B3.1 Energy education *
Provide educational resources and technical assistance to industry professionals, building owners and managers on all aspects of energy efficient building design, retrofits, and operations for new and existing buildings.
Providing energy education and technical assistance is a cost effective tool that municipalities can use to advance energy efficient building design, retrofit, and operations for new and existing buildings. Local governments can either staff an internal energy office, utilize a municipal owned utility or other public entity, or contract with a local company to provide this service. Education and technical assistance provide the needed resources early in the development process, which is a cost effective way to reduce the costs of developing green buildings. Additionally, education provides long-term capacity by creating a pool of knowledgeable green building professionals and service providers. Municipalities may face the challenge of finding funding to provide for dedicated staff and resources. Partnering with universities and private consultants is a feasible alternative if the municipality cannot fund dedicated staff.
A unique model at the county level is exemplified by King County GreenTools. The program offers technical assistance, grants, and training for green building and other sustainability initiatives to public and private stakeholders across King County.
The City of Kirkland gives free green building seminars, along with technical assistance, to builders pursuing green building.
The Washington State University Energy Program offers energy resources and training to the private and public sector. WSU Energy Program partners with numerous municipalities, utilities, and consultants to provide energy services and education statewide. WSU Energy Program follows a model found across the country, whereby a state-wide efficiency utility or energy office, provides training and education to building and energy professionals.
Tenino Renewable Energy Project – The city, the school district and Portland Energy Conservation Inc are spearheading a project to turn the school district into a regional hub for training in renewable energy technology. It won the national Smart Electric Power Alliance’s Visionary of the Year award. (Articles in the Centralia Daily Chronicle here and here, and in the Nisqually Valley News.)
New York City Retrofit Accelerator offers training for building managers and operators that focuses on more efficient building operation and maintenance. Training ranges from “basic” O&M to “rigorous”, and partners with organizations such as USGBC and BPI.
New York State has collected and organized resources for Clean Energy Workforce Development, including a lot of virtual training and links to current programs. Most other state-wide efficiency programs offer professional training on energy efficiency and green building, or partner with public and private organizations to offer workshops and educational resources. Efficiency Vermont gives workshops to communities and businesses on how to save energy. The Energy Trust of Oregon offers training series about high-performance buildings and energy simulation. Efficiency Maine partners with many community colleges and professional organizations and provides funding for the development of energy curriculum.
The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy has a topic brief,
“Cities and Clean Energy Workforce Development”, that identifies 37 cities around the country with programs, and has some brief case studies.
Futureproof, a government funded non-profit in Bristol, UK, specializes in providing free, independent training on sustainable building practices to builders and matching them with homeowners interested in doing deep upgrades.
Oxnard High Green Technologies Academy (Oxnard, California)
Berkeley Climate Action Plan – The original plan (2009) has an ambitious section on workforce development