Powering First Nations jobs in clean energy

Three renewable energy workers walking through a solar panel field.

Increasing access to training, creating employment, and building career paths in clean energy is one of the key factors that will determine if the energy transition improves the lives of First Nations Australians. Building longer-term employment and skill development (‘careers not jobs’) is a primary pathway to generational wealth building for First Nations Australians.

Currently, there are low numbers of First Nations Australians working in the clean energy sector. The First Nations Clean Energy Network engaged the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF), SGS Economics, Alinga Energy and Indigenous Energy Australia to examine the barriers, opportunities and solutions to increasing First Nations Australians’ employment in clean energy.

Through a combination of employment modelling and data analysis, literature review, interviews and workshops, ISF researchers have developed an action plan with 12 key recommendations for how industry, government and employment and training specialists and First Nations communities can realise opportunities for employment and career paths in clean energy.

Recommendations for unlocking First Nations employment

The researchers reviewed industry and government policy, programs and targets across the nation to find out what is working, and what isn’t – demonstrating through the recommendations and actions identified in the report that there is significant potential through collective action to improve First Nations employment outcomes, right now.

Six of the 12 recommendations that can be implemented now include:

mandating minimum Indigenous Procurement Policy and Australian Skills Guarantee compliance in Capacity Investment Scheme merit criteria
negotiating minimum First Nations employment targets in Renewable Energy Transformation Agreements in solar farm in renewable energy zones
reviewing ARENA’s and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation's (CEFC) procurement guidelines to incorporate employment and training targets for First Nations
setting up a coordinated scheme for wind farm apprenticeships
mandating employment and training targets in the delivery of First Nations housing retrofit programs
setting up a First Nations Clean Energy Cadetship Program for First Nations school students to enter employment and training in the energy sector.