Welcome to “Green Labor Journal.” The labor movement has gone green – and one of the goals of Green Labor Journal is to showcase these union green initiatives in an accessible (and sustainable!) format, and to provide up-to-date information from a labor perspective on new developments in green policy, technology and work processes.
By Tom Kriger Oct 30, 2009The National Labor College (NLC) is the nation’s only accredited higher education institution devoted exclusively to educating union leaders, members and activists. With a forty year history in providing education and training to working people and union members, the NLC is proud to make its contribution to the ongoing debate over the future of the planet. In cooperation with the AFL-CIO’s Center for Green Jobs, the NLC is launching two distinctive programs in the field of green jobs and sustainability: the Green Workplace Representative Certificate Program (see related article in this issue) and the Green Labor Journal.
Building upon the United Steelworkers pioneering work in the Blue-Green Alliance and other union-environmental movement collaborations, the unions of the AFL-CIO have in recent years undertaken numerous initiatives in the areas of energy conservation, sustainability and green jobs. In short, the labor movement has gone green – and one of the goals of Green Labor Journal is to showcase these union green initiatives in an accessible (and sustainable!) format, and to provide up-to-date information from a labor perspective on new developments in green policy, technology and work processes.
The Green Labor Journal (“Journal”) will also highlight two themes that must be present in the debate over sustainability. The first is that any discussion of sustainability must start from the premise that people are sustainable. For any job to truly be considered “green,” the people who do those jobs must be paid wages and benefits that enable them to sustain themselves and their families. All green policy initiatives, moreover, must include fair labor standards if we are to reach the goal of a just and sustainable society.
The second theme that the Journal will highlight is the idea that unions have an important role to play in significant environmental debates. Take green buildings for example. For a building to really be considered “green,” it’s important to make sure that the people who build the building and those who work there are included in this process. If repairs are conducted on a green building, and the workers who do those repairs don’t restore the buildings’ systems to their original design specifications, the building will not live up to its green design, no matter how innovative that design.
This is where unions come in. By working with organized labor, which is committed to both developing and instructing workers on the latest sustainable technologies and processes, building managers can ensure that design standards will remain intact and the original sustainability goals will be realized. And this is just one example from a broad range of green initiatives coming from the labor movement that the Green Labor Journal will report on every month.
Each month, the Journal will cover the following topics: Feature Article on green jobs and the new green economy; Cleantech Tracker; Affiliate Actions; NLC Green Education and Training; AFL-CIO Center for Green Jobs; and a “Did You Know?” section on important events and news items.
The Journal is also pleased to announce that, starting with the second issue in December 2009, Green For All CEO, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, will contribute a regular feature column. Founded in 2007, Green For All is a national organization that works to improve the lives of all Americans through a clean-energy economy.
The Journal will be edited by Jerry Brown, Ph.D., who has a distinguished career in academia and the labor movement. Dr. Brown is an energy expert, author and consultant specializing in energy and environmental projects.
In the 1960s, he coordinated César Chavez’s Grape Boycott on behalf of the United Farm Workers. Dr. Brown is co-author of Freedom from Mid-East Oil (2007). He is Founding Professor of Global and Sociocultural Studies at Florida International University in Miami, where he teaches courses on energy policy, social movements, global green economy, and the impact of technology on society. Dr. Brown is author of numerous books and scholarly articles. He is an award-winning teacher and noted public speaker.
Thomas J. Kriger, Ph.D., is Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost of the National Labor College.
A project of NLC and Union Plus
The National Labor College for Union Communities AFL-CIO Center for Green Jobs