If you listened to the political rhetoric about green jobs during this election cycle, you’d think that Republicans are against them and Democrats are for them, simple as that. And while that might true nationally, it looks like someone forgot to tell Republican governors, because at the state level, the situation couldn’t be more different.
A recent report from a clean technology-focused venture capital firm shows that green jobs are growing faster in some red and swing states than they are in blue. DBL Investors looked at the growth of these jobs from 2003 to 2010, and concluded that the political tendencies of the state had little to do with growth in these sectors. In fact, three of the top four states were Republican-leaning. (Alaska, North Dakota, and Wyoming for the red states; Hawaii for the blue.)
So what does this mean?
“All of these green jobs figures indicate that on a state and local level, green jobs are not such a politicized issue,” writes Katie Fehrenbacher on GigaOM. “Jobs are jobs.”
Or, as the study’s author Nancy Pfund puts it:
“Outside of Washington DC, there is no controversy about the impact of the clean tech economy and its ability to generate jobs. Governors in red and blue states alike are working to attract and build clean tech businesses because they know the positive benefits these companies can bring for economic development and job growth. As a result, politicians who play political football with clean tech increasingly do so at their own risk, while those that promote green job growth score big points with voters and workers alike.”
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