The HCA programme at 18 months

GroenvermogenNL’s Human Capital Agenda (HCA) is a key aspect of developing the green hydrogen economy, because we cannot hope to create that economy without enough high-quality human capital. GroenvermogenNL’s HCA programme has been around for 18 months now. How much progress has been made? Paulien Herder, member of the programme board: ‘It’s marvellous that we are now making an impact through our regional communities. They’re working on regional HCA roadmaps, and educational institutes and companies are organising themselves well around the HCA.’  

GroenvermogenNL’s focus is on making rapid progress towards the large-scale adoption of green hydrogen. What is unique to this Growth Fund programme is the constant connection it makes between the four pillars of the programme: demonstrations, pilots, R&D, and human capital. This integrated approach enables GroenvermogenNL to achieve more impact in accelerating progress on the hydrogen economy by building an innovative ecosystem and inspiring talented people to join in. ‘We can only accelerate innovation and implementation by continuously jumping back and forth between these four pillars,’ explains Herder. ‘That includes research, pilots, large-scale implementation, and well-trained people who can supervise and carry out all these projects. Involving educational institutes, staff, and employers right from the get-go means that innovations can be incorporated into the courses straight away.’

GroenvermogenNL’s HCA programme ensures that education and industry stakeholders coordinate their actions. That includes producing regional roadmaps, shared courses, and educational products for all types of education in the Netherlands. Herder continues, ‘We’re also joining forces with other major HCA programmes in the Netherlands.’

There are some wonderful highlights in GroenvermogenNL’s HCA programme, such as the enthusiastic and well-attended kick-off session in Utrecht and the HCA Safari Days, where the regions could learn from each other. And although the programme has only been up and running for 18 months, the first results are already clear to see. ‘Almost immediately, we saw the formation of active regional communities of educational institutions and companies,’ says Herder. ‘These communities have produced roadmaps focussing on regional human capital requirements. The regional liaison groups have also brought together all the regional initiatives, funds, and programmes. I’m really proud of how the leaders of the HCA programme have tackled this so rapidly and constructively, and particularly the programme manager Marsha Wagner.’

‘It’s still too early to say in exactly which areas the HCA programme will speed up progress on innovation,’ says Herder. ‘But the impact on educational institutes and companies is clear to see. Look at how organised they are now – coordinating and sharing courses, demonstrations, and teaching materials at the national level.’ Herder sees a clear role for HCA in the R&D programmes that the consortia are developing. ‘The need for staff with good training (or retraining) is a priority across all consortia. After all, they will be the ones carrying out research, developing innovations, and enabling companies to move to adoption. Our HCA programme means we can respond to those needs effectively.’

According to Herder, GroenvermogenNL’s HCA programme is a crucial part of making quicker progress towards a green hydrogen economy, and on the Netherlands’ wider energy transition. ‘We have to help educational institutes, courses, employers, and staff in every way we can when it comes to training and retraining people. We provide all the tools required for this, including the hydrogen demos and hydrogen pilots that we’re developing within GroenvermogenNL. The urgency of the energy transition is being felt by ever more people. Our HCA programme is helping companies to retrain people and encouraging educational institutes to develop programmes and modules and, above all, to share them. Because we have to do everything we can to speed up progress. The quicker we can disseminate knowledge and make full use of our human capital, the better our chances of success in the hydrogen transition.’