Resource Center

Instructions

The Resource Center is a curated collection of information organized around 7 green economy “Sectors” and 7 “Topics.” In time, more Sectors will be added. Topics represent those areas in which educators and workforce development professionals continue to seek direction.

You can search by sector or by topic. Or across all sectors and/or all topics.

You can also perform a keyword search of all resources on the top right of this page.

Overview

Solar

The solar industry is expected to show steady growth over the coming decade largely due to rising energy prices, advances in technology through public/private partnerships and investments, and continued enactment of federal and state policies and financial incentives. more >>

Wind

Wind power is considered a leading source of new electricity generation in the United States, with the potential of providing 20% of the nation’s energy needs by 2030. more >>

Green Building

The green building market has expanded five fold over the last three years to a $48 billion national market—and is projected to triple in the next five years. more >>

Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency is considered the foundation of a vibrant and sustainable green economy, and one of the most cost effective ways to lower energy consumption, reduce operating costs, and mitigate carbon emissions. more >>

Sustainability Education

Sustainability education refers generally to learning experiences that enable students to develop the knowledge, behaviors and skills to help create healthier ecosystems, social systems, and economies. For the purposes of the SEED Center, this includes resources to help build non-credit continuing education for the incumbent workforce and integrating sustainability curriculum into existing credit programs. more >>

Sustainable Ag., Food & Land

The Sustainable Ag., Food & Land sector covers the areas of organic farming, horticulture, culinary art, and landscaping. This sector includes organizations and resources that integrate environmental, social and economic factors into land use, food preparation, and land specific practices in an attempt to create a more sustainable future. more >>

General Clean Tech

The General Clean Tech sector is a space for resources that encompass multiple ‘green’ sectors. Many are applicable to the broader clean economy and sustainability-related technology and will serve the general clean tech community. Resources also provide valuable information on sectors that are experiencing substantive development in the sustainability realm, like manufacturing and smart grid. more >>

Transportation and Fuels

The Transportation & Fuels sector covers the area of electric and hybrid vehicle development and maintenance, other forms of alternative and sustainable transportation, natural gas, fuel cells, battery storage, and renewable fuels sources including ethanol, biodiesel, algae, and methane. more >>

Certifications and Industry Credentials

Certainly, one of the biggest challenges facing green educators is the rapid and mostly uncoordinated emergence of green certifications and credentials. more >>

Curricular Materials

These resources and materials have been vetted by industry and education experts, and while not in the form of specific educator tools, will assist in creating quality curricula for your classroom. more >>

You will find more specific educator tools (e.g. syllabi, lab manuals, lesson plans, special classroom projects, equipment lists, etc.) submitted by SEED member colleges in our Curricular Materials Sharing Portal.

Employment Industry Projections

While job training providers have been quite active in past years working with local industry to define the emerging green jobs market and potential job growth areas, most still struggle to forecast accurately regional occupational demand. The U.S. Department of Labor has made recent strides toward classifying green occupations and competencies which will help communities define and track green jobs (and colleges to design appropriate education and training programs). Given the uncertain renewable energy and efficiency industry outlook, and rapidly changing technologies, access to the most up-to-date industry studies and employment projections will be critical. more >>

Innovative Practices & Partnerships

The job creation potential of the green economy has led to some unique job training and economic development partnerships and collaborations. more >>

Professional Development Resources

This section includes promising facilitated learning opportunities, including “train the trainer” programs, standing conferences, and informal learning opportunities situated in practice for faculty and staff seeking to further their knowledge of industry trends and requirements. more >>

Policy & Funding Sources

Included you will find links and descriptions of agencies and organizations that typically fund sustainability and green job training initiatives as well as those that provide important information on national legislation and policies relevant to the clean energy sector. CHECK BACK AS MORE ARE ADDED. This section also highlights resources that provide guidance on how to supply input into program and grant design for certain agency solicitations. more >>

Skill sets, Competencies & Career Pathways

This section includes lists and assessments of skill sets and competencies tied to the green economy – across the broad industry as well as within specific sectors. It also includes some critical resources that colleges can use to align programs and facilitate student transitions. Included are green energy competency models and newly-developed career pathways that allow movement across educational and training programs. more >>

Sector:

Topic:

Featured Resources

AWEA Standards Program

Read about the emerging standards for wind power from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

North American Board of Certified Energy Practictioners (NABCEP) Wind Certifications

The foundation document for any certification program is a detailed description of the job involved. This is referred to as a Job Task Analysis. For small wind installers, it defines a general set of knowledge, skills and abilities typically required of small wind practitioners who install, maintain and troubleshoot small wind systems.

North American Board of Certificed Energy Practictioners (NABCEP) Upcoming Small Wind Certification

A group of small wind experts comprised of educators, installers, and other experienced wind energy leaders have been working for two years to develop NABCEP’s new Small Wind Task Analysis, which will serve as the foundation for the materials addressed in the NABCEP Small Wind Certification examination. The Task Analysis has now been submitted for stakeholder comment and fully approved by the Board.

Skills Standards for Wind Turbine Technicians

This Wind Turbine Technician Skill Standards project is part of a broader initiative to establish power generation standards for the energy industry.

More Resources

AWEA Standards Program

Read about the emerging standards for wind power from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

Energy Education & Workforce Development (DOE: EERE)

The Energy Education & Workforce Development website, brought to you by the Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy resource, provides you with clean energy literacy and career information, teaching materials, and information on programs and other topics. Also view the Teach page for many creative lesson plans, labs and projects.

American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Green Economy Webinar

Webinar focuses on 1) different types of green jobs; 2) professional development, certification, and curricular material for teachers at both the high school and community college levels in the green jobs area; and, 3) partnership models between businesses, government, and educators to crate more effective entry, re-entry and professional development for workers in the emerging green economy.

AWEA Seal of Approval Program

The 2010 pilot Seal of Approval Program for wind turbine service technicians recognized leading academic programs and strengthened the future wind industry workforce. The program used an evaluation skill-set, which was developed, designed, and approved by the AWEA to evaluate academic programs that adequately equip students with the skills necessary to serve as an entry level wind turbine service technician in the wind industry.
- Check out this Site for the 2010 Recipients!

CareerOneStop - Competency Model Clearinghouse

A clearinghouse of competency model frameworks. Includes high-growth industries such as Energy Generation, Transmission, and Distribution and Advanced Manufacturing (including green manufacturing principles). Developed through a collaborative effort involving the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) and various industry organizations.

American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) Small Wind Turbine Performance and Safety Standard

This standard provides meaningful criteria upon which to assess the quality of the engineering that has gone into a small wind turbine meeting this standard, and provides consumers with performance data that will help them make informed purchasing decisions. This standard was written to ensure the quality of the product can be assessed while imposing only reasonable costs and difficulty on the manufacturer to comply with the standard.
- Also read about Policies to Promote Small Wind Turbines

Connecting High-Poverty Areas with Green Jobs: Creative Partnerships with Access Points

Designed for workforce systems with existing SHARE Network Access Points but open to all, this Webinar (formerly "Access Point and The New Economy") shares promising practices from areas that are using faith-based and neighborhood partners to help fulfill the needs of the Recovery Act and the new “green jobs” economy. The Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration has announced its initial plans for awarding “green job training” funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Training and Employment Notice 44-08 summarizes these plans. Must sign up with Workforce3One.org to access website.

Electronics Technicians Association International (ETA) Renewable Energy Certifications

ETA International’s comprehensive Renewable Energy credentialing program is unlike any other green certification provider. ETA offers three career track certification pathways in renewable energy technology -- Installer / Integrator / Maintainer.
Review the Fact Sheets for the Following Industry Certifications:
- Solar (PV) Fact Sheet
- Small Wind (SW) Fact Sheet
- Electric Vehicle Technician (EVT) Fact Sheet

Electronics Technicians Association (ETA) International Electronics Technician Certifications

ETA is a not-for-profit trade association for electronics students and professionals. ETA focuses on providing resources for the technician or student to learn more about the industry, connect with other professionals, advance their careers and achieve recognition for their knowledge and skill through certification.

Green Pathways Out of Poverty: Workforce Development Initiatives

This document is a product of that two-day meeting and links to resources recommended by Community of Practice members. It is meant to guide and support anyone seeking to create pathways out of poverty through green job training. Must sign up with Workforce3One.org to access website.

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