By Eric Dury

The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) recently conducted an enlightening discussion on the findings of their international green skills survey. The survey uncovers significant challenges and opportunities in the global engineering sector’s journey towards net zero emissions. The interview below with the IET team delves into the crucial aspects of the discussion, revealing insights and recommendations for a sustainable future in engineering.

Based on the results of the international green skills survey, what do you perceive as the most significant barriers that engineering employers face in their journey towards achieving net zero emissions? How do these barriers vary internationally?

There is much agreement across the countries surveyed that skills are going to be vital to achieving net zero emissions. It is the type of skills needed that different countries have identified differently. India and Saudi Arabia’s top responses were a lack of knowledge or skills within their workforce to adapt to greener processes. Malaysia, Australia, Brazil and Egypt selected a lack of knowledge or skills within management. The USA jointly picked both as their most common answer. Regardless of where these skills gaps lie, it is vital that they are addressed by companies in order to lower their emissions as a business.

The survey highlights a skills gap in the engineering sector regarding sustainable practices. What steps can engineering employers take to bridge this gap? 

The survey highlighted the fact that few respondents had business priorities that directly aligned to net zero, through examples such as developing solutions for sustainability or lowering their environmental impact. However, at least two thirds of organisations in each country surveyed have a sustainability strategy, which suggests that it is a business concern, if not directly addressed in their priorities. To bridge this gap, the IET recommends that businesses include sustainability content and themes across their leadership programs, to encourage strategic thinking within those responsible for forming their sustainability strategies. Employers can also consider the application of AI to enhance sustainable practices, as it can help with areas such as energy efficiency optimization, predictive maintenance and supply chain optimization.

How can you integrate green skills training effectively into the workforce development strategies?

Some of the skills most often identified as needed are softer skills such as complex problem solving, innovative thinking and whole systems thinking. These will be vital to ensure a workforce that is agile enough to meet new challenges, help ensure their own organisations significantly reduce their emissions, and solve the wider climate crisis. Systems thinking training and development, especially, will bring many benefits to engineering and encourages skills development in multiple areas.

Encouraging systems thinking helps with cross-disciplinary integration, as engineering often requires integrating knowledge from multiple disciplines, such as combining engineering principles with environmental science, economics, and social sciences to create solutions that are sustainable, profitable, and socially responsible. It also encourages holistic problem-solving approaches. Instead of addressing the symptoms of a problem, it focuses on identifying and addressing the root causes, which often lie in the interactions between different parts of the system.

These are skills that can be developed at different levels within a business and encourage further skills development when addressing more technical or complex problems.

In your opinion, what role should government policies and incentives play in supporting engineering employers to reach net zero? Are there any specific policies that you believe would be particularly effective?

The survey highlighted the importance of government in setting economic policies that support engineering development. When asked where governments could focus on improving policies to support the engineering industry in their efforts to meet net zero, the most common top answers were to improve policies for the green economy (Malaysia, India and Brazil) or industrial strategy (UK, Egypt and USA). In terms of specific policies, this would have to be dealt with at country level, but consistency and long-term thinking are key to ensuring policies work to support engineering businesses for the future.

How crucial are technological advancements in overcoming the barriers to net zero in the engineering industry? Could you provide examples of such technologies that have shown promise in the survey?

Ongoing technological advancements will be key to developing solutions for the sectors where it is proving most difficult to abate emissions. However, the majority of respondents across the countries surveyed, recognized the importance of technologies that are in existence and being used already, such as renewable energy generation and sustainable construction materials. Of course, these technologies will need continue to improve, become more efficient and scale accordingly in order to move at the pace needed to limit global temperature increases.

For future developments, survey respondents identified skills gaps in delivering technologies such as zero emission aviation, digital twins and nuclear fusion. These technologies will offer great opportunities in sustainable development and decarbonization. As respondents were all from industry, it is important for the future that these skills become more common over time, as solutions are developed, as it is engineers that will be responsible for delivering them.

It is also important to note how AI can play a pivotal role in helping companies achieve their net-zero goals by optimizing operations, reducing emissions, and enhancing sustainability efforts. Through AI-powered predictive analytics, companies can optimize energy consumption, supply chains, and resource allocation, leading to significant reductions in carbon footprints. AI-driven monitoring and data analysis can also help identify areas for efficiency improvements and carbon offset opportunities. Additionally, AI can facilitate the development of renewable energy solutions, smart grids, and carbon capture technologies, all of which contribute to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly business model, aligning with the net-zero objectives.

The survey suggests that collaboration across sectors is vital for achieving net zero. How can engineering employers foster such collaborations? 

It is important for industry sectors to look at how skills can be disseminated in different ways, at all ages and experience levels. Education can get someone so far, but not everyone has access to higher education and there are skills gaps that develop throughout a career as well. Using different tools, such as inclusivity of youth at events, use of open-access information and industry outreach programs can help industries and industry sectors facilitate learning opportunities and share knowledge.

Are there any best practices or success stories identified in the survey that could serve as a model for others?

The survey did not ask for examples of current initiatives, but there are certainly common challenges that demonstrate how important it is for countries to be able to share best practices to help overcome these challenges. Collaboration between industry, academia and youth to develop skills in those entering industry is just one of these.

The above interview and IET’s survey reveal that the journey to net zero in the engineering sector requires a collective effort, integrating advancements in technology, skill development, and governmental support. By embracing these elements, the engineering industry can effectively contribute to a sustainable and environmentally conscious future.