Supporting the Growth of a Skilled Workforce in the Building Energy-Efficiency Industry

Lead Performer: Interstate Renewable Energy Council Inc. – Latham, NY
Partners:
-- Building Performance Institute – Malta, NY
-- Community Action Partnership – Washington, D.C.
-- National Institute of Building Sciences – Washington, D.C.
-- Building Performance Association – Pittsburgh, PA
DOE Total Funding: $500,000
Cost Share: $125,000
Project Term: May 2020 – May 2023
Funding Type: Advanced Building Construction Funding Opportunity Award

Project Objective

IREC and its partners will reach a large, diverse cohort of stakeholders with information about the breadth and range of rewarding career opportunities in the energy-efficiency sectors by demonstrating career pathways with an engaging, interactive career map and conducting strategic outreach to foster a talent pipeline for the energy-efficiency industry, which includes low-income and other vulnerable populations.

The proposed career map is an effective way to showcase the breadth of employment opportunities within the energy-efficiency industry. It will serve as a valuable awareness and recruitment tool and the centerpiece of a strategic communication campaign targeting career and guidance counselors, learners, educators, and job-seekers who might be unaware of these exciting and rewarding opportunities. The career map will describe diverse occupations across the industry, identify the training, skills, and credentials necessary to do them well, and chart possible advancement routes between the different occupations and sectors. Occupations targeted as critical for the EE job market by subject matter experts (SMEs) are expected to include assessment, installation, operations, and maintenance of energy-efficient buildings.

Project Impact

IREC and its partners will focus on executing a strategic outreach plan, which will include but not be limited to participation in conferences, digital and printable informational pieces about the career map, news releases targeted for trade media in energy efficiency, education, and energy, posters for training centers, blog posts/articles for posting to stakeholder websites and newsletters, social media posts, etc. IREC’s goal is to leverage its partner organizations in terms of their reach and status as trusted resources.

Contacts

DOE Technology Manager: Madeline Salzman
Lead Performer: Joseph Sarubbi, Interstate Renewable Energy Council