Executive Housekeeping Today - July 2008 - (Page 19)

the green scene Not Your Great-Grandfather’s Revolution “Every generation needs a new revolution.” - Thomas Jefferson The Green Revolution: The “Green job,” at times referred to as the “Green-collar job,” is a topic now and forevermore on the tips of tongues of politicians, economists, social activists, and television pundits. Columnists across the nation still struggle with defining them. Economic forecasters are burning the midnight oil running the numbers on their possible impact. Labor unions and environmental groups are joining forces to promote their promise. Presidential nominees are touting them as the new hope for many unemployed, unhappily employed, or underemployed Americans. So, you may ask: Just what are they, why all the fuss, and what does the emergence of a flood of Green jobs mean for me? One of the best definitions I have heard is from Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club, who said: “A Green job has to do something useful for people, and it t by Stephen Ashkin has to be helpful to, or at least not damaging to, the environment.” In 2006, The Sierra Club—the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization—and the United Steelworkers—North America’s largest manufacturing union—teamed to form the Blue Green Alliance. Along with other environmental and labor groups, the Alliance is, among other things, heightening public awareness about the job-creating potential of solutions to global warming, creating investment in Green jobs, accelerating Green building and energy retrofits, and reforming trade agreements so they include environmental standards. “The Blue Green Alliance is one of the most important initiatives undertaken by the environmental movement in decades,” Pope says. In March, the Alliance held a two-day conference in Pittsburgh, PA, titled “Good Jobs, Green Jobs,” and it attracted 1,000 participants to share “best practices about how we can revitalize our manufacturing sector, drive Green building, promote safer chemicals, and realize the economic benefits of global warming solutions.” Economic experts are also on board some going as far as to compare this promising, job-growth phenomenon to one not seen since the Industrial Revolution. If you are to compare the eras—the late 18th Century until the early 19th Century, and the years from the first Earth Day in 1970 to today— the social and economic struggles can read very similar. The Green Revolution is indeed upon us, and to further the good news, it’s bringing some good paying jobs, and jobs for all—including those with graduate degrees to those (continued on page 27) July 2008/Executive Housekeeping Today 9

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Executive Housekeeping Today - July 2008

Executive Housekeeping Today - July 2008 Contents Executive Corner Inspecting a Different Way Quality in the 21st Century Frugal Housekeeper How Eliminating Nuisance Animals Can Increase Quality Healthcare Goes Green Feature Article IHW Product Information The Green Scene 2008 Call to Convention 2008 Convention Information Inside the Industry Product Highlights New Members Joint IEHA/ISSA Members CEH/REH Members Advertisers' Index Calendar of Events Inside I.E.H.A. What I.E.H.A. Has Done for Me

Executive Housekeeping Today - July 2008

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