Greenwash alert: Minnesota jobs policy

The Greenwash Brigade

Yesterday, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty presented an extension of JOBZ (Job Opportunity Building Zones) to incorporate jobs related to renewable and clean energy.

This morning’s response from progressive think tank Minnesota 2020 is a quick poll titled “Greenwashing JOBZ” asking for readers’ opinions on the initiative.

For readers outside Minnesota, our popular Republican governor has long supported JOBZ. In essence, companies get tax breaks for creating jobs in economically-struggling mostly-rural areas of the state. The state auditor’s office found it a not-very-effective policy. Pawlenty has also put forth some ambitious energy policies, but lately he’s seemed to hold them at arm’s length, and as someone working in the area of energy efficiency, implementation has been lacking.

When I saw the poll title, I wondered: can anything can be greenwashed? Mostly, it’s a term applied to products, but policy? I went right back to the TerraChoice 6 Sins of Greenwashing.

Using their definitions, the claim works for me, although it’s a bit of an exaggeration.

(Note to self: How much do my preconceived opinions of the program and my assessment of Pawlenty’s commitment to energy initiatives color my evaluation?)

If you accept that JOBZ isn’t a success, the Sin of Irrelevance applies - paint over poor policy with green jobs. Green has nothing to do with JOBZ, and maybe we won’t notice whether it’s creating jobs or not if we’re thinking about GREEN.

The Sin of No Proof is a gimme — claims about future policy success lack proof by definition.

Is Minnesota 2020 stretching, calling this policy greenwashing? Is it impossible to tell until we can test the success or failure of the program years from now? Or, am I simply unable to see through my partisan preferences?

November 11, 2008 by Janne K. Flisrand
3 comments

tags: green jobs Minnesota Policy

Comments (3)

Charlieh | Respond
November 16, 2008 6:32 AM PT

In relation to this topic, I thought you might be interested in the below event hosted by Shell on November 19th:
“The concept of 'sustainability', the use of the term by corporate organisations, and issues around communication have all recently been the subject of debate. Bjorn Edlund’s Webchat will discuss, amongst other things, what Shell means by 'sustainability', whether companies are trying to hijack the issues, and if advertising claims hold water. We are looking for a broad and informed debate and as such would welcome your participation.
To see the introductory video which explores the topic in more detail, to register to participate, and to see more of our work, please visit www.shell.com/dialogues.”

Allen | Respond
November 16, 2008 5:16 PM PT

Hey, at least he's not like CO's Governor Ritter and gone out and claimed that not only have HIS policies been a cornerstone of green job creation but that in his 22 months in office Colorado has created 90,000 green jobs.

Jim Nicolow | Respond
November 20, 2008 8:22 AM PT

Green collar jobs offer a two-for-one strategy for addressing global climate change AND economic doldrums. Michigan's governor Jennifer Granholm announced a Green Jobs Initiative, as part of her No Worker Left Behind jobs program.

http://www.michigan.gov/nwlb/0,1607,7-242-49026---,00.html

I'm not sure whether the two are related, but
one recent positive jobs development among the gloomy economic news was ECD's plans to break ground on a new 265,000 square foot thin-film solar manufacturing facility in Battle Creek, Michigan, creating 350 new green collar jobs.

http://investor.shareholder.com/ovonics/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=340384

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Our hand-picked environmental professionals, each part of the Public Insight Network, are on the hunt for "greenwash" as they examine eco-friendly claims by companies, governments and other groups. They ask tough questions about the mainstreaming of green, from the perspectives of people in the trenches who are focused on these issues 24/7.

Jim Nicolow is a nationally recognized expert on sustainable design and leads the sustainability initiative for Lord, Aeck & Sargent, overseeing the incorporation of sustainable design strategies and features into the firm’s design projects. He is a LEED® Accredited Professional with extensive knowledge of the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED rating system.

Janne K. Flisrand has worked as an affordable housing and urban planning research consultant for five years, primarily supporting local non-profits. Her focus is on transit, transit-oriented design, affordable housing, and sustainability. Currently, she’s the program coordinator for Minnesota Green Communities, a program promoting affordable, healthy, sustainably built housing throughout Minnesota.

Dennis Markatos-Soriano recently completed a Master's in Public Affairs at Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School. He is now launching Sustainable Energy Transition (SET) to help individuals and institutions move from dependence on oil and gas to an efficient use of renewables. Previously, he co-founded SURGE (Students United for a Responsible Global Environment), which aims to bring young progressives together across issues of environmental and social justice throughout North Carolina and beyond. In the summer of 2006, he helped to start a small green company, Greenway Pedicabs, to provide a greenhouse gas-free transportation option for people in the Triangle of North Carolina.

Heidi Siegelbaum is a principal with Calyx Sustainable Tourism and works primarily on advancing sustainable tourism practices. She also specializes in science translation, cross-border indicators with Canada, cross-disciplinary planning and environmental technical assistance to businesses. Previously, she was in-house legal counsel for EPA for industrial chemicals and biotechnology and the senior performance measure analyst with the Washington State Department of Ecology. She is on the technical advisory committee of the Seattle Culinary Academy and a long standing member of the Chefs Collaborative.

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