Climate change and jobs

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Key resources

  1. Just Transition Finance Tool for banking and investing activities

  2. ILO message brief for COP27: Climate action with jobs and a just transition for all

  3. New just transition policy briefs

  4. Guidelines for a just transition towards environmentally sustainable economies and societies for all

Why does climate change matter for employment ?

Climate change and environmental degradation pose significant challenges to economic growth and employment today, and risks will be greater in the medium-to long-term.

By contrast, if properly managed, climate change action can lead to more and better jobs. Both adaptation to climate change and measures to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions offer opportunities to create new jobs, while securing existing ones.

A transition to a low-carbon, greener economy will imply the creation of new jobs in environmentally friendly production processes and outputs, whereas other jobs will be at risk, in particular in those sectors with fewer options for a transition towards a more sustainable ways of production.

For more information, please see a FAQ on climate change and jobs.

Background resources

  1. Providing clean energy and energy access through cooperatives

    This publication is a collection of case studies on cooperatives in energy production, distribution and consumption as a contribution to the on-going search for ways in which the goal of sustainable Energy for All can be turned into a reality.

  2. Local Investments in Climate Change Adaptation: Green Jobs through Green Works

    A guide for identifying, designing and implementing interventions in support of climate change adaptation at the local level.

  3. Climate Change and Labour: The Need for a "Just Transition"

    Climate change is now widely acknowledged as one of the great – if not the greatest – challenges facing humanity in the coming decades. Through its impact on average temperature, precipitations and sea levels, it will endanger the livelihood of hundreds of millions and impose increasing costs on our societies if nothing is done.

  4. The social and Decent Work dimensions of a new Agreement on Climate Change - A technical brief

    The technical brief highlights the close inter-linkages between climate change and the world of work and discusses entry points for promoting policy coherence between climate and social and labour policies.

  5. The Employment Effects of Climate Change and Climate Change Responses: A Role for International Labour Standards?

    This paper describes how International Labour Standards could be made more relevant to climate change in terms of its impact on employment and the labour market.