with information provided by LinkedIn. Your use of this GitHub page is governed by the applicable GitHub terms. LinkedIn's data is provided pursuant to the User Agreement. The data may not be used except as set forth in the foregoing terms.

The Problem

The Great Reshuffle presents a unique opportunity to tackle the most urgent challenge facing humanity: climate change. We have to enable the green transition and activate the jobs, companies and policies that power it. But we face a number of challenges.

The green economy needs to grow faster. In 2021, less than 1% of hiring involved Green jobs, and half involved jobs with no green skills at all.

There’s also a supply and demand problem on the horizon. Currently, the demand for green jobs matches the supply of people with those skills. But projections show that in 5 years time, demand will outstrip supply, meaning there is an urgent need for our workforce to level-up green skills.

At the current pace, demand for workers with green skills will surpass supply
Demand determined from share of green job postings. Supply determined from the share of members who have skills for green jobs.

Green Skills

LinkedIn’s unique data reveals that to make true change, we have to rethink the green economy challenge, and we have to start with green skills.

We developed a new green skill taxonomy and metrics to quantify the extent to which different countries, sectors and jobs use these skills. We call this the green skills intensity.

Many green skills are on the rise and are among some of the fastest growing skills in the economy. Sustainable Fashion, Environmental Services, and Sustainable Growth have all grown by more than 60% over the past 5 years.

But most jobs requiring green skills are not “traditional” green jobs. Beyond solar panel installers and electric car manufacturers, green skills are increasingly required in sustainable fashion, fleet management, and sales. To make the green transition, we need to increase both the number of jobs that use green skills and the extent to which those jobs leverage green skills. Green-skilling is needed to fuel greener jobs.

The Shades of
Green Jobs

We looked at over 15,000 jobs found on LinkedIn and split them into four categories based on their green skill intensity.

A solar electrician at work. The image is styled with a green and yellow background.
Green
Eg: solar technician
Green jobs are ones that cannot be performed without extensive knowledge of green skills.
A smiling person wearing a safety helmet. The image is styled with a green and yellow background.
Greening
Eg: civil engineer
Greening jobs are ones that could be performed without green skills, but typically require at least several green skills.
A person working at their computer. The image is styled with a green and yellow background.
Greening Potential
Eg: data analyst
Greening potential jobs are ones that could be performed without green skills, but typically requires at least one green skill.
A nurse poses with a syringe on a yellow and green background.
Not Green
Eg: nurse
Non-green jobs currently don’t require any green skills.
Not enough workers are being hired into green jobs
Percentage of 2021 hires by job category

Hiring of green jobs in the global workforce is rising faster than any other category. But together green and greening jobs still only accounted for 10% of hiring in 2021.

Hiring for green jobs is growing fast
Change in the share of hiring, indexed to 2016
Green
Greening
Greening Potential
Not Green

Trends vary across different regions and sectors, but the takeaway is the same: at this pace, moving toward a green economy will require workers to upskill in green and enter green, greening, and greening potential jobs.

Africa
Green
Greening
Greening Potential
Not Green
Consumer Goods
Green
Greening
Greening Potential
Not Green
Consumer Goods
Green
Greening
Greening Potential
Not Green
Africa
Asia
Europe
North America
Oceania
South America
Africa
Asia
Europe
North America
Oceania
South America
Africa
Asia
Europe
North America
Oceania
South America

Transitioning into
Green Jobs

Two workers wearing a safety suit are seen in action with a welding machine. In the background, there are solar panels and the chimneys of an electric plant.

The current pace of transitions into green and greening is too slow. For every 10,000 workers leaving a Not Green job, only 1 moves into a Green job. Greening the economy will require more workers making the transition to green and greening jobs.

Not enough workers are transitioning into green and greening jobs
Transitions across job categories

While more workers are transitioning into green and greening jobs than are leaving, the total number of workers moving into those jobs is still really low. Today, almost all green jobs are filled by those coming from green jobs. Transitions into Green from Greening and Greening Potential show some promise but are still well below what is needed to contribute meaningfully to a greener economy.

Yet we’ve seen plenty of workers successfully make the transition to a green job. Take a look at just a few of the stories of LinkedIn members who made the move.

Not Green
Green job
Avatar
Amy Morse
Environmental Marketing and Communication Specialist & Podcast Producer
Social Impact Coordinator
Environmental Marketing and Communication Specialist & Podcast Producer
I organized events in Washington D.C., and felt urgency to make a positive impact through my career. I earned a Master’s degree in public administration while working full time and volunteering. I networked with many people who are passionate about changing the world. While freelancing as a Social Impact Coordinator, a friend shared an opportunity to research creative strategies to help the Environmental Defense Fund communicate the climate impacts of methane. I loved the work and was hired full time. I like to say I was working on methane “before it was cool.” Getting my job was a mix of the right time, a robust network, and the right credentials. It was competitive, but I was inspired by EDF’s creative, game-changing work for environmental solutions. Now I produce a podcast about planet-saving careers and get inspired every day by people working hard to save the planet.
Avatar
Andy Wood
Subsurface Manager, Geothermal Operations
Subsurface Manager, Oil & Gas Operations
Subsurface Manager, Geothermal Operations
A lifelong environmentalist with 30 years in Upstream Oil & Gas, I came to a junction - to move up, or to use my existing skills and my passion for the environment to transition. I carefully selected my target industry, Geothermal Energy, but found the main obstacle in my career transition was moving to a small industry without structured professional guidance. I sought the advice of a Career Coach and Business Advisor and used this advice to discover a new role in a ground-breaking revolutionary company. Discussions around the benefits and pitfalls of the energy mix are fascinating and happening perpetually on LinkedIn. I take part regularly in these discussions and I benefit from a fantastic group of connections and followers who are interesting, insightful, supportive and enlightening.
Avatar
Karen LeBlanc
Senior Talent Partner, Bioplastics
Senior Talent Acquisition Partner, Gaming
Senior Talent Partner, Bioplastics
After a year and a half of navigating the ever-changing landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic, I found myself, like so many others, restless and yearning to do something different. I wanted to be a voice and ally for a more sustainable future not just in my free time, but in my daily work. A friend of mine made the transition from recruiting in the Video Game industry to recruiting in the climate space by joining Full Cycle earlier in 2020. When this friend reached out asking if I wanted to make a similar change, I knew I was ready because my immediate response was, “Yes!”. Some of the biggest challenges that face my role are the things that I really enjoy. Finding the right talent is key to creating a more sustainable future. When a company, such as Full Cycle, is not yet a household name, it’s a responsibility of the Talent Team to serve as Brand Ambassadors and spread the incredible mission of a company.

A Just Transition

The green transition offers us an opportunity to ensure not only a sustainable future for the planet but an equitable and resilient one for workers too. Our data shows that we have inequities emerging not only between countries but also along gender, age, and educational lines.

Inequalities in the green transition
Growth of green talent by group, 2016-2021. Green talent are workers with at least one green skill or in a green/greening job.

There is a gender gap and it is not closing: Globally, in 2021 there were only 62 women for every 100 men considered green talent – a number that has been stagnant since 2015 as green talent is growing at the same rate among men and women.

The age gap is closing: Younger generations are accelerating their upskilling in green, with green talent growing twice as fast among younger generations than among Baby Boomers.

The education gap is not closing: Green talent is growing faster among members with Bachelor's Degree or more, than among members with a High School Diploma.

The time for action is now.

  • Policymakers must commit to green skills, be their champion and prepare the workforce.
  • Business leaders must invest in upskilling current and future green talent.
  • The global workforce has to build green skills to power change and compete for the best jobs.
Cover of LinkedIn's Green Skills Report 2022. Read the full report

Methodology

This analysis represents the world seen through the lens of LinkedIn data, drawn from the anonymized and aggregated profile information of LinkedIn's 774+ million members around the world. As such, it is influenced by how members choose to use the platform, which can vary based on professional, social, and regional culture, as well as overall site availability and accessibility. All data represents aggregated information from the last 6 years. See the full report for complete methodology.

Privacy Considerations

This is a GitHub site with information provided by LinkedIn to help you discover potential career paths. While your use of this GitHub page is governed by the applicable GitHub terms, LinkedIn's data is provided pursuant to the User Agreement here. The data may not be used except as set forth in the foregoing terms.