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 >>

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Featured Resources

Financing the Next Generation of Solar Workers: An Exploration of Workforce Training Program Sustainability in the Context of Reduced Public Funding

Recognizing that much of the public funding for solar training programs has already expired - despite a profusion of studies pointing to increased worker demand - The Solar Foundation, along with SolarTech and the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP), collaborated on this paper to introduce a number of possible funding mechanisms designed to attract both public and private capital and efficiently allocate funds to solar workforce programs with the greatest need. This paper supplements the broader efforts of the SolarTech Workforce Innovations Collaborative (SWIC), which was a market-driven pilot program that took a systems approach to source, train, and place the right people in the right jobs at the right time.

Guide on How To Engage Employers

This guide is designed to help think about employer engagement as part of implementing workforce development strategies – and bringing current practices up to the next level.For each principle we have included several strategies from peer ARRA grantees who have implemented the principles in their own communities. Stories from grantees in the field are provided as well as resources on the Communities of Practice and beyond.

Higher Education: Leading the Nation to a Safe & Secure Energy Future

A white paper from ACUPCC and Second Nature that explores how the federal government can develop and enhance energy efficiency and renewable energy incentives for colleges and universities.

North Carolina Solar Center

The North Carolina Solar Center, at N.C. State University, advances a sustainable energy economy by educating, demonstrating and providing support for clean energy technologies, practices, and policies. The N.C. Solar Center serves as a resource for innovative, clean energy technologies through demonstration, technical assistance, outreach and training. It also administers the Database of Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (DSIRE), a resource providing financial incentives and policies.

Solar Energy Resource Center

SunShot, through the Solar Energy Resource Center, maintains a collection of resources on solar technologies and best practices to implement solar, both at the local level and with large-scale deployment. Resources include articles, case studies, fact sheets, how-to guides, model rules and ordinances, presentations, sample government documents, technical reports, tools, and webinars that can assist you in the development of curricular materials.

More Resources

Financing the Next Generation of Solar Workers: An Exploration of Workforce Training Program Sustainability in the Context of Reduced Public Funding

25% Renewables by 2025

View “25x’25”s resources page which covers both technology and policy issues that can prove helpful in the development of curricular materials and information packets. "25x'25" is a nonprofit advocating for renewable energy and a goal for America – to get 25 percent of our energy from renewable resources like wind, solar, and biofuels by the year 2025.

Advanced Technology Environmental and Energy Center (ATEEC)

The Advanced Technology Environmental and Energy Center (ATEEC) has free materials in energy efficiency, renewable energies, and other environmental topics. In addition to curricula and instructional materials, it includes occupational analyses and workforce analyses and trends.

BlueGreen Alliance

The BlueGreen Alliance is a national, strategic partnership between labor unions and environmental organizations dedicated to expanding the number and quality of jobs in the green economy.

Climate, Adaptation, Mitigation, E-Learning (CAMEL)

Climate, Adaptation, Mitigation, E-Learning (CAMEL) is a free, comprehensive, interdisciplinary, multi-media resource for educators to enable them to effectively teach about climate change and allowing them to create and share curricular resources. View their Intro VIdeo for more information.

Community Power: Decentralized Renewable Energy in California

This report identifies obstacles to community based and decentralized renewable power and outlines policies that can promote its development. It uses California as an example and the concept is applicable to other locations and can be used as a case study in curricular materials.

DOE Smart Grid Investment Grants Information

Information on Recovery Act: Smart Grid Investment Grants - For Recipients, Archived News & Other Press Releases, and Case Studies. Also view the main page for other information as well as the Workforce Training Programs and Projects page to find locations in your region.

Free Online Book - Sustainable Energy: Without the Hot Air

This book can be downloaded free and is super useful in tying our STEM related coursework to energy, sustainability and applications.