Clean Energy Jobs Grow In Indiana, Midwest

The number of clean energy jobs grew by 8 percent in Indiana from 2015 to 2016, according to a new report from Clean Energy Trust and E2 Environmental Entrepreneurs.

Clean energy jobs include anything from renewable energy generation and construction to energy efficiency, says Gail Parson, director of state engagement for E2 Environmental Entrepreneurs, which helped write the report.

“The clean energy workforce in the Midwest is certainly a thing of the present. It’s here and now and big — almost 600,000 people, it’s growing faster than other sectors of the economy,” Parson says.

Indiana ranks six out of 12 Midwest states for total clean energy jobs. Parson says one challenge is that many lawmakers don’t understand what they are.

“Some people still think clean energy is something, like, from the Jetsons,” says Parson. “This report shows people employed in every state and every county doing clean energy work.”

At the national level, Parson says, the Trump administration’s plans to reduce funding for research and fuel efficiency programs pose risks to continued growth in the clean energy sector.