14 February 2012: The latest issue of “Making it Happen,” the newsletter of the Secretariat of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), focuses on jobs, which it indicates are one of the seven “critical issues of Rio+20.” A feature article on green and decent jobs defines these as “positions across all sectors that contribute to greening, preserving or restoring the quality of the environment, promoting social inclusion and aiding in a transition to a low-carbon economy.”

Estimating that China will have 4.5 million jobs in the wind and solar sectors by 2020, the article notes that the transition to a green economy would spur job creation that can become an engine of development.

The newsletter also points to a policy brief from the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the co-organizing partner of the Major Group for Workers and Trade Unions, which outlines the need for better social standards in order to ensure that green jobs actually contribute to sustainable development and poverty reduction for workers. The article also highlights the need for a social protection floor.

Another publication featured in this issue is the 2011 World Youth Report, which was released only online “to draw in young audiences and engage the public with its content in new ways.”

Finally, an e-Discussion on Jobs, Decent Work and Inclusive Growth is announced. The e-discussion is led by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Labour Organization (ILO). It will run online until 14 March.[Publication: Rio+20: Making it Happen, Vol. 3, Issue 2]