The Future Of Jobs Is Green, But Getting There Is A Maze

An employee walks through a rooftop solar installation at a spinning mill in Tamil Nadu. Image by Gowthami Subramaniam/Mongabay.

By-Aditi Tandon and Sejal Mehta 

This story is part of a mini-series on green jobs. It explores how people are navigating careers in the green economy. The first story unpacked what green jobs are and why they matter. The upcoming stories will dive into specific sectors driving India’s green workforce and the aligned opportunities that this creates.

“Technical Lead – Sustainability Engineering and Consulting,” says Hayagrivan Balaji when asked what his job role is. We’re speaking over a virtual platform, where he’s chosen a sci-fi-esque spaceship filter, perhaps a fitting nod to a conversation on the future of jobs.

Jobs such as “sustainability engineer” often make it to lists of top green jobs in business reports and journals. But Balaji’s work at HCLTech goes far beyond the buzzword. The 26-year-old from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, has been working in this role for two years, focussing on decarbonising product lifecycles.

Working in the sustainability sector happened by chance for Balaji. He graduated as a mechanical engineer, started working in an engineering role at first, where he was involved in product design and strategy for the oil and gas sector. During his time there, when sustainability engineering roles were being created in the organisation, his managers saw an alignment between some of the work he had previously done during his volunteering days – impact measurement and sustainability of projects – and the roles they were developing. He became a natural fit for these emerging roles.

Balaji now works on integrating sustainability into a product’s lifecycle. His work involves designing and implementing solutions to minimise environmental impact, improving resource efficiency, and integrating sustainable practices across industries, particularly the medical equipment and consumer durables industries.

“But let me be honest. Many people around me don’t understand what I exactly do. So, I say I work in the IT sector,” he laughs.

While sustainability jobs may not yet be part of mainstream conversations among certain demographics in India, there is some understanding and curiosity among the younger generations, he says, particularly among people who have exposure to the topic through digital media or their professional networks.

Globally, there is a demand for skills in jobs related to supply chain decarbonisation, sustainable construction, renewable energy, and ecosystem management.

And there is interest too, particularly among the Gen Z population that will make up a third of the workforce over the next five years. “More than half of Gen Z-ers (61%) want to work in a green job in the next five years and more than three-quarters (78%) believe they could pick up green skills if offered the training,” says the Global Green Skills Report 2024.

But they are struggling to find a way in.

Green matchmakers

Awareness, along with access and hiring for these emerging green roles, has been largely unstructured and uneven in India. This has sparked initiatives to close workforce gaps and build a talent pool equipped to drive the green transition.

A wave of professionals is stepping in to demystify green jobs and make the right match between employers and job seekers.

Navya Singh is a climate action journalist and a sustainability strategist who started a platform spotlighting climate action and solutions. She decided to extend her mission of broadening access to complex climate information, into the world of green jobs by simplifying what job titles mean and opening up opportunities to a wider audience.

Singh, along with Aditi Maheshwari, identified a series of challenges in the “green” employment sector, ranging from low awareness to unorganised hiring systems. In 2025, they co-founded The Green Intent, an initiative for job seekers and companies, intended to bridge the gap between the rising demand and the supply of green workforce and to strengthen the green hiring ecosystem. “Existing businesses are going to turn green and there will be more new green businesses in the next five years,” predicts Maheshwari, a former risk advisory consultant who is now a professional employment and business strategist. She also works on mentoring green businesses to set up and expand their operations sustainably. “This will inadvertently create numerous green job opportunities.”

“Many job seekers do not know exactly what a green job is or its significance. And when they do find out, for example, that a ‘sustainability manager’ or a ‘decarbonisation strategist’ is a role, they are not sure what skills it requires,” says Maheshwari. Even if they are motivated, there is not enough clarity on how they can create a career out of it and especially one with sustained future growth and potential, she says. “At the same time, the hiring ecosystem is unorganised from the employer’s end.”

Organisations are also trying to figure out how to write up job descriptions, what skills and experience to ask for, for jobs that didn’t exist very long ago. With these challenges identified, The Green Intent is working on awareness programmes about the emerging sector, creating networks for job seekers, organising employment summits, advising companies on hiring practices and helping universities develop their curriculum – all for a green future.

“It is not really a choice anymore,” says Singh, emphasising why green jobs are going to be the future. While the conversations around green jobs have been going on for a while, now, there is a lot more accountability demanded from organisations, she says.

“You know how it is said, ‘every job is a climate job’ – it is true,” says Aastha Bharadwaj, the founder of Climate Hires, a company dedicated to recruiting talent for climate roles in startups and businesses. Bharadwaj combined her personal commitment to climate action with over a decade of professional experience helping companies build teams, to launch Climate Hires. She now plays a key role in matching the appropriate talent to companies working in the climate space, particularly climate tech startups and climate impact funds.

She sees a bright future particularly for entrepreneurs in this sector. “There’s no better time to build something in the climate change space. There is funding available, through grants, philanthropy, equity funding and debt funding. There is an ecosystem and there are so many supporters right now.” All that is needed is someone to connect all the dots, and that’s where Bharadwaj steps in.

The many shades of green jobs

Green and energy transition roles, such as electric vehicle specialists, environmental engineers, and renewable energy engineers are going to be some of the fastest growing roles, globally, over the next five years. In India, renewable energy, waste management, electric vehicles, sustainable textiles, and green construction will drive green growth and host the highest number of green jobs, especially in urban and peri-urban areas.

Bharadwaj adds on some real-time insights from the job roles she is helping develop. “On one hand, companies are hiring for technical roles, such as scientists for R&D in green hydrogen, carbon accountants, solar PV technicians and sustainability architects for green buildings. On the other, climate-focussed companies are also hiring people with management, operations or sales backgrounds,” she says. So, both climate and non-climate skills are required in climate organisations.

Beyond organisations in the climate sector, there is also a demand for climate expertise in sectors such as philanthropy, policy, and even insurance. These sectors are actively hiring for roles such as ESG specialists, sustainability professionals, carbon experts, and those working in carbon finance, says Bharadwaj.

Companies, irrespective of the sector, are looking for people who can quickly adapt to the growing focus on climate action, indicates the Future of Jobs 2025 report. It lists environmental stewardship — leadership skills that can adapt to sustainability and green transitions — as one of the top 10 skills that are on the rise.

Ethics, economics and the excitement of tech

The demand for green jobs is driven by the global shift towards environmental sustainability and the adoption of green technologies.

For many Indians, the pathway to a green job isn’t a straight line – it’s usually a mix of personal passion with practical choices. While some are driven by a genuine concern for the planet, many are also eyeing the future financial promise of this field, say those working in the space.

There is also a surge of people rethinking their career trajectory and wanting to move to sectors that have the potential of rapid growth. Singh notes that for many, it’s the fear of becoming professionally obsolete that’s pushing them towards these jobs. The Future of Jobs report also points to this trend, noting that on average, workers globally, can expect that two-fifths (39%) of their existing skill sets will be transformed or become outdated over the next five years.

While the green job ecosystem in India is still at a nascent stage and the salaries may not yet match some high-paying roles in traditional sectors, there is a strong future potential that those, interested in the financial prospects, can foresee. Roles such as ESG consultants, sustainability managers, energy efficiency managers, decarbonisation strategists are some commanding a competitive pay, shares Maheshwari of The Green Intent.

“Many people still think of green jobs as simply a personal contribution to the planet—important, but not very stable or financially rewarding. There’s a common assumption that these roles are new, niche, and not as dependable as mainstream careers. But we’re here to challenge that thinking. Green jobs are not just about solar panels, EVs, or renewable energy. They can be found across a wide spectrum of fields. My work as a climate action journalist is a green job too. It’s about using your skills, whether in storytelling, design, business, or science, to help build a better, more sustainable future. And yes, these roles are meaningful and financially viable,” adds Singh.

“There are also people who are simply excited by technology and technological innovation and there is so much of that happening in renewables, battery recycling and other sectors,” says Bharadwaj, about what is driving people towards green jobs.

Santonu Goswami, an associate professor at the Azim Premji University has seen this excitement among those applying for an MSc in Climate Change and Sustainability that the university is launching. For applicants who don’t have prior professional experience, “there is an excitement of getting into the field,” he says, adding that people are experiencing the impacts of climate change right now and want to take action. For applicants to the course, who have had some work experience, he observes that they see potential in green careers and see it as a good time to jump and build some leadership.

What drives someone to a green job emerges slightly differently in men and women. While both men and women are generally drawn to green jobs for similar reasons, men are more likely to cite the sector’s growth and rising investments as key motivators, finds The Women in Climate Careers in India (2024) report. Women, on the other hand, more often highlight concern for the planet, future generations, health, and personal experiences with climate change. The report published by Nadhi-SheforClimate and ClimateHires, analysed motivations towards climate careers across genders.

Opportunities exist, but awareness and access are uneven

Although the demand for emerging green jobs is expected to grow, the ecosystem that supports the development of the required skill sets is currently nascent and gaining momentum slowly, according to a 2023 report on the green job landscape in India. A survey as part of this report, of 2,328 candidates across five metro cities, found that while 85% had heard of green or climate-positive jobs, only 35% could identify specific roles or skill-building programs. This highlights the need to invest in awareness and turn it into action. “To leverage the green growth opportunity, India needs to establish a scalable skill infrastructure to ensure high quality training and generate wider awareness about these job opportunities through targeted campaigns,” the report says.

The demand for a trained workforce also comes from the industry. When the Azim Premji University team was doing their research for setting up their MSc course they spoke to people in the industry to understand the skills they needed from potential employees. “Almost everybody said that as of now we get people, and they get trained on the job. We wish we could have people coming to us already trained,” says Goswami. Many companies specified that they need people who know data and can process data. The course so far, says Goswami, has over 600 applicants, from diverse backgrounds, ranging from engineering and finance to ecology and even philosophy. Irrespective of the background, the applicants are viewing the programme as a catalyst to further their careers.

Alongside private sector training initiatives, there are a number of government initiatives focussed on skilling citizens for green jobs – the Skill Council for Green Jobs (SCGJ) focuses on training people for the green business sector while The Green Skill Development Programme (GSDP) run by the environment ministry trains youth in environment and forest-related sectors. Together, they have trained an estimated one million people, note the programmes. Additionally, the Suryamitra Training programme and the skill development initiatives under various national and state level initiatives upskill young people to work in the renewable energy sector.

But while training opportunities exist, connecting trainees to actual jobs remains a challenge.

After completing these programmes, figuring out how to actually enter the industry isn’t always clear-cut. “The government does have the funds and opportunities to upskill people. But many people are either not aware, or the process to access them is not streamlined,” add on The Green Intent duo.

“Our traditional programmes are not training our graduates with ready skills to start working in the industry,” says Goswami. “We need more – to save a billion people from the impacts of climate change we need many more people working in this sector. There is space for much more training.”

Blind spots in the boom

A World Economic Forum report said India’s shift to a net-zero economy could contribute more than $1 trillion in economic value by 2030 and create 50 million jobs by 2070. Over the next two decades, India has the potential to create 35 million green jobs.

These are few among many estimates that frame green jobs, particularly those linked with renewable energy, with optimism and promise. However, the bright lights of the future often hide the risk of exclusion in their shadows.

As we speak about the growth of green jobs, we also have to recognise that with the transition to net zero, there are jobs that may go away and the people who are losing jobs are not always the people who are getting these green jobs, share multiple experts that Mongabay India spoke to.

Discourse around just transitions in the context of green jobs stresses on ensuring that the shift to a low-carbon economy benefits all workers and communities, not just some.

There is also a persistent gender gap in the green workforce, where 10% of women possess at least one green skill, compared to 17% of men, globally, according to the Women in Climate Careers in India report. The report, which provides insights and recommendations for various stakeholders, also found that women entering climate roles often face greater challenges than men, especially around limited awareness, job options, location constraints, and gender bias and barriers include fewer women in technical roles, safety concerns in fieldwork, and societal expectations.

To accelerate green skill-building efforts, several systemic challenges such as the absence of dedicated policies, funding gaps, inadequate training infrastructure, exclusion of vulnerable groups, and limited collaboration among key stakeholders, must be addressed, recommends the SCGJ green jobs landscape report.

As India navigates its green transition, inclusion and people-centric policies are key to ensure fair access to the jobs that the transition generates. But beyond policy and sector-level structures, Balaji, who is now two years into a “green job”, offers practical advice for those looking to work in the sector – first, spend time working with people at the grassroots level. “I give all the credit for where I am now, to my exposure to the development sector and community experiences at the start of my career,” he says, reflecting on how grassroots exposure shaped his understanding of sustainability and social impact, which gave him an edge when he made the transition to a sustainability role in the corporate world.

This report was originally published in Mongabay India. Read the story here. It has been republished here under the Creative Commons Licence.