This publication emerged from a joint OECD and Cedefop forum on green skills held in February 2012. The aim of the forum was to gather the recent work of researchers, government advisers, employment and policy analysts, and other social partners on skills development and training needs for a lower carbon economy.

In February 2012, policy makers, researchers, experts from international organisations and academia met in Paris to debate the role of “green skills” in moving towards a low-carbon future. The 2012 Green Skills Forum was organised jointly by the OECD and Cedefop and this volume collects the papers from participants. The Forum raised policy makers’ and stakeholders’ awareness of the need to integrate skills strategies in order to succeed in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Such strategies include measures for more flexible and dynamic education and training programmes at local, sectoral and regional levels.

The OECD-CEDEFOP Green Skills Forum, initiated in 2012, discusses what green jobs and green skills are and what the implications for low-carbon economies are if not enough of either are created by our economies. Labour market impacts of the transition from high- to low-carbon production will affect all workers. However, while changes may be minor for the majority, they may be substantial for a small number of industries and professions. The Forum discussions have already shown that the skills and training needs are threefold: i) upgrade skill sets in industries experiencing only minor adjustments; ii) gearing up educational institutions and firms to provide the new skills for new occupations and sectors that will emerge from the green economy; and iii) retraining and realigning skills in sectors that will decline as a result.

This chapter defines the key concepts that are central to this volume: what are green jobs and green skills and what are the implications for low-carbon economies if there is not enough of either. Labour market impacts from the transition from high- to low-carbon intense production will affect all workers. However, changes will be minor for the majority, but substantial for a small number of industries and professions. The skills and training implications are threefold: i) upgrade skills sets in industries experiencing only minor adjustments; ii) gearing up educational institutions and firms to provide the new skills for new occupations and sectors that will emerge from the green economy; and iii) retraining and realigning skills in sectors that will decline as a result.