UK regional view

With support from The Green Edge, a newsletter that investigates and writes about the skills that people will need for the Green Economy and Net Zero, we’ve pulled together key data, from a range of sources, for different regions across the UK.

Use the map to find out about the roles, sectors and projects which will impact on the need for green jobs in your local area.

This page focuses on the UK in the first instance. Once the full site has launched in 2023, and as the IEMA membership base grows in different countries, we will look to support those working in green jobs internationally as well in the future.

With thanks to

Discover the green landscape in your region

East Midlands

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Nearly 97,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 19,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 11,300 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 45,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 258,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 264,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Major decarbonisation of growth plan generating 50,000 jobs by 2050
  • Freeport being developed at East Midlands Airport driving the creation of 60,000 jobs
Local priority areas:
  • Agri-tech
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing (aerospace)
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Health and social care
  • Hospitality
  • Logistics

East of England

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Nearly 120,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 28,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 14,100 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • More than 76,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around jobs 184,000 will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 189,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Freeport being developed at the Ports of Felixstowe and Harwich including a major hydrogen project (£150mn) with Scottish Power
Local priority areas
  • Agri-tech
  • Digital (including virtual reality)
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Health and social care
  • Life sciences
  • Waste management

London

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Nearly 144,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, just over 34,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 17,100 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 32,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 540,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 473,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Freeport being developed in London Gateway and the Port of Tilbury
  • Some put the potential for green jobs in London as high as 500,000 by 2030
Jobs required across different sectors
  • Digital
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Waste management

North-East

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Over 84,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, over 21,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 6,600 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 65,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 107,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 111,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Freeport being developed including Teesside International Airport and in the Ports of Middlesbrough and Hartlepool
  • Teeswork site (4500 acres) development focusing on offshore wind/clean energy, chemicals, and advanced manufacturing
Local priority areas
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing (especially automotive)
  • Green energy (especially offshore and subsea technologies, and hydrogen)
  • Health and health science

North-West

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Over 170,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, just over 60,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 17,800 jobs required each year to improve homes
  • Around 60,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 366,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 364,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • £1bn HyNet (hydrogen energy and carbon capture project) has the potential to create 5,000 new jobs by 2025
  • Part of the North-West ‘Coastal Arc’, aimed to deliver clean and sustainable growth and in particular through wind farms (15 in all) with the Offshore Energy Alliance
  • Freeport being developed in Liverpool City Region in the Port of Liverpool
Local priority areas
  • Advanced manufacturing
  • Agri-tech
  • Built environment and construction/retrofit
  • Clean energy production (wind)
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering
  • Food and agriculture
  • Green construction/retrofit
  • Green energy
  • Health
  • Land-based industries/natural capital
  • Logistics
  • Marine/maritime
  • Natural capital/environment
  • Nuclear
  • Re-cycling
  • Transport

Northern Ireland

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Green economy accounts for 5,000 jobs
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 14,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 3,100 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 11,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
  • Nearly 1,800 potential jobs to be created by nature related investment and projects
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Two major battery storage sites developed by the Low Carbon and Gore Street Energy Storage Fund
  • Collaborative Circular Economy Network established bringing together councils and businesses
  • New waste management infrastructure proposed to reduce landfill
Local priority areas:
  • Agri-tech
  • Digital
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing
  • Green energy
  • Health and life sciences
  • Waste management

Scotland

Jobs required across different sectors
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 49,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 11,400 jobs required each year to improve homes
  • More than 78,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
  • There are 195,000 nature-based sector jobs already
Transition opportunities
  • Around 255,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 246,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Two Green Freeports – locations yet to be announced
  • Major renewable energy projects e.g. Hywind Scotland (floating wind farm) and MeyGen (tidal array) as a part of the current 11.6 renewable energy generating capacity with a further 13 Giga Watts in the pipeline
Local priority areas
  • Agri-tech/food and drink
  • Circular economy (including material repurposing)
  • Digital
  • Financial and business services
  • Hospitality and tourism
  • Green energy
  • Land-based (including peat restoration and woodland creation)
  • Life sciences

South-East of England

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Over 163,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 55,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 20,500 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 76,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 433,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 415,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Freeport being developed in the Ports of Southampton, Portsmouth and Portsmouth International
  • Setting up Home Decarbonisation Academy and Construction Skills Academy (see Net Zero Portsmouth) to drive retrofit programme
  • Four major wind farms being developed
  • Growth of the Harwell Science Complex from 6,000 (today) to 20,000 jobs over the next decade
Local priority areas
  • Agri-tech
  • Digital (including automation, artificial intelligence and augmented and virtual reality)
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Green transport (including jet zero and hydrogen)
  • Health and social care
  • Marine/maritime
  • Robotics

South-West of England

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Nearly 140,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, nearly 44,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 13,300 jobs required each year to improve homes
  • More than 50,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 220,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 220,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Freeport being developed in Plymouth and South Devon including the Port of Plymouth
  • North Devon Biosphere Programme with £50mn investment generating 1300 jobs by 2027
Local priority areas
  • Agri-tech/aqua-culture
  • Digital
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing (including aerospace)
  • Green construction/retrofit
  • Green energy
  • Green transport (including jet zero and hydrogen)
  • Health and social care
  • Marine
  • Nuclear

Wales

Jobs required across different sectors
  • To get to net zero by 2050, just over 25,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 7,900 jobs required each year to improve homes
  • More than 23,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 127,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 135,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment:
  • One Freeport – location yet to be announced
  • 29 projects to tackle climate and nature emergencies
  • Morlais Infrastructure Project to develop tidal energy expertise
  • 17 national infrastructure energy projects
Local priority areas:
  • Agri-tech/food
  • Digital
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing (including advanced materials)
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Hospitality and tourism
  • Life sciences

West Midlands

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Over 97,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, over 35,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 14,200 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 40,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 326,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 335,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Green buildings (decarbonisation) generating 30,000 new green jobs by 2041
  • New gigafactories employing 8,000 by 2041
  • Nature recovery generating 3,000 new forestry workers by 2041
Local priority areas:
  • Agri-tech
  • Digital
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing
  • Fintech
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Health and social care

Yorkshire & Humberside

Jobs required across different sectors
  • Over 168,000 low-carbon jobs predicted by 2050
  • To get to net zero by 2050, over 17,000 energy generation and network jobs are needed
  • 13,700 jobs are required each year to improve homes
  • Nearly 90,000 green infrastructure jobs are required by 2031
Transition opportunities
  • Around 284,000 jobs will require upskilling due to the transition to net zero
  • An estimated 294,000 jobs will increase in demand due to the transition to net zero
Key projects that could impact employment
  • Offshore wind is expected to generate 60,000 jobs by 2032 (direct and indirect)
  • Humberside Industrial Cluster Plan focusing on decarbonisation of the chemicals complex
  • Construction and Infrastructure Pipeline projects valued at £11.8bn
  • Freeport being developed in Humberside and in the Port of Immingham
Local priority areas
  • Agri-tech
  • Carbon capture
  • Digital
  • Electric and hybrid vehicles
  • Engineering and advanced manufacturing
  • Green construction
  • Green energy
  • Health and social care
*The data in this map was collated by The Green Edge, and obtained from the following reports. Note that the data varies from different sources, and so is aiming to give an overview of opportunity and change, rather than the exact figures.

Play your part

This is your opportunity to be part of the solution to climate change, biodiversity loss, the plastic waste crisis and other environmental challenges. In response to the global need for action, the UK government has a target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050, and to turn around the decline in our natural environment. This can only be achieved with a trained workforce with relevant skills.

Where do you fit in?

Unsurprisingly, there are numerous definitions out there around green careers, and so we’ve broken it down for you, based on definitions from IEMA.

Green Skills

An umbrella term for the knowledge, behaviours, capabilities and technical skills required to tackle the environmental challenges we face and to unlock new opportunities for growth.

Green Jobs

Specialist roles that focus on specific domains or initiatives dedicated to improving environment outcomes for an organization or for the economy.

Green Economy

A potential future state of the whole UK economy in which fundamental change in the way the economy functions. Growth will continue to be the essential motif of our economy, but its measurement will be more holistic, more consistently factoring in people and planet, alongside profit.