Following the ‘Green Jobs’ Road from Bali to Poznan

[Joanne98]

Bob Baugh, executive director of the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Council and co-chair of the AFL-CIO Energy Task Force, is in Poznan, Poland, for the United Nations Climate Change Conference.

The meeting, which was scheduled to conclude Dec. 12, is building upon the framework negotiated last year in Bali, Indonesia, and includes nearly 100 union delegates.

What a difference a year can make.

Poznan is not Bali, nor were these meetings meant to be. As Harlan Watson, the chief U.S. negotiator, told our delegation:

This year is a way station between the Bali framework and the drive to a final agreement in Copenhagen.

What this round of talks will look for is a statement that shows some progress. There are also indications that major advanced developing economies such as China, South Korea, Brazil and others are, for the first time, identifying measurable steps for climate change mitigation, but financing will be a major issue. Major negotiating papers are scheduled for March and June meetings.


Part of the holdup is the wait for the new U.S team. Every U.S labor delegate has been congratulated over and over for our role in the historic 2008 election. As my fellow bloggers have noted, anticipation is sky-high, and feelings toward the U.S. are very warm and hopeful. Climate change and energy policy statements made by President-elect Obama fired through this wired crowd as soon as they hit the Internet.

While the minimal progress at Poznan can be frustrating, there are other measures of success to consider. One is the role of the U.S. labor delegation. A year ago, with the exception of two members, our entire delegation was new to the subject, and for most it was the first international engagement. We were on a learning curve at home with climate change legislation even as we contributed to the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) Bali statement. While in Bali, we held a meeting with the leaders of the major U.S. environmental organizations.

At that meeting, we brought up the issue of “green jobs.” We told the environmentalists what a great brand it was, but how little it meant to working people, our

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http://blog.aflcio.org/2008/12/13/following-the-green-jobs-road-from-bali-to-poznan/