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Green Economy and Green Jobs

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US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics: Green job statistics.

Workforce One: Exit EPA Disclaimer Forum for workforce professionals and green job leaders.

Contact Information

Pollution Prevention and Innovation Team
U.S. EPA Region 4
r4sustainability@epa.gov

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EPA and Green Jobs

Alabama Environmental Justice and Green Jobs Initiative

Training Programs in the Southeast

EPA and Green Jobs

EPA Region 4 is continually incorporating green workforce development into agency activities in order to help southeastern communities transition to a greener economy.

EPA Region 4 is currently engaged in a number of green career activities. These activities are often connected to Region 4’s Environmental Justice Program.

Region 4 Green Job Initiatives

G.R.E.E.N – Growing Responsible Environmental Employees Now
Growing Responsible Environmental Employees Now (G.R.E.E.N) is a free eight-hour "Sustainability 101" course useful for introducing basic green principles and ideas into almost any job training or education program. The curriculum was designed by EPA New England and DOL Region 1 Job Corps. Region 4 is partnering with the Southeast Job Corps Centers to integrate G.R.E.E.N into all planning phases of a student’s stint at a Job Corps Center.

Alabama Environmental Justice and Green Jobs Initiative

EPA, Region 4 has partnered with The United Christian Community Associations to develop agriculture curriculum that would benefit farmers in Environmental Justice communities in Alabama.

The United Christian Community Association’s (TUCCA) “Green BEAN Curriculum”
  • Develop working relationships with socially disadvantaged farmers, farmer groups, agricultural agencies and institutions, community gate keepers, consumers and other economic development value chains in the target counties.
  • Develop the Green Beginning, Experience & Agricultural Niche producers Training Curriculum or Green B.E.A.N. that will address the needs of agricultural producers.
  • Develop farm, marketing, and business plan models for selected demonstration farms that can be used as templates in the agricultural green career development process.
  • Develop infrastructure to encourage vertical integration of agricultural enterprises in an effort to encourage and sustain green careers.
Alabama Green Automotive Readiness Program
The Green Automotive Jobs Readiness Program will target the communities located in Alabama’s Black Belt region, which is currently experiencing high rates of poverty and unemployment, inadequate educational infrastructure, and high crime rates. EPA Region 4 recognizes that the 18 counties that make up this region face environmental justice challenges that impede economic growth but see opportunity in the potential in developing green educational tools for a growing automotive manufacturing sector.
The green automotive jobs readiness program will provide a multi-module, highly adaptable educational curriculum that will provide future automotive manufacturing employees with a working knowledge of environmental concepts and demonstrate how these concepts relate to the manufacturing sector. The curriculum will be designed to introduce students to fundamentals and tactics that will allow them to act as environmentally responsible employees. EPA has partnered with Consortium for Alabama Regional Center for Automotive Manufacturing (CARCAM) as the initial delivery mechanism for the Green Automotive Jobs Readiness Curriculum. CARCAM will integrate the modules into their existing Automotive Manufacturing Technology degree and certificate programs as well as their Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) summer camp for high school students.

SW Atlanta Green Workforce and Economic Development Initiative
EPA Region 4 is leading the Green Workforce and Economic Development Group under the HUD DOT EPA Partnership for Sustainable Communities Initiative. Because of this Initiative in the SW Atlanta Communities of Neighborhood Planning Unit V, EPA Region 4 has been able to partner with other green career efforts throughout Metro Atlanta. These efforts include the Atlanta Emerald Cities Collaborative, Partnership for Southern Equity, and Mayor Kasim Reed’s Green Job Task Force. The major result of EPA’s efforts will be a framework that includes best practices and lessons learned as it pertains to green workforce development. This framework will be transferable to other communities that may want to address sustainability through green workforce issues.
“…environmental protection creates jobs – 1.7 million of them as of 2008. The environmental protection industry has grown steadily between 2000 and 2008, yielding approximately $300 billion in revenues. Recognizing these job creating possibilities is critical in this moment.” – Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Remarks at the 2011 Good Jobs Green Jobs Conference, As Prepared (February 8, 2011)

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Training Programs in the Southeast

The southeastern states are home to a variety of green career training programs that are operated by colleges, universities, for-profit workforce development companies and community-based organizations

Select examples include:

Alabama
Florida
Georgia
Kentucky
Mississippi
North Carolina
South Carolina
Tennessee

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