Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal Coclusios ad Recommedatios SEPTEMBER 2010
Table of Cotets Foreword 2 Ackowledgmets 4 Coclusios Ad Recommedatios 5 1. Traiig for the Uemployed 7 2. Research ad Educatio 8 3. Traiig for Idustry1 3 4. Educatio ad Traiig for the Public Service1 8 5. Role of Civil Society Orgaisatios ad Professioal Bodies 21 6. Awareess Raisig 23 Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios
Foreword It is oe of the paradoxes of ecoomic developmet that, as ecoomies begi to recover, skill shortages emerge eve i the presece of high uemploymet. There is a steady stream of stories from Germay ad other coutries ow emergig from recessio to the effect that firms i high growth areas are sufferig from skill shortages ad the iability to meet opportuities because they ca t fid people with the right skills, aptitudes ad ambitio to meet their expadig requiremets. The market of course will go some way to solvig this problem o its ow, as firms ivest i traiig to meet their eeds, ad recruit from other coutries where the labour supply better fits their requiremets. But they will uder ivest i traiig, because ofte they ca t get the retur o their ivestmet, as those with the right skills are attracted to other compaies. Ad this problem is especially acute i the case of small compaies, whose viability could be threateed if they devote sigificat resources to traiig of staff who the move o. This is the situatio we fid i the emergig gree areas of the ecoomy, where meetig ew opportuities require traiig, but the icetives for the market o its ow to provide it are isufficiet i certai cases. The aalysis ad recommedatios i this report are desiged to address this skills gap, but we propose that it be doe i ways that miimise the costs of itervetio. This is achieved by recommedig that the various iitiatives ad ifrastructures already i place be adapted to address this opportuity, rather tha proposig major ew schemes. But meetig the skill eeds of this emergig ecoomy is oly relevat if policies cotiue to support the evolutio of the Irish ecoomy towards a sustaiable future. Ad this requires that we cotiue to keep policy focused o the four I s ; Ivestmet i supportive ifrastructure [the grid, water meterig ad gree ifrastructure (ature ad ecosystem services) are key]; Icetives (carbo tax ad water pricig are essetial if there is to be sustaiable icome for eterprises ad idividuals who 2 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
reduce their pressures o the eviromet), Iformatio (cosumers ad producers eed the right iformatio at the right time o performace smart meters for water ad power are essetial if care ad parsimoy are to be rewarded ad waste pealised) ad Iovatio (to create ad sustai eterprise we eed export busiesses, ad these are oly possible with ew ad better ideas). I am grateful to Eoi McLoughli who has led this effort from the staff side, ad his steerig committee ad all the others who provided iput ad advice. If the recommedatios are acted upo, it will simultaeously help us all make the trasitio to a more productive coutry with more jobs ad a better eviromet. Frak J. Covery Chairperso, Comhar Sustaiable Developmet Coucil Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 3
Ackowledgmets Comhar SDC would like to gratefully ackowledge the iput of experts ad stakeholders that have provided valuable cotributios to this report. Firstly we would like to thak Co Gregg of Publica Cosultig for udertakig the primary research ad also the members of the project steerig group, Eoi McLoughli (Comhar SDC), Cathy Maguire (Comhar SDC), Noel Casserly (Comhar SDC), Etha Diver (Letterkey Istitute of Techology) ad Liam Berey (Irish Cogress of Trade Uios). We also wish to thak ad show our appreciatio to members of the Comhar Coucil for their support ad feedback ad pay particular recogitio to all those that atteded the project workshop which provided may useful isights ad key iputs for the report. 4 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
Coclusios ad Recommedatios Sustaiable developmet ad the eed to move towards becomig a low-carbo ad resource efficiet society is a evolvig area of policy ad of actio by govermets, idustry, providers of educatio ad traiig ad others. Iteratioally, while the topic is see as beig of critical importace to future patters of employmet, policy-makers are oly startig to get to grips with the skills implicatios. This ca be see i a profusio of reports from iteratioal bodies, from govermets ad from iterested atioal groups o differet aspects of gree jobs ad gree skills. This report seeks to add to the evidece base by examiig the role of the skills ad traiig sector i supportig a Gree New Deal for Irelad. This was a area idetified as requirig further research i Comhar SDC s origial Gree New Deal report 2. The curret report makes twety-oe recommedatios i total which are grouped uder six key category headigs ragig from research ad educatio to traiig for idustry. A large part of the requiremet which has bee idetified is for measures to reshape existig provisio, or to leverage curret resources to provide differet courses tha at preset, ad does ot iheretly require sigificat additioal expediture. It is importat to bear i mid that the skills ad traiig required to implemet the Gree New Deal is ot just a matter for Cetral Govermet. There are a wide rage of other parties such as idustry, higher ad further educatio istitutios, Local Govermet as well as civil society orgaisatios that all have importat roles to play. The Coclusios ad Recommedatios o the Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal are summarised i this documet. The full report is available o the Comhar SDC website at www.comharsdc.ie 2 http://www.comharsdc.ie/_files/2009_towardsgndirelad_rpt.pdf Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 5
The curret work of Comhar SDC i this area is about developig recommedatios as to how to advace each of these differet elemets to esure a itegrated delivery of a skills ad traiig programme that supports the realisatio of a more sustaiable Irelad. Specifically, the research addresses a umber of key aspects related to the skills ageda focused across a rage of differet policy areas. The aalysis icludes providig a qualitative ad quatitative assessmet of the type ad volume of skills that may be required ad the establishmet of the baselie situatio i Irelad regardig the curret provisio of courses ad istitutios ivolved i deliverig skills ad traiig i this area. Based o this assessmet a aalysis is the carried out idetifyig possible key skills gaps that may impede progress i our attempts to trasitio towards becomig a low-carbo ad more resource efficiet society. The research also cosiders suitable policy optios, fiacig mechaisms ad awareess raisig activities for Irelad to develop best practice i this area as well as providig guidace for future work i this field. 6 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
1. Traiig for the Uemployed FÁS is the pricipal body directly ivolved i traiig for the uemployed with some Skillets beig active i the area as well. There are also iitiatives i the further ad higher educatio sectors desiged to take people who are uemployed back ito educatio. The curret Labour Market Activatio Programme is iteded to brig more providers of educatio ad traiig ito provisio for the uemployed. FÁS provisio for the uemployed already targets the skills eeded for retrofittig of existig residetial property, providig substatial umbers of uemployed people from the costructio trades the skills they eed to udertake retrofittig work. Recommedatio 1: Educatio ad traiig providers movig ito provisio targeted o the uemployed should take accout of the great variety of skills eeds that arise from the Gree New Deal. Amogst the areas that deserve attetio are: Eergy maagemet for busiesses. Gree procuremet, carbo accoutig ad carbo maagemet. Techicia ad egieerig skills for reewable eergy. Sustaiable developmet. Skills for water ad waste water ifrastructure. Biodiversity ad Gree Ifrastructure skills for parks ad other public lads. Specialist costructio skills relevat to ifrastructure such as Metro North. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 7
Recommedatio 2: The Departmet of the Eviromet, Heritage ad Local Govermet ad Comhar SDC should work with IBEC ad other busiess represetative orgaisatios to develop a programme of graduate placemets focused o sustaiability ad evirometal maagemet. The programme should iclude a system of metorig for participats ad might possibly lead to the award of a Masters level qualificatio aalogous to that available to participats i the Export Orietatio Programme supported by the Departmet of Eterprise, Trade ad Iovatio. Where there are already existig graduate schemes i place i the field of sustaiability it is importat that these be maitaied ad stregtheed. 2. Research ad Educatio Oe of the emergig ad positive fidigs from this research is that the Irish educatio sector is already respodig o may differet frots to the skills demads posed by the Gree New Deal. Key amog the developmets already uderway are: Adaptig existig courses i areas icludig civil egieerig, buildig services egieerig, costructio studies, architecture, mechaical ad productio egieerig to place a greater emphasis o eergy efficiecy ad (i some cases) o deploymet of reewable eergy techologies. New courses, at levels from 6 to 9 i the Natioal Framework of Qualificatios, i areas icludig wid eergy, broader reewable eergy techologies, eergy maagemet ad evirometal maagemet, with some of these courses beig ab-iitio courses desiged for studets first eterig college, ad others beig addo or masters qualificatios desiged to eable studets with a existig higher educatio qualificatio to specialise. 8 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
A sigificatly icreased level of provisio i electrical egieerig. Research i electricity geeratio ad distributio. Research i ocea eergy. Cross-discipliary research i trasport studies. Recommedatio 3: Research fudig bodies should cotiue to grow the volume of research curretly takig place i Gree New Deal related areas, most otably i the eergy field, as a meas to drive the availability of people with very high levels of skill ad kowledge i these domais. A umber of higher educatio istitutios are usig sustaiability ad reewable eergy as guidig themes for future developmet. Comhar SDC welcomes this ad ecourages other istitutios to focus o sustaiability i their future plaig. Recommedatio 4: The followig specific areas have bee idetified uder this research where additioal ew provisio should be developed i higher educatio. These iclude: Trasport studies (cross-discipliary - egieerig/ecoomics/social scieces). Evirometal maagemet. Ecoomics of sustaiability. Optios i computig degrees to specialise i IT systems for reewable eergy, electricity etwork maagemet ad evirometal maagemet. Courses itegratig biodiversity with horticulture/agriculture/ forestry to provide professioal level skills to implemet the Gree Ifrastructure ageda. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 9
Itegratig carbo accoutig ad carbo maagemet ito busiess, egieerig ad applied sciece qualificatios where this fits with the theme of the qualificatio. New provisio i these areas should be achieved through a combiatio of modificatios to existig courses, ew udergraduate qualificatios, specialist add-o qualificatios at Istitutes of Techology, ad taught masters ad postgraduate diploma courses. There is a eed to itegrate sustaiability throughout the educatio system, icludig at primary ad secodary level. I Irelad, the Departmet for Educatio ad Skills has resposibility for developig a atioal strategy for Educatio for Sustaiable Developmet. While a cosultatio has bee held aroud a draft, the Natioal Strategy has ot yet bee published. I the UK, the Higher Educatio Academy is ruig a Educatio for Sustaiable Developmet (ESD) Project, to help istitutios ad subject commuities develop curricula ad pedagogy that will give studets the skills ad kowledge to live ad work sustaiably. There is a eed for a similar iitiative i Irelad. Recommedatio 5: Irelad should implemet the Uited Natios Educatio for Sustaiable Developmet ageda through a Natioal Educatio Strategy for Sustaiable Developmet. This should be led by the Departmet of Educatio ad Skills ad carried out i partership with key stakeholders such as Comhar SDC, the Higher Educatio Authority, the Irish Uiversities Associatio, the Istitutes of Techology Irelad ad the Higher Educatio Traiig Awards Coucil. There is a eed to re-examie the suite of appreticeships curretly available i the cotext of the skills requiremets associated with the 10 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
Gree New Deal. I may cases, the requiremet will be to rebalace existig programmes to place a greater emphasis o areas that are growig i importace. These iclude: Wall isulatio (ew build ad retrofittig) for blocklayers ad plasterers. Heatig cotrols ad reewable eergy techologies for electricias ad plumbers. Skills i eergy maagemet ad possibly eve some busiess skills relevat to retrofittig for craftspeople likely to get ivolved i domestic retrofittig. Electric vehicles for mechaics. Eergy efficiecy for fitters. As may Gree New Deal costructio jobs ca be delivered most efficietly by people whose skills cut across traditioal craft boudaries, the possibility of itroducig ew multidiscipliary appreticeships should be cosidered. Recommedatio 6: FÁS should take accout of the chagig skills eeds i a rage of craft occupatios that arise from developmets i the Gree New Deal whe updatig appreticeships. FÁS should cosider the possibility of itroducig ew multidiscipliary appreticeships. At further educatio level, there is a eed to brig the priciples of biodiversity ito horticulture ad related qualificatios, ad ito relevat commuity employmet iitiatives, i order to build the hads-o skills eeded to implemet the Gree Ifrastructure ageda i parks ad o other publicly owed lads, ad i order to equip those workig i horticulture i the private sector to take proper accout of biodiversity i their work. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 11
Recommedatio 7: A sustaiable developmet iitiative should be pursued joitly by Comhar SDC, as the body takig the lead o the Gree Ifrastructure Ageda, FETAC ad the mai Further Educatio providers active i areas relevat to the Gree New Deal ageda, to brig a sustaiability perspective ad biodiversity cotet ito the descriptors behid relevat further educatio ad traiig qualificatios, ad i order to implemet these i course delivery. Uder curret ecoomic ad fudig coditios, it will be difficult for higher educatio istitutios to fud ivestmet i resources, icludig equipmet ad software liceses, required to establish ad expad provisio relevat to areas of the Gree New Deal. Recommedatio 8: The Departmet of Educatio ad Skills should provide a modest fud to assist higher educatio ad further educatio istitutios i fiacig equipmet ad software liceses eeded to itroduce or expad educatioal provisio i disciplies relevat to the Gree New Deal. The fud should be allocated o a competitive basis ad part should be rig-feced for further educatio, to balace the greater experiece of higher educatio istitutios i competitios for fudig. The educatio sector should be a major provider of courses for those i employmet, whether for people studyig part time o their ow iitiative, or for busiesses, busiess groups ad others commissioig courses for idustry. Recommedatio 9: Educatio istitutios should provide part time ad flexible learig study optios i courses relevat to the Gree New Deal where feasible. 12 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
3. Traiig for Idustry The mai resposibility for cotiuig educatio ad traiig for people i employmet lies with their employers. The proper role of the State is limited to offsettig market failures i areas where this is importat for policy reasos. I the case of idustries i which small ad medium eterprises (SMEs) have a sigificat presece, this ca be to help overcome the tedecy of smaller compaies to uder-trai. I the case of fast-emergig idustries, it ca be to speed the creatio of the educatio ad traiig services that these idustries eed. Both of these justificatios for itervetio are relevat to substatial segmets of private busiesses that will be ivolved i deliverig the Gree New Deal. This is why it is reasoable that the State should assist private busiesses through mechaisms such as fiacial support for traiig etworks. However, the logic for public itervetio i cotiuig educatio ad traiig is much less compellig where the mai players are large, well resourced ad/or already highly capable. Such busiesses are typically capable of idetifyig their ow skills ad traiig eeds accurately, ad of sourcig the educatio ad traiig itervetios they require reasoably efficietly. Recommedatio 10: It is importat that busiesses active i Gree New Deal related areas should place a high priority o providig the traiig ad educatio their people eed to optimally meet their skills eeds. This may ivolve makig use of ay of a wide rage of learig strategies, icludig: Provisio of classroom-based traiig. Provisio of hads-o ad o-the-job traiig. Support for participatio i part-time educatio. Use of e-learig ad bleded learig services. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 13
Participatio i less formal approaches to learig, icludig cofereces, busiess etworks, metorig, site visits ad other such strategies. Where available ad relevat, busiesses should participate actively i idustry traiig etworks. The Departmet of Eterprise, Trade ad Iovatio should take a lead i esurig that there is a structure i place to provide traiig for each idustry sector that will play a substatial role i the delivery of the Gree New Deal. Sice the establishmet of Skillets, idustry traiig etworks have prove to be a practical ad successful mechaism for eablig Irish idustry sectors (ad busiess groups orgaised alog other lies too) to meet their ow traiig eeds. It is particularly useful i sectors with sigificat umbers of small ad medium eterprises that have difficulty i idetifyig ad sourcig all the traiig they eed idepedetly at a affordable cost. The Wid Skillet has prove the worth of this approach i buildig the capability of oe major idustry o which the Gree New Deal relies. The idustry etwork model eables busiesses to cooperate i securig the traiig they eed by part-fudig the admiistrative costs ad the direct costs of provisio. While this imposes a cost o the public purse, this cost is ofte mior relative to the scale of the public iterest i developig the idustry. There are proposals from participats i existig etworks ivolvig idustry ad civil society orgaisatios to establish regioal bases for sustaiability traiig. A Sustaiability Traiig Network Scheme could support oe or more such bases o a pilot basis. If the results were sufficietly positive, they could seek more permaet fudig from aother source. 14 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
Recommedatio 11: I each idustry sector where developig employee ad maagemet skills is importat to implemetig the Gree New Deal, where the idustry is well equipped to take a lead i its ow developmet, ad where other suitable mechaisms for provisio are ot already available, the Departmet of Eterprise, Trade ad Iovatio should esure that resources are available to establish ad operate a idustry traiig etwork. The decisio to provide resources to a etwork should be based o the eed for traiig i the idustry sector to progress the trasitio to sustaiability i Irelad ad o the capability of the proposed etwork to deliver o meetig this eed. It should ot deped o the outcome of competitio with idustry etworks pursuig other goals. To allow this, a ew Sustaiability Idustries traiig etwork scheme should be established, aalogous to the Fiuas fiacial services idustries traiig etwork scheme. Networks fuded uder the ew scheme would cotiue to operate idepedetly of each other, i keepig with arragemets uder existig traiig etwork schemes, although uder policy guidelies set by the Departmet of Eterprise, Trade ad Iovatio. Value for moey cosideratios suggest that, as with the Fiuas scheme which fuds four etworks, the Sustaiability Idustries traiig etwork scheme should be maaged by Skillets. Sustaiability idustry sectors i which etworks are required iclude, but are ot ecessarily limited to: Wid ad ocea eergy (curretly covered by the Wid Skillet) Biomass eergy (existig applicatio to Skillets) ad possibly: Sustaiable supply chai (carbo accoutig, carbo maagemet, developig, marketig ad sellig sustaiable products ad services) Smart trasport Residetial eergy efficiecy Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 15
Idustrial ad commercial eergy efficiecy Microgeeratio ad small scale reewables Water ad waste water maagemet ad techologies Electric vehicles Oe or more of a rage of export-orieted gree eterprise areas such as ocea eergy techologies, or sustaiable iformatio techologies Idustry traiig etworks are suited to arragig for the delivery of a wide variety of forms of traiig, from semiars ad short courses up to major qualificatios accredited by HETAC or FETAC. Where there is a importat gap i provisio i a fast-developig Gree New Deal activity, where a iterested State Agecy (such as SEAI or FÁS) is substatially better positioed tha the idustry itself or a educatio or traiig provider to develop ad promote traiig to bridge the gap, it is desirable that the Agecy should do this. I may cases, the requiremet will be limited to developig the traiig, ad gettig ivolved i approvig ad quality assurig providers, with the ogoig costs of provisio beig paid by busiesses participatig i the traiig. I cases where the traiig forms part of a strategy to improve capabilities rapidly, there may be a case for a part of the cost of traiig to be covered by the Agecy. 16 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
Recommedatio 12: There is a idetified traiig eed for etrepreeurs ad maagers of compaies ivolved i residetial retrofittig for eergy efficiecy to raise the stadard of maagemet, so as to esure that all busiesses registered to udertake work of this ature are capable of: Providig soud ad comprehesive advice to householders. Deliverig projects to a cosistetly high stadard, both i techical terms ad i terms of customer satisfactio. Operatig efficietly with a miimum of rework. Marketig ad sellig eergy efficiecy services to householders. As the Sustaiable Eergy Authority of Irelad (SEAI) plays a cetral role i developig the residetial eergy efficiecy retrofittig idustry, it should have resposibility for esurig that this gap i provisio is bridged. Recommedatio 13: SEAI also has a cetral role i promotig microgeeratio ad residetial ad commercial reewable heat ad CHP, so it should also have resposibility for esurig that ay gaps i provisio for the sector are bridged. FÁS has a history of bridgig gaps i traiig provisio for idustry i the evirometal skills area, by developig courses for which the costs of direct provisio are covered by participats. This has arise partly because may of the skills required are related to costructio, ad FÁS has a log history of ivolvemet i costructio idustry traiig. Amogst other areas, FÁS is a key provider of traiig i skills relevat to water ad waste water. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 17
Recommedatio 14: The existig stock of FÁS evirometal courses for idustry should cotiue to be kept available ad FÁS should cotiue to respod whe it idetifies gaps i evirometal traiig provisio that it is the best equipped to bridge. Heavy ivestmet i ew trasport ifrastructure ivolvig tuellig, otably Metro North, will lead to a requiremet for sigificat umbers of costructio workers with relevat skills. Recommedatio 15: FÁS ad the Rail Procuremet Agecy should cooperate o idetifyig the tuellig-related costructio skills that will be required for Metro North, ad o devisig ad deliverig courses to eable Irish costructio workers to take these jobs. 4. Educatio ad Traiig for the Public Service Some of the major skill developmet requiremets that arise from the Gree New Deal relate to the public service. Key areas iclude: Cross-discipliary skills i trasport policy Gree procuremet Carbo accoutig Carbo maagemet Eergy maagemet Ecoomics of sustaiability Gree ifrastructure evirometal maagemet 18 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
It may be feasible to address part of the skills requiremet through recruitig suitably skilled ad qualified people from outside the public service, but it will be ecessary to develop most of the skills through educatio ad traiig for people already employed i the sector. It is usual for educatio ad traiig itervetios for public servats to be fuded by their employer. While public servats use a wide rage of providers of educatio ad traiig services, the Istitute of Public Admiistratio ad the Civil Service Traiig ad Developmet Cetre are cetrally importat i this area. The followig are the mai areas of educatio ad traiig required: Gree procuremet for public servats ivolved i specifyig goods, ifrastructure ad services to be procured, ad for those ivolved i procuremet. Carbo accoutig for public servats who will work i carbo accoutig. Carbo maagemet for seior maagers, ad for those ivolved i specifyig goods, ifrastructure ad services. Ecoomics of sustaiability for those i a wide rage of policymakig roles Gree ifrastructure evirometal maagemet for those ivolved i the maagemet of public lads, i plaig ad i areas of policy relevat to Gree Ifrastructure icludig, iter alia, agriculture, forestry, waterways, trasport, evirometal maagemet ad eforcemet. Ecoomics ad social scieces of trasport for local authority egieers ad trasport plaers. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 19
Most of the skills requiremet should be addressed through traiig courses desiged specifically for public service employees ad delivered either through iteral traiig resources or through cotracted educatio or traiig providers. As much of the traiig required will be similar across differet Govermet Departmets, Local Authorities, agecies ad other bodies, it is desirable that similar traiig be delivered to all these groups. Idividual traiig courses should accommodate employees of differet parts of the public sector where feasible, as diversity amog participats is likely to improve learig. Recommedatio 16: The Departmet of the Eviromet, Heritage ad Local Govermet should take a lead i cosultig with other Govermet Departmets as to how the skills requiremet relatig to the Gree New Deal ad the public sector should be achieved ad what bodies should take the lead i specifyig, desigig ad orgaisig the delivery of appropriate traiig. Recommedatio 17: Educatio ad traiig courses desiged specifically for public sector employees, icludig those provided by the Istitute for Public Admiistratio (IPA) ad the Civil Service Traiig ad Developmet Cetre, should be adapted to iclude modules o Gree Procuremet, Carbo Accoutig, Carbo Maagemet, the Ecoomics of Sustaiability ad/or the Maagemet of Gree Ifrastructure where these topics fit with the theme of the course. Recommedatio 18: Part of the skills requiremet should be addressed through exteral sources of educatio ad traiig, accessible also to busiesses ad to idividuals workig i the private sector, icludig, iter alia: Masters level courses. 20 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
Courses provided by professioal bodies such as Egieers Irelad, the Irish Istitute for Purchasig ad Materials Maagemet (IIPMM) or the Marketig Istitute of Irelad. Further educatio courses i areas such as Ladscape Horticulture. Courses provided by FÁS ad other State Agecies i topics such as Eergy Maagemet. Courses provided by vedors of relevat techology. 5. Role of Civil Society Orgaisatios ad Professioal Bodies Civil society orgaisatios, icludig professioal bodies ad busiess orgaisatios, are well positioed to provide for a sigificat part of the educatio ad traiig requiremets of the Gree New Deal. Professioal bodies have a importat role i the cotiuig professioal developmet of their members, both i terms of settig stadards, ad i providig a part of the educatio ad traiig required to meet those stadards. Irelad s mai busiess represetative bodies are active i traiig, both directly ad i some cases through sposorig idustry traiig etworks. Civil society orgaisatios cocered with sustaiability ad the eviromet are also active i deliverig traiig ad other learig opportuities, some of which are relevat to the Gree New Deal. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 21
Recommedatio 19: Professioal ad busiess bodies should cotiue to develop ad deliver educatio ad traiig for their members (ad where appropriate for others) i areas relevat to the Gree New Deal, i areas icludig the followig: Eergy efficiecy, reewable eergy ad eergy maagemet. Gree procuremet, carbo accoutig ad carbo maagemet. Evirometal maagemet for Gree Ifrastructure. Legislatio ad regulatios. Much of this provisio will ivolve short courses. As cost of provisio will ofte be a barrier, State Agecies iterested i promotig traiig for busiesses i these areas, ad i a positio to support a part of the costs, should cosider parterig with professioal ad busiess bodies as a part of their strategies. Recommedatio 20: Civil society orgaisatios cocered with sustaiability ad the eviromet should cotiue to be active i educatio, traiig ad iformig the public o aspects of the Gree New Deal relevat to their missios. They have a particularly importat role to play i cotributig to awareess raisig ad i orgaisig itegrated iitiatives i commuity areas or regios. This icludes workig with groups such as residet associatios to advace various sustaiable developmet schemes. Such efforts should be supported, icludig the provisio of resources where appropriate. To the extet that their role exteds ito operatig as traiig etworks for evirometal busiesses, they should be eligible to sposor Sustaiability Idustry Traiig Networks. 22 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
6. Awareess Raisig Awareess has a critically importat role to play i the successful delivery of the Gree New Deal. For example, awareess amog householders, farmers ad other idividuals will impact o the rate at which existig homes are retrofitted for eergy efficiecy, o the adoptio of microgeeratio ad domestic/commercial reewable heat techologies, o the behavioural aspects of the delivery of sustaiable mobility ad o the implemetatio of parts of the Gree Ifrastructure ageda. Awareess amog public servats ad busiesses is equally as crucial ad deservig of the same amout of attetio. There is a good case for co-ordiatio o awareess raisig betwee bodies ivolved i deliverig the Gree New Deal. This icludes makig various actors aware of existig tools that are available ad how to make best use of them. Comhar SDC is well positioed to take a lead i mappig out how this should be achieved i cosultatio with its stakeholders. Recommedatio 21: Comhar SDC, i cosultatio with its stakeholders, should take a lead i developig a strategy for awareess raisig i relatio to the Gree New Deal. The objective is ot so much to icrease the volume of awareess raisig activity, as to highlight key messages, ad to idetify cost efficiet ways of deliverig these messages largely withi existig resource costraits, ad takig advatage of the high level of coectio betwee the Comhar SDC stakeholder group ad the wider populatio of idividuals, busiesses ad public service employees. Comhar SDC Coclusios ad Recommedatios 23
24 Skills ad Traiig for a Gree New Deal
About Comhar Sustaiable Developmet Coucil Comhar Sustaiable Developmet Coucil 3 (Comhar SDC) was established i 1999 as the forum for atioal cosultatio ad dialogue o all issues relatig to sustaiable developmet. Its terms of referece are to: Advace the atioal ageda for sustaiable developmet Assist i devisig suitable mechaisms for sustaiable developmet Advise o the implemetatio of these mechaisms Cotribute to the formatio of a atioal cosesus i these regards Comhar SDC works i three-year cycles ad bega its fourth term i Jauary 1st 2009 uder the Chairmaship of Professor Frak Covery. Comhar SDC is comprised of 25 coucil members who are draw from five pillars: the state sector, the ecoomic sector, evirometal NGOs, social/commuity NGOs ad the professioal/academic sector. The broad represetatio allows Comhar SDC to arrive at iformed ad balaced coclusios. Comhar SDC is supported by a full-time secretariat, which udertakes evideced based policy aalysis ad research, ad is based i the Irish Life Cetre, Lower Abbey Street, Dubli 1. Comhar SDC publishes its reports, opiios, ad other products, usig a rage of relevat meas for their dissemiatio, icludig electroic media. For further iformatio about the work of Comhar Sustaiable Developmet Coucil please cotact: Comhar Sustaiable Developmet Coucil, Floor 2, Block 7, Irish Life Cetre, Lower Abbey Street, Dubli 1 Tel: +353 1 888 2973 Email: comhar@eviro.ie Website: www.comharsdc.ie 3 Previously the Natioal Sustaiable Developmet Partership; the ame was chaged i 2006.
Floor 2, Block 7, Irish Life Cetre, Lower Abbey Street, Dubli 1. Tel: + 353 1 888 2909, Fax: + 353 1 888 2207 Email: comhar@eviro.ie Web: www.comharsdc.ie