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Low Carbon WM jobs

26 January 2008

One of my personal drivers as business coach and mentor is how to help my clients face the environmental and ecological challenges that we are creating. This fact sheet was prepared for a presentation to thew AWM – Advantage West Midlands – as to what the job possibilities were in the West Midlands as a result of the changes to our planet.

After reading this fact sheet, you will:

know the background information to the Low Carbon Revolution we are facing
realise that there are a number of actions we need to take now to stop the constant increase in pollution
recognise the many possibilities of jobs that will be created from the new technologies that are opening up
need to look at the way we carry out business and replace the old models with new ones
understand that we need to decrease the use of private transport and increase our use of public transport

“The UK market for environmental low-carbon technologies is expected to grow to £10 billion in the next three years”
Note:
The Stern Report in October 2006 said that £100,000,000,000 or 1% of world GDP is estimated must be spent every year to stabilize carbon dioxide at 550ppm, but will save £660,000,000,000.

Background

1. The second Low Carbon Revolution is under way caused by the outcomes of the first Industrial Revolution. The main difference is that we must act quickly as there are huge opportunities involved with a Low Carbon Economy and these must be communicated out to the public, private and academic sectors.
2. As the AWM Strategy paper says we must recognise the business opportunities presented to us through high-growth markets and low-carbon opportunities, while taking into account the quality and type of our land, built environment and infrastructure. It is important to explain what this means to the manufacturing, innovation groups, technology clusters, public services and academic institutions in the West Midlands so that we can exploit new markets and new ways of working.

What we must do NOW… and here are 19 action points..
1. Engage the wider scale business community of all ages, sectors and geographical areas of the massive changes that are going to take place in a very short space of time, not just due to government regulatory mechanisms but also due to climate change and market forces

2. Turbo-charge all the various policies of the AWM to increase productivity and skills of our workforce and develop new manufacturing clusters to take up the challenge of the new products and processes required for the new Low Carbon Economy

3. Let people know that the West Midlands is supremely placed to become the heart of the new Low Carbon agenda and the centrepoint of technological innovation, like it has been over the past three hundred years ago with the Industrial Revolution

4. Create new sustainable leadership styles in the public, private, voluntary and academic sectors to bring about changes in behaviour and different ways of working and a living in a Low Carbon Economy

5. Recognize the West Midlands incredible foundation in its technological workforce, its brains, its energy, its heartbeat, its motivation, its geographical position and its hunger for success and recognition

6. Explain to business leaders and political leaders in the West Midlands the huge business and academic prospects that are being created by the new Low Carbon economy and help them diversify into environmental goods and service markets

7. Urge company directors to increase their Research and Development budgets for new Low Carbon products and services tenfold and in some case hundredfold, to take advantage of the £10bn that is up for grabs

8. Create special Low Carbon funding for new products and technology

9. Support manufacturing to become more knowledge intensive by exploiting innovation, technology, design, high level skills and world class business management. All these resources are available in huge quantities in the West Midlands

10. Explore different business models to the ones that we have been using during the “easy energy” years, like new ways of building house in factories rather than on site already plumbed, insulated and wired with digital inclusion technology that can be installed and built quickly. If the US can build a three bedroom single story house in 2 hours 50 minutes why can’t we…

11. Demonstrate that the WM has the capacity to be involved at all levels from concept through design, production, construction, implementation and management of the various £multi billion hydro-electric barrage schemes being considered for the Thames and Severn estuaries

12. Create effective linkage between Low Carbon economic and climate impact opportunities for regional businesses to realise their wealth generating potential

13. Develop a programme of targeted support for key sectors for growth and diversification into these Low Carbon markets

14. Encourage minimization of our carbon footprint in local markets and local businesses help improve use of energy, transport, water and waste resources and ensure security of supply by mapping energy, heat, waste and water resources

15. Integrate Universities and technology centres with businesses in the research, development and manufacture of new LC generation products like Bio mass power generators, hydrogen cell battery production, more wind generation technology and Low Carbon buses and trains for transporting much, much larger numbers of public

16. Initiate a communication programme that includes conferences and workshops for businesses and education programmes in schools and colleges, to communicate the important message of the Low Carbon Economy and the change in behaviour that we all need to adopt

17. Educate everybody from primary schools to silver surfers, making it so interesting that people embrace this new way of living and working

18. Engage with people at home and work, popularising environmentally friendly practices needed for living and working in the LC economy

19. Develop new Low Carbon based public services to help promote new and interesting ways of living and working

Results… we are talking about

1. Thousands and thousands of jobs

2. Huge growth in hundreds and hundreds of businesses and industries

3. Completely new ways of manufacturing, working, travelling and living and change that has not taken place at this speed since people were taken off the land and placed into factories three hundred years ago

Action NOW…

We need to recognize the challenge, incentivise the interest and energise mainstream business, local government and academia about the huge and massive opportunities worth £10bn over the next three years and beyond. This will involve the creation of hundreds and hundreds of jobs. All of this is just waiting for all of us in the West Midlands but we must start NOW.

For more information on all of the above please contact me William Barron, at Creating Insight on 07976 302052 based at the TechnoCentre, Puma Way, Coventry CV1 2TT