CHEVRON ENERGY SOLUTIONS
To support incentive programs, the New York State Energy Research
and Development Authority developed training for providers of
these services. Trained contractors and installers are the key to a solid
renewable energy economy.
Because the contractor’s ability to deliver high-quality energy
services is fundamental to creating a sustainable RE/EE market in New
York, NYSERDA has championed the development of best practices
and certifications. We work with several organizations that maintain
nationally recognized standards, certifications and accreditations in
support of our training programs. Incorporating these national standards into programs helps ensure a qualified pool of contractors,
and it assures homeowners of good system installations.
NYSERDA’s energy-efficiency and building science training was
developed in concert with standards developed by the Building Performance Institute. BPI is the national resource for standards and best
practices, as well as certification and accreditation procedures for
assessing and improving the energy performance of homes. A number of NYSERDA’s programs require participants to achieve BPI certifications and/or accreditation.
For high-quality training for home-improvement contractors,
NYSERDA has partnered with the Onondaga, Cortland, Madison
Counties Board of Cooperative Educational Services (OCM BOCES)
since 1999. Training began in OCM BOCES’ Syracuse, N. Y. facility, and
resulted in a training road show, bringing the instructors and training equipment where needed to meet student demand. During the several years OCM BOCES conducted classes, more than 1,200 people
were trained for work as building analysts, heating professionals,
cooling professionals and building-envelope professionals. The training was designed to prepare students for BPI’s certification exam and
accompanying field test.
As homeowner demand for energy-efficiency improvements grows,
NYSERDA needed to expand the training developed by OCM BOCES.
As a result of a competitive solicitation in 2006, we selected Hudson
Valley Community College in Troy, N. Y., to develop a statewide network of 10 residential energy-efficiency learning centers. Building on
the curriculum developed by OCM BOCES and owned by NYSERDA,
Hudson Valley created the Center for Energy Efficiency and Building
Science, or CEEBS, and rolled out a portfolio of residential building
training courses in 2007. Once CEEBS was launched at Hudson Valley, other learning centers were recruited to join CEEBS.
Cities Train Urban Residents
for Green Jobs
Seeing opportunity in the shortfall of workers to support emerg-
ing green industries, enterprising cities nationwide are training
urban residents for a pathway out of poverty.
In Richmond, Calif., low-income residents are learning the solar
trade through free and low-cost installations on neighbors’ low-income homes. Nonprofit Solar Richmond (solarrichmond.org) has
partnered with two organizations to provide training: Richmond
BUILD, the city’s low-income residential assistance and construction training program; and GRID Alternatives, a nonprofit that
installs solar systems for low-income homes and provides solar
training. Last year 32 Richmond residents completed 10 weeks of
training from Richmond BUILD and Solar Richmond. By December,
all but five graduates had found jobs.
Chicago has offered green-collar job training through Green-Corps Chicago for more than a dozen years. The nine-month
course trains participants, primarily ex-offenders, in one of four
tracks: landscaping and urban gardening, computer refurbishing
and recycling, household hazardous waste handling and home
weatherization. Trainees gain experience by building community
gardens and refurbishing computers for low-income residents.
In an effort to transform a low-income neighborhood in
Newark, N.J., into a green mixed-use development, the Lincoln
Park Coast Cultural District ( lpccd.org) is cultivating green-collar
workers. LPCCD partnered with CentrALL, a New Jersey HVAC,
electrical and plumbing business, to train Newark residents in the
trades. In February the partners launched the Green Collar
Apprenticeship Program, or Green-CAP, to provide on-the-job
training on LPCCD’s residential projects and enrollment in trade
programs. Green-CAP graduates will earn licenses and certificates
demonstrating their training in green construction.
Find details of these and other urban training programs in
“Green-Collar Jobs in America’s Cities,” apolloalliance.org/
downloads/greencollarjobs.pdf.
Today, eight partners have launched centers, and the final two centers are expected to join by year-end. The learning centers are spread
statewide, at OCM BOCES, Erie County Community College in Buffalo, Bronx Community College, Broome Community College in
Binghamton, Westchester Community College in Valhalla, the Association for Energy Affordability in the Bronx, Fulton-Montgomery
Community College in Johnstown, and at Hudson Valley. These
learning centers are on pace to train 1,000– 1,500 practitioners annually and to continue expansion.
Training the RE Professionals
NYSERDA’s REAP also includes a growing portfolio of training for
renewable energy professionals. To ensure high standards, we work
closely with and financially support the industry’s accreditation and
certification bodies.
The Institute for Sustainable Power develops and maintains international standards for evaluation and qualification of RE, EE and
distributed-generation training providers. The North American Board
