There are those like Brian Sussman, a conservative radio host and one of the more vocal critics of the environmental movement, who insist that green jobs by their very nature are often incapable of replacing today’s dirtier ones. In his book Eco-Tyranny, Sussman attempts to discredit today’s sustainable agenda by linking its motivations to the ideas of Marx and Engels. The viewpoint he expressed to PLANET was that sustainable jobs in sectors like renewable energy lack the capacity to exist in the long term – in other words, to be sustainable.

“So much of the green movement is based upon jobs like the installation of solar panels or wind turbines, the installation of weatherization products,” he said. “But once the solar farm is built, it doesn’t take too many people to run those jobs. I’m not denying that’s a great alternative source, but in terms of job creation, that’s really not very significant. It’s like patching potholes.”

It’s certainly true that industries like solar energy have their limits, though Sussman ignores the jobs that would come in the manufacture of solar cells and the revenue generated by patents on new technologies. (The UN report’s chapter on energy supplies evidence that when expressed as jobs created in produced or installed capacity, solar energy ranks several times higher than coal, gas, or nuclear, though increased productivity may one day reduce its ranking.)

Proponents of green solutions like Van Jones who would otherwise find encouragement in recommendations like those made by Dr. Poschen are still reeling from the bitter experience of watching the derailment of a U.S. climate bill, thanks in no small part to the opposition of dissenters like Mr. Sussman.

“I don’t think that the champions of the green jobs framework were prepared for the ferocious and well-funded attempt to discredit the idea from the opponents of progress, he said. “Phony reports were concocted making laughable assertions that every one green job destroyed two other jobs, and I think the fight back is not fierce enough.”

Jones has spent his time since leaving the White House responding to the effects of the recession. In addition to being the title of his latest book, Rebuild the Dream is the name of the organization he leads to support members of the American middle class who have been left behind. He says of his allies still hoping for a new green economy after recent setbacks, “I think that we’re only now recovering from that backlash and finding our footing.”

It’s easy to wonder whether the Rio conference might be more productive in a booming economy. The recession hasn’t been kind to emerging industries, but Dr. Poschen sees a very clear message in our collective experience over the four-year period since his agency’s previous report.