- Green employment is a niche sector looking for professionals with experience, training and who are adaptable, all of which are inherent in senior professionals over the age of 50.
- It is estimated that up to about 350,000 green jobs will be created each year in Spain, the country ranked ninth in the world in demand for "green skills" in jobs.
- Generación SAVIA, the Endesa Foundation programme in collaboration with the "máshumano Foundation", has been promoting the employability of this group for more than five years, helping them to explore new career opportunities especially in emerging sectors like the sustainable economy.
Almost 30% of those unemployed in Spain are people over 50 years of age according to an Active Population Survey (EPA in Spanish) for the first quarter of 2023. A high percentage compared to other groups which indicates that, although they have extensive work experience, they find it very difficult to access new employment opportunities. In this regard, it is interesting for these professionals to explore emerging employment niches that will enable them to open up to new work alternatives. One example is the "green jobs" sector, in which it is estimated that between 242,000 and 348,000 jobs are created each year in Spain, according to data provided by PINEC 2021-2030, with special focus on those related to renewable energies.
The sustainable economy is promoting a socially and environmentally responsible production model. There are green jobs available in virtually all sectors: Sustainable mobility, smart cities, production and distribution of renewable energy, organic farming, sustainable tourism, etc.
In Spain, a considerable increase in employment in this sector is expected as indicated in the Jobs 2030 Study: Future of employment. Green employment and fair transition in the future of employment, developed by Forética, Spain is ranked ninth in the world with regard to demand for skills in this type of jobs. That is why we need projects like SAVIA that promote employment and make visible the talents of people over 50 years of age so they can find a place in this sector. This is what this Endesa Foundation project, in collaboration with the máshumano Foundation, has been doing for more than five years, highlighting the capacity for reinventing this group, promoting their employability and helping them to explore new professional opportunities especially in emerging sectors, such as the sustainable economy.
The SAVIA platform organises training programmes that enable senior professionals to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to launch their own entrepreneurial projects or find employment opportunities.
Here are four reasons that demonstrate the importance of senior talent in green jobs
1. Capacity for innovation in unstable environments. The creation of green jobs places workers in environments that need professionals with skills in the management of complex processes. Seniors have extensive work experience that enables them to solve problems and apply unexplored solutions.
2. A long life learning. Senior professionals are prepared to enter new job niches. The "Generación SAVIA Study on the effects of the COVID-19 crisis and lockdown on unemployed people over 50" emphasises that more than 70% of senior people consulted decided to make a commitment to training and preparation during the lockdown.
3. Adaptation to change. The adaptability of senior professionals is supported by their experience in dealing with new technologies throughout their professional career. Their analytical ability, critical thinking and willingness to learn make seniors see technological change as an opportunity and an ally to help them to continue growing.
4. Their role as leaders and mentors. Generational diversity is essential to achieve a suitable corporate organisational culture. The role of leaders and mentors played by senior workers is essential to achieve lasting results in the field of sustainability.
Projects based on the sustainable economy led by SAVIA +50 talent
Here in SAVIA, we have witnessed how seniors increasingly promote more business venture projects focussing on the sustainable economy. These include a number of projects that deserve special mention like The Sky Garden, an initiative developed by 52-year-old Ana Atienza which consisted of the design and implementation of green roofs and urban gardens with the aim of contributing to the elimination of pollution in large cities, promoting energy savings and collaborating with people in the cultivation of their own organic products.
Another example is the Bolulla Valley project, through which 56 year-old Manuel Lencero aims to combat "empty Spain" and promote economic activity in the Marina Baja region in Alicante, through the sustainable cultivation of avocados.
There is also a project by 61 year-old Icíar Aresti, promoter of the Añino Regina Merina project which involves the production and marketing of garments and footwear with merino wool from the Extremadura region. They are one hundred percent organic and minimise the carbon footprint by not using petroleum-based products or heavy minerals. The entrepreneur targets people who are aware of the need to transform the consumption of textiles and footwear in order to make a positive environmental impact.
About Generación SAVIA
SAVIA is an ENDESA Foundation project in collaboration with the máshumano Foundation that has been promoting the employability of workers over the age of 50 for five years, providing solutions through training and networking initiatives, and promoting recognition of the value of these professionals, who are suffering from a high rate of unemployment. SAVIA is a platform and community in which collaborative spaces are created and initiatives come together to create job opportunities for senior professionals. It also offers human resources solutions for Spain's social and business fabric. 43,000 senior professionals and 660 companies are registered with SAVIA. 200 entities also collaborate on the project.
About the Endesa Foundation
The Endesa Foundation is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. A quarter of a century of social work that enables us to look to the future with the challenge of continuing to progress, with a broad and conscious outlook on human beings and the rest of the species that surround us to build a world in which there is room for everyone. With this in mind, the Endesa Foundation contributes to social development and the conservation of biodiversity through education, training for employment, culture, volunteering and urban biodiversity projects so that there is a future in which we can all live together and in balance with each other.