Greening Europe’s Workforce: Designing the Future of the Europe of Knowledge

Governance architectures, both nationally and supranationally, have faced criticism for succumbing to short-termism in policy design and implementation. This myopic approach not only increases the risk of policy failures but also hinders the development of enduring, long-term solutions. External dynamics such as crises, policy issues, or wicked problems, have the potential to trigger institutional change within governance structures. The current climate crisis poses significant challenges to the formulation and implementation of policies that necessitate a longer temporal perspective and a robust, intersectoral, multilevel, and networked policy framework. The European target of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 requires a fundamental transformation across various sectors, influencing the European knowledge landscape and job market. This transformation also brings about socio-economic implications and challenges, including equity risk acknowledged by the European Commission in policy instruments like the Just Transition Fund, which emphasises a green transition that includes everyone. This paper analyses how European climate change policy shapes the trajectory of European skill policies. Our analysis delves into the nuanced interactions and influences, exploring how the imperative to address climate change shapes the formulation and evolution of policies related to skills development in the European context. Employing Adam's conceptual tool of futurescapes, we introduce a temporal dimension to the analysis of European climate change and skills policymaking. Applying the concepts of timeframes (short, medium, and long-term goals) and tempo (urgency and speed of change), we scrutinise different stages of policy action in the present and near future, as well as the underlying ideas, actors, and policy instruments in both European policy sectors. Through thematic analysis of European documents on climate change policy (European Green Deal, European Climate Pact, among others) and on skills policies (Pact for Skills, among others), we discuss how a long-term perspective on climate change is gradually transforming the European workforce landscape.