The call to action – led by Groundwork, The King’s (formerly Prince’s) Trust, Mission Diverse, Disability Rights UK and Youth Environmental Service – sets out the need to ensure equity in the transition to a greener economy, through the creation of entry level green jobs that help tackle the climate and nature crises.
The call is made in ‘Force of Nature – Reversing Nature’s Decline and Promoting Equity in the Green Transition’, a publication written by the five charities and endorsed by a wide range of key nature-sector organisations including RSPB, the National Trust, Wildlife & Countryside Link, WWF-UK and Bumblebee Conservation Trust.
A key ask for central and local government is the prioritisation of waged work placements within national employment support programmes and regional plans for skills and growth. The document also recommends that the creation of a ‘National Nature Service’ should be a priority for the Labour government, through paid environmental work placements for all young people, similar to the scheme being progressed by a coalition of organisations across Wales*.
The call for action also reflects on the need to create more genuinely entry level positions – both for young people and career changers – in order to remove unnecessary barriers, such as insistence on experience through voluntary work or qualifications, that are preventing people from all backgrounds seeing green jobs as a viable prospect.
Organisations have also endorsed the need for charitable funders to create entry-level roles or traineeships as part of their investment offer to environmental organisations, including core funding for effective training and professional development, to grow the next generation of engaged and skilled environmental professionals, who are currently under-represented in the sector.
Graham Duxbury, Groundwork’s UK Chief Executive, said: “Every day we see new statistics and stories about the decline of nature – from endangered species to the loss of our parks and green spaces. We’re also seeing a worrying rise in youth unemployment. Our research tells us more and more young people want a job with purpose and with prospects, but many find it hard to break into our sector, primarily due to a lack of experience. We need to break this cycle.
“A more representative workforce is vital if we’re going to encourage a wider variety of people to become environmental guardians, but it’s also critical to how we build the economy and invest in our infrastructure. Nature matters to the way we manage our water supply, generate our energy, produce our food and construct new housing developments. Bringing new talent into these sectors with the core skills they need to progress is an urgent priority.”
Billy Knowles, Programme Director at Youth Environmental Service, said: “New to Nature was created to bring urgently needed diversity and fresh perspectives to the environmental sector while addressing the decline of our natural spaces. It opened the door for nearly 100 underestimated and historically underserved young people to begin to create a ripple of change – for them, for their communities, and for the sector.
“But this ripple needs to become a wave. For a just, green transition to become more than just rhetoric, we need more: a National Nature Service, backed by government support, would ensure a steady pipeline of diverse talent and create long-term pathways for future generations to build careers in nature. It’s time to make this vision a reality.”
Rosalind Mist, Director of Campaigns, Education & Youth at WWF, said: “WWF’s recent Living Planet Report outlined shocking stats on the health of our planet, and it is vital that we act now in order to set nature on a path to recovery before it’s too late.
“Young people can play a huge part in protecting and restoring the natural world for generations to come, and we need more accessibility to green jobs at entry levels for these opportunities to come to fruition.
“At WWF we are committed to diversifying the environment and conservation sector and, through initiatives such as Force of Nature, young people from all backgrounds are given the chance to explore sustainable careers that will not only create more opportunities in their own careers, but also create more stewards of our planet for the future.”
Lisa Manning, Policy Officer at Wildlife and Countryside Link (and former New to Nature Trainee) said: “Diversity remains a major challenge for the environment sector and schemes like New to Nature have been vitally important in opening the doors to a more diverse workforce. Too many young people from disadvantaged and minority backgrounds have been put off from crossing the threshold into nature and climate jobs by a lack of experience or lack of understanding about what the sector can offer.
“As the green sector grows, growing the skills of younger people from diverse backgrounds can help fill gaps in jobs from woodland creation to green energy. We need more paid work placements, through a National Nature Service or similar scheme, to ensure the diverse green workforce for the future that the UK needs.”
New to Nature – a national programme of paid work placements designed to boost the capacity of environmental organisations while delivering life-changing career opportunities for people from underrepresented groups – was an example of best practice in how to create a more diverse nature sector.
Led by Groundwork and funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the initiative has seen 95 paid-for work placements across more than 80 not-for profit employers in a range of landscape and nature roles, targeting young people who are disabled or from a minority ethnic or economically disadvantaged background.
Nina took part in the New to Nature programme as Grants and Outreach Officer at Cotswolds National Landscape, who have continued to employ her following the end of her placement.
Speaking of her experience, she said: “My specific placement as Grants and Outreach Officer was unlike any other entry-level opportunity I had seen before, so I was really keen to apply for this. Programmes like New to Nature are life changing. If the programme hadn’t actively sought applications from those with disabilities and health conditions, I wouldn’t have felt confident enough to apply.
“I attribute where I am with my current role solely to the New to Nature programme. Without it, I would never have had the skills and knowledge to take on the role I have. Entry-level offers for this type of job just don’t exist – and I wouldn’t have had the chance to show my worth and quality within an organisation regardless of qualifications.”
The call to action resonates with an on-going research project led by 16–24-year-old members of Groundwork’s Youth Advisory Board surrounding supporting young people to change how policy responds to green jobs and mental health.
Key insights include the need for more visibility and support for how young people can kickstart a green career, with only 2% of young people surveyed saying they did not feel that young people experience any barriers when trying to access green jobs. In addition, over two thirds agreed that that a lack of entry-level positions or pathways was a reason for this
To read the full report, click here.
