SOLAS green skills plan targets Ireland's workforce as 75% of jobs demand sustainability competencies

Irish state agency SOLAS has finalised its Green Skills 2030 Implementation Plan, setting out a structured roadmap to close sustainability skills gaps across the national workforce as Ireland targets a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The plan carries direct implications for HR and learning and development professionals responsible for workforce capability planning across all sectors.

The Business Post reported that the strategy was developed in collaboration with industry, the Department of Further and Higher Education, and 16 Education and Training Boards, with KPMG engaged to consult approximately 2,000 employers across seven key sectors to identify real and current skills gaps.

Research from the SOLAS Skills and Labour Market Research Unit found that 75% of jobs in Ireland now require some level of green skills, spanning technical competencies and transversal capabilities across construction, engineering, tourism, agriculture, and business.

Dr Susan Gill, manager of climate strategy and skills at SOLAS, said: "There are lots of conflicting ideas as to what green skills actually are… they differ so much across industries and across countries." Gill added that the strategy follows Cedefop's broad definition, encompassing knowledge, abilities, values, and attitudes needed to reduce the environmental impact of human activity.

The Implementation Plan contains 24 strategic actions and 71 sectoral actions designed to embed green skills across the Further Education and Training system, ranging from new programme development to specialist training centres and strengthened pathways between further and higher education.

Gill noted that Further Education and Training's flexibility is a key advantage, stating: "Quite often people don't have time for a four-year degree. They need to learn the industry-specific information that they're missing. That's where FET really shines."

Read the full strategy overview and implementation detail.