Gearing our economy up to the rigours of an increasingly environmentally-conscious
market is going to be a big challenge. More than ever before, environmental factors are having an effect on industry. While traditional fuel sources are drying up, industry is looking more and more to sustainable sources to take their place - hydropower, wind power, gas generation from waste and even burning sustainable
crops for energy. At the same time, demands are being made on businesses as strict legislation is introduced by government at national and EU level on environmental issues, such as imposing ceilings on waste production, limiting landfill, and stipulations about the percentages of the energy supply that must
come from renewable sources. Simultaneously, EnviroTRADE is opening up exciting new markets for business in the West Midlands - and employers and their staff need training to maximise their ability to take advantage of those opportunities, says Ralph Hepworth, of Advantage West Midlands. "The main function of EnviroTRADE is to encourage West Midlands businesses to take advantage of those new markets," says Mr Hepworth. "Training priorities are then down to the companies who are operating in areas that are relevant."
Training is important so existing companies can either expand their existing business in their existing market while taking on environmental considerations, for those expanding into new markets, and for new or "gestating" businesses to find their feet, says Mr Hepworth.
One new business being assisted, for example, is an agricultural company whose owner wants to generate electricity from the methane produced by his compost.
"Suddenly there are markets opening up and changing in sheer size and nature," he says.
"There's an emerging need for training. "These companies are going to face a lot of challenges as to how they operate, in terms of product innovation for emerging industries such as sustainable energy; collaborative innovation, for example, with universities; exporting; marketing - people are going to be facing a lot more issues like
this." A cluster of small and medium-sized businesses have been identified by AWM, working with the Learning and Skills Council, Business Link and other agencies in the region (although there is no closeddoor policy at present, stresses Mr Hepworth), and their environmental training needs are being reviewed. They are anticipating a need for courses at higher education colleges in professional disciplines such as marketing , as well as tapping into the growing area of waste management reflected by the considerable growth in that field in the academic sector. "This is a major opportunity for Britain plc and we have to respond," says Mr Hepworth. "A big part of that is the knowledge of our people. If we are going to tackle the environmental issue, we are not going to do it only by living a sustainable lifestyle in a hut somewhere. "We are going to have to do this through business means - with issues such as electricity and waste, our reaction really has to be through business. "That's the case whether it's training in the environmental side, or whether it is that small agricultural business which may employ only half a dozen people, but needs all the skills and knowledge in fields such as marketing. "There's also the existing business that wants to expand into new fields - such as manufacturing engineering parts for renewable energy industry, for example. "Through our intervention project, we want to encourage them to meet the Danish and German companies to get a cut of the new market with new products. "We recognise the marketplace; we recognise this is a huge opportunity we are only just starting to eize. "People skills, competencies - they all need to be a major part of the implementation of our strategy." | 
