A joined-up just transition for Scotland

THEME 6: FUTURE WORKFORCE
Delivered by Fuel Change
Fuel Change is a social enterprise movement, which taps into the potential of youth to help fight the
climate crisis. They unleash the underestimated skills and energy of Scotland’s youth by partnering with
educators and businesses to help solve their carbon challenges.
Fuelchange.co.uk
Introducing the session was TV presenter Amy Irons, explaining Fuel Change’s objective to “ensure employers
out there have the opportunity to listen to what our young people have to say about climate action – not just
those who are already climate activists but those who currently feel they can’t make a difference.”
With that in mind, Fuel Change brought together apprentices, high school pupils, employers and teachers
in October to imagine what the workforce will look like by 2045 and 2030 if we take – or don’t take –
climate action.
BY THE YEAR 2045
Opening the discussions was a presentation by Iain Findlay of Aurora Sustainability, painting a picture of what
2045 could look like if the world comes together on climate action.
After describing the difference between 2C and 1.5C of global warning as an additional 400 million people
having to deal with extreme heat waves, he moved to a more positive scenario: a 2045 where the linear economy
has transformed into a circular, regenerative one and where cities are transformed into ‘green oases’ in which
windows are solar panels, living walls support wildlife and building materials like hemp are carbon-negative.
The task for people of all ages, he said, was to figure out what we need to do to get there.
THE GEN Z PERSPECTIVE ON 2045
A panel of apprentices, along with audience members, responded to Iain’s picture of the future.
Some described the steps they’re taking in their own lives, such as cutting down on meat, but also the
barriers to change, such as the fact that taking public transport to work instead of driving would increase one
apprentice’s journey from 40 minutes to two and a half hours.
They also suggested what employers could do to deliver climate action:
• support employees’ behaviour change with EV charging points, bike parks or workplace buses
• incentivise change through job conditions and benefits, e.g., offering a four-day week conditional on
employees using green transport options
The other major point emerging from both panel and audience members was a plea for more and better
information:
• climate education throughout the school curriculum
• better career information about green job pathways
• telling young people about the opportunities in climate transition and their ability to make a difference,
rather than just talking about “ice caps melting and everything [being] terrible”.
16 Full agenda, speaker profiles and videos of all sessions at: https://newsquestscotlandevents.com/events/cop26-just-transition/