The International Advisory Board of the Climate Action for Jobs Initiative has called for decisive action to tackle climate change and create decent work.
Meeting for the first time since being formed, following the 2019 UN Climate Summit , members of the Advisory Board endorsed a 10-year strategy to put people’s jobs and well-being at the centre of the transition to carbon-neutral and climate-resilient economies.
Its three main aims are:
- To implement climate change measures that deliver decent jobs and advance social justice.
- Support countries so they can move towards a sustainable future.
- Take action to ensure an inclusive and sustainable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Members of the Board highlighted the need for urgent, coherent and coordinated action to address the economic, social and environmental dimensions of the COVID-19 crisis . They pointed to the unique opportunity to build back better, more sustainable and inclusive economies and societies that are more resilient to future shocks, through the six areas of action that the UN Secretary-General has put forward for a climate-positive recovery.
“We stand at a critical moment in the pursuit of the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , with a decade of action that must be decisive. We need to make the Climate Action for Jobs Initiative a meaningful contribution in this last leg of the race towards the SDGs. We are all aware of our responsibilities in that regard,” said ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder.
The Climate Action for Jobs Initiative provides countries with tools for assessing investment and policy options for a recovery that focuses on jobs and a transition to a sustainable economy. It supports planning, policy-making, market development, knowledge and innovation for a sustainable future, guided by the ILO Just Transition Guidelines and ILO Recommendation No. 205 on Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience , and in accordance with the United Nations Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
Key to the Initiative is a new Just Transition Innovation Facility. This provides a space to source innovative ideas and turn them into effective and scalable solutions to climate change. The Facility is designed to identify high potential solutions for addressing specific challenges, strengthening country intervention models, supporting pilot projects, and sharing lessons learned internationally.