The growing green economy
Fighting global warming, boosting your local economy, and creating jobs all at once

Green economy…green jobs…green manufacturing. You may have heard these terms, but what do they mean for Minnesota families? Potentially, a great deal.

In this context, "green" means "good for the environment." A green economy has developed with an increase in demand for renewable energy and its affiliated products and services. As demand increases, so do specialized manufacturing needs for products like wind turbines and hybrid cars, along with an expectation for manufacturing processes that produce less global warming pollution. And these specialized manufacturing needs create specific green jobs—jobs in renewable energy, energy efficiency, next generation biofuels, and innovative transportation. The potential benefits of this new green economy are far-reaching: clean energy products and technology, reduced global warming pollution, and thousands of new jobs.

And the green economy is growing. According to the Apollo Alliance— a coalition of business, labor, environmental, and community leaders working to catalyze a clean energy economy—as many as one in four jobs in 2030 will be green. In 2006 alone, 8 million jobs were created in the U.S. energy efficiency industry, according to the American Solar Energy Society. Minnesota is well-positioned to benefit from these numbers. The Blue Green Alliance—a partnership of the Sierra Club and United Steelworkers—recently reported that in order to meet current demand for alternative energy products and services, Twin Cities companies would need to hire roughly 8,000 more workers.

Here in Minnesota, the St. Paul Ford assembly plant—scheduled to close in September 2009—is the ideal site for a new green manufacturing facility. Using existing infrastructure, the plant could be used to make products like wind turbine blades. Currently, the Ford Site Planning Task Force is debating how to best use the plant after it closes.

Increased local attention on green manufacturing is due in part to the St. Paul and Minneapolis Mayors’ Green Manufacturing Initiative, which aims to:

• expand and convert manufacturing infrastructure to produce renewable energy equipment and other green products such as hybrid and fuel efficient auto parts
• advocate for economic development policies that promote green manufacturing
• promote energy efficiency in manufacturing to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gases

According to Lynn Hinkle from the United Auto Workers Local 879, green manufacturing at the Ford plant is a key part of the Initiative and a larger long-term goal. “Green jobs can be a solution for global warming and create greater economic equality,” said Hinkle.

Promoting solutions, promoting equity

Not only will green jobs and manufacturing boost our economy and combat global warming, they'll also benefit low income communities. "This green economy will generate thousands of business opportunities and millions of new jobs,” according to Van Jones, founder and president of Green For All, an organization advocating for local, state and federal commitment to job creation, training, and entrepreneurial opportunities in the emerging green economy. The availability of these new jobs, combined with equitable training and hiring practices, will create unprecedented employment opportunities for low income people.

Green jobs will provide even the most underserved communities the stability that comes from local, profitable industry.“We must insist that the coming 'green wave' lift all boats,” Jones says. “Those low income communities that were locked out of the pollution-based economy must be locked into the clean and green economy.”

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Fresh Energy works daily for smart energy policies and regulations that enhance our economies, protect human health and communities, restore our environment, and move us toward energy independence. www.fresh-energy.org