Career Trends

USA's footprint compared to biocapacity.

UK's footprint compared to biocapacity.

Canada's footprint compared to biocapacity.

This article reflects the general trend of Westernized countries who at first implement programs and budgets to help protect and conserve their natural resources and species, but after realizing the costs of maintaining such a program, they cut funding and eventually abandon the initial idea altogether. This typically occurs when a government is attempting to privatize areas of the public sector, and has happened to several services and industries within Ontario. This article also highlights the effects of cancelling protective programs for the natural landscape and its resources, as many people who rely on certain natural resource industries are at risk of losing their jobs, as well as those involved with the protection and enforcement of such programs. This specific case deals with the endangered species of Caribou living on a conservation area in Northern Ontario, and their fate lies at the hands of the final outcome of this decision to cancel or continue the level of protection currently over that area. The primary threat is the natural resource industry and their extraction practices, which is potentially fatal for the Caribou species, as the government is more easily persuaded with the promise of financial return over protecting an area that is a natural resource goldmine and its few animal species that inhabit it. There are job cuts and office closures in Ontario's natural resource future, however the extent to which it effects depends on how environmentally aware the government decides to be.

While this is a brochure put together by the Manitoba government, I believe it is still relevant to this week's discussions. It is a simple breakdown of how the workforce is changing, why jobs in sustainability are important, and what jobs, from all skill levels, can contribute to a growing and sustainable economy. I like that it breaks down the different types of sectors: green energy, manufacturing, green building and transportation, agriculture and natural resource management, green hospitality, community engagement, and economic development... You begin to see that there are sustainable jobs out there for anyone of any skill level.

This article relates to the TED Talks video by James Hansen that we watched this week. The article describes the way in which environmentally unfriendly jobs such as work in the Alberta Oil Sands needs to be slowed down however so many people are employed there, they are unwilling to give it up. The article also states that climate change will dramatically affect outdoor employment such as construction jobs, postal jobs and landscaping. These workers will be forced to adapt to hotter working conditions which can in turn affect one's health. It is also important to note in the article that they give alternatives to work with the changing climates. Green jobs are readily available for people who are willing to make the career change. This is an interesting article and definitely worth the read!

This website is from the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities and provides labour market information and trends in Ontario.

This page lists links and information on different "green" jobs/careers. The centre is located in Kitchener but the green jobs are Canada-wide with some international ones.

Link to Annotated Version: https://diigo.com/031bp1

I'm not sure how this works, but here is the annotated link, it is easier to read if you can look at the acutal annotated website...perhaps I did something wrong. https://diigo.com/030tpr The Seed & Plant Sanctuary for Canada is a charitable organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of heritage seeds, and maintaining, evaluating and keeping records for all the edible, medicinal and useful crops that can be grown in Canada.

Formerly called "Working in Canada," includes trends, news, and predictions, as well as region-based reports and career-exploration tools.

When I was reading The Shift this week, I found my comprehension of Grafton's technological projections somewhat limited because I don't have a very vast knowledge of current technology. Particularly, she mentioned The Cloud often in the text, and its ability to make technology and software much more accessible and affordable for people across the globe. I needed a simple breakdown of what The Cloud really is, so what better place to go then HowStuffWorks? This article breaks down The Cloud as a "web-based service which hosts all the programs the user would need for her or his job" and highlighted its key aspects in a way that I could fully understand. I like how it also brings up the Dark Side of cloud computing- the inevitability that it will eliminate the need for many IT jobs (a concern that Grafton has also highlighted for the future), and then the issue of privacy (Grafton mentions mistrust of leadership as prevalent in the future). Since dark projections are the topic of the week, its worth thinking about the implications of posting all of our personal information online... Can we trust our governments and multi-nationals with that kind of information?

This site takes a different look at work life balance. Although it doesn't address working late hours on personal time, it does offer some interesting ideas.

In "The Shift", Lynda Gratton mentions on page 168 that, "... billions of people are choosing to take control of their working lives and to craft them in a way that resonates with their own values and aspirations." I especially liked the metaphor of weaving different threads into your career fabric.

Join a global learning community to create, connect, and collaborate with students around the globe. Skillshare offers online classes to fit your schedule with bite-sized lessons from industry leaders that will help you turn ideas into action. Lynda Gratton mentions in "The Shift" that in the future we will have to differentiate ourselves from the crowd by creating a body of knowledge and skills to achieve mastery, as well as connecting with others around the world.

Lynda Gratton comments about the future work world of Generation Y- they are a generation that has respect for diversity and human differences, and have grown up educating themselves on climate change and sustainability. This article can build on Gratton's description of Gen Y, as it describes the results of a survey of the attitudes of 546 millenials towards work in their future. The survey results do indeed show that millenials are interested in a work life that supports sustainability and social responsibility, but it adds the differences between male and female Gen Y'ers. The studies find that females are significantly more interested in environmental protection and social responsibility than are most males (more typically interested in profit maximization). While I believe this article may be fairly controversial and polarizing, it's interesting to further study the attitudes of what is my own generation.

Interesting article that states that virtual offices are NOT a part of the future!

Youth Employment Fund-This is the official Government of Ontario web portal for Employment Ontario. Whether you're laid-off, unemployed or looking for a new job, we can help. If you're an employer, we can help you get the people you need.