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

Affordable Comfort, Inc. (ACI) Advancing the Performance of Residential Buildings through Education and Building Science

Resources including national and regional conferences, and other training programs, that brings together the thinkers and doers who are committed to finding out how buildings really work. ACI resources aim at solving technical problems, learning new techniques, tools and materials, and building businesses.

Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Certifications, Credentials and Certificates

Green Building Certification Institute was established in 2008 to administer project certifications and professional credentials and certificates within the framework of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Green Building Rating Systems™.

National Green Building Program: Certifications & Education

The NAHB Research Center issues National Green Building Certification to all types of residential construction that meet the criteria of the ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard. Review this site for certification and education information.

Sustainable Building Advisor Institute (SBAi) 9-month Certification Program

The Sustainable Building Advisor (SBA) Program is offered over the course of nine months, with two full days of class each month. Upon completion of the SBA Program and CSBA Exam, students will earn the designation of Certified Sustainable Building Advisor (CSBA). Local SBA Providers are encouraged to augment the national curriculum with a regional perspective.

More Resources

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.

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.

Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Certifications, Credentials and Certificates

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.

Making the Transition: Helping Workers and Communities Retool for the Clean Energy Economy

This report offers recommendations which form a worker and community transition program as part of federal climate legislation. It analyzes past and current transition programs, identify their strengths and weaknesses, and uses data to develop a proposal for a model climate transition policy. The recommendations focus on workers in carbon-intensive industries such as coal and fossil fuels, communities dependent on or affected by those industries, and low- and moderate-income consumers unable to cope with a temporary rise in energy prices. Must sign up with Workforce3One.org to access website.

National Green Building Program: Certifications & Education

National Association of the Remodelers Industry (NARI) Green Certified Professional (GCP) Program Guide and Application

The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) has established the Green Certified Professional (GCP) designation to promote the highest standards of green remodeling through credentialing of remodeling professionals. This handbook summarizes key aspects of the GCP program, and is intended to help you understand the process of certification and recertification.

National Partnership for Environmental Technology Education (PETE)

PETE's goals include: support the use of sustainable practices and technologies in workforce and economic development and global competitiveness to meet the demands of a greening economy; and, to advocate global environmental stewardship and literacy through national and international programs and partnerships in education and training. It connects faculty to faculty, college to college, and college to industry.

Residental Energy Services Network (RESNET) Green Rater Certification

RESNET has established a new category of rater certification, RESNET Green Rater. The RESNET Green Rater has been trained and certified to inspect and verify the green features of a home in addition to the home's energy performance.

Sector Resources for Green Building

This page provides sector resources on green building including information on news, conferences, funding opportunities and documents.

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