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How do you define the 'green' economy?
MNN blogger presents a framework for the green economy to be unveiled on a new website.
Fri, Jan 09 2009 at 1:06 AM
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Photo: Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
I'm excited to be working on the content strategy for a new website that will be unveiled at the Green Inaugural Ball in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 19. The website will set out a framework which defines the "green economy" and will call for video entries from companies and individuals who are creating new green jobs in America.
The way I defined the categories is based on the 5-part definition that Van Jones presents in his seminal book, The Green Collar Economy — energy, transportation, water, waste, and land management. But I pulled out an additional category from energy called "green building." Under each of these (now 6) categories I tried to keep it to 5 sub-categories. Of course its a starting point and will evolve, but for now it provides a helpful way to organize the many industry sectors that will be creating the largest number of green jobs.
Here are the 6 main sectors of the Green Economy:
Bio-Gas & Fuel Cells
Residential & Commercial AssessmentEnergy Efficiency Retrofits
Water Efficiency Retrofits
Green Products & Materials
LEED Construction
Fuels of the FuturePEV's (personal electronic vehicles)
Water RecyclingGrey & Rainwater Systems
Low-water Landscaping
Stormwater Planning
Salvage - 2nd Hand
Toxics Remediation
Brownfield & Superfund Cleanup
Sustainable Products - Packaging
Habitat Conservation/Restoration
Soil Stabilization
Although I am a great believer that the best and cleanest energy is the energy we DON'T use, I felt it was important to break out the building sector as a separate category, including energy efficiency retrofits, rather than keep it in the 'energy' category. This enables me to list out other job types like home energy efficiency retrofits (weatherization, efficient appliances, solar hot water, etc.) as well as plumbing retrofits and interior redesign using green materials.
There is a 7th category I'm calling "green markets" which would include carbon trading, green banking and financial investment services, etc. More to come...
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And what about chemical industry with its importance on the green world, the production of both bulk and fine chemicals. In the above mentioned 6 main sectors I do not see the green chemistry.
I love the idea of a Green New Deal. a set of plans to combat pollution and climate change, mirroring the New Deal, a group of economic plans and organizations established by Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression.
If I'm going to be 1 trillion dollars in debt, at least I can leave a cleaner country for my children.
I'd spend it almost entirely on green jobs...the last thing in the world I want is more roads built in more areas....I would build parks & sidewalks & clean up rivers & make our environment primed for the future. That's a green new deal i could live with.