“Many occupations in the clean energy economy remain virtually untapped by women,” said Sara Manzano-Díaz, director of the Department of Labor's Women’s Bureau. To address this challenge, the Women's Bureau, the only federal agency designated to represent the needs of working women, has released a comprehensive guide to preparing, finding, and succeeding in green jobs. 

The guide, entitled “Why Green is Your Color: A Woman’s Guide to a Sustainable Career,” is an online publication, designed to help workers learn about a range of in-demand and emerging jobs, as well as job training opportunities and career development tools, in the clean energy economy. The guide also serves as a resource for workforce development professionals, training providers, educators, career counselors and women’s advocacy organizations.

The clean energy economy offers high-paying jobs and an opportunity to make a difference in a critical piece of the Department of Energy's mission, ensuring America's security and prosperity by addressing its energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges. The Women's Bureau developed this guide through a series of nation-wide roundtables with participants from the public and private sectors, addressing a lack of awareness about nontraditional jobs in clean energy.

The gender-gap in clean energy is well-documented - women hold only 27 percent of science and engineering jobs in the United States. The Department's Clean Energy Education & Empowerment (C3E) Initiative was launched in 2010 to support the advancement of women in clean energy, and the Department of Labor's guide is a great tool to add to this endeavor. 

To download the green jobs guide and learn more about the Department of Labor's Women's Bureau, visit the Department of Labor.