One million climate jobs NOW!
Campaign against Climate Change, 52 pages, pamphlet, £2.00
The Campaign against Climate Change is a group aiming to involve and coordinate trade unions in action on climate change.
One million climate jobs NOW! is an admirable attempt at solving the future threat of global warming and the current high levels of unemployment in one blow.
It does this by calling for the government to create one million jobs in climate mitigation across the economic spectrum — from education and training to manufacturing, energy, transport and housing.
Its central argument is that the country needs to be on what amounts to a war footing to deal with the scale of the climate change threat and that immediate, dramatic action is needed, rather than simple market stimulation.
The pamphlet points out that the government has bailed out the bankers and can afford wars. Drawing on Keynesian economics, it argues that the government could therefore find the money to invest in jobs and industries that would directly cut carbon emissions, for example, house insulation, new renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles and cleaner public transport. This in turn would stimulate the economy and change the structure of the labour force.
It takes a proactive, campaigning tone, calling on unions to ally themselves with climate change groups and local community organisations, particularly those involved in environmentally-related activites.