“Jobs for Future”: Career Choice Through the Lens of Sustainability

With the “Jobs for Future” initiative, myclimate expands its range of opportunities for education and empowerment. “Jobs for Future” is geared towards young people who are choosing or about to choose their career. The initiative shows young people how they can contribute to the sustainable development of the economy and society in their desired profession.

"Jobs for Future" pilot project's participants in Winterthur

“Jobs for Future” enables young people to gain a different perspective on career orientation and helps them through the complex phase between school and career. At practically oriented classroom workshops, young people dive into the subject of corporate sustainability and investigate skilled trades and professions from the perspective of ecological, social and economic sustainability.

“Can a baker help preserve biodiversity in Switzerland? Can an auto body painter make a contribution to ecological sustainability? Can I, as an employee in the retail trade sector, protect the climate?” Questions such as these are crucial to the project for Michael Kaspar, project leader of “Jobs for Future”.

Contact to participate in and support «Jobs for Future»

Everyone can make a contribution to a sustainable society and economy in their career.

The students develop the knowledge gained from the workshop into a vision that represents their contributions to sustainable development in their desired occupation. This vision is captured in the form of a puzzle piece. The puzzle piece symbolises the idea that everyone in every occupation can make contributions that, when taken together, represent a larger movement for the sustainable development of society and the economy.

“Skilled trades in particular currently offer the opportunity to act responsibly and sustainably in society. ‘Jobs for Future’ takes a cross-sector approach and enables participants to experience sustainable behaviour in individual occupational sectors based on concrete examples from Swiss companies and trade associations,” reports Mischa Kaspar.

“Jobs for Future” supports the educational goals of the Lehrplan 21 project and addresses the cross-sector modules of “Vocational Orientation” and “Training for Sustainable Development”. In this way, the new programme supplements the already successful educational portfolio of myclimate, which includes “Energy and Climate Pioneers” and the “Energy and Climate Laboratory”.

Initial Experiences with “Jobs for Future”

A preview of Jobs for Future was offered in September 2017 to two classes at the third upper secondary level in Winterthur. The results and feedback validate the programme’s approach: Before the lesson only three students could imagine that they could make a contribution to in-creased sustainability in their desired occupation, but by the end of the lesson the number had grown to eleven of the 14 participants.

The implementation of Jobs for Future begins in August 2018. This is made possible by the Mercator Foundation, the Ernst Göhner Foundation, the Georg and Berta Schwyzer-Winiker Foundation and the UBS Foundation for Social Affairs and Education. Trade associations such as viscom and the Swiss Meat Industry Association are also leading the way by agreeing to provide support. The programme can be expanded to include other partnerships. Mischa Kaspar is happy to provide companies, associations and foundations interested in “Jobs for Future” with a detailed presentation of the possibilities for support.

Mischa Kaspar will be happy to present the opportunities offered by "Jobs for Future" in detail to interested companies, associations or foundations.

Stay informed!