By Juliette Jardim
June 29, 2009

At the Green Today, Jobs Tomorrow — A Focus on Training the Green Collar Workforce workshop at the 77th Annual Conference of Mayors, mayors discussed their efforts to train disadvantaged citizens in their cities for the new green economy in an effort to create a highly skilled green workforce.

Providence Mayor David Cicilline discussed his comprehensive approach to green jobs training encompassing energy, transportation, built environment, and public space through a set of objectives and goals he has outlined in the document GreenPrint Providence.

"The green sector reflects the new economic gateway," Cicilline said. Making the city more environmentally friendly and creating jobs to get people back to work have been two key priorities of his administration. As part of these goals, Cicilline established the Apeiron Institute for Sustainable Living Green Jobs training program. The Institute, which recently won the Wal-Mart Foundation Green Jobs Training Initiative Grant for small cities, was formed in 1994 to help individuals secure jobs in the newly emerging green industry with a vision of making Rhode Island the first sustainable state.

The Apeiron Institute's training program gives workers the specific skill requirements of green-collar industries and creates a pathway that starts with a green literacy-based curriculum and ends with successful job placement.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett described the inception of the Milwaukee Conservation Leadership Corps, a recent winner of a Wal-Mart Foundation Green Jobs Training Initiative Grant for medium'sized cities. The Conservation Corps, established to address the rapidly changing post-industrial economy in Milwaukee, trains youth in eco-restoration projects throughout the city.

"Previously, in industrial and post-industrial cities like Milwaukee, all you needed to get a job was a strong back," Barrett explained. "Now all that's changed."

Barrett spoke of the challenges of rebuilding Milwaukee's economy after many of the city's key industries were transferred overseas. Conservation and recycling have been key parts of Barrett's efforts including the transformation of an abandoned brownfield into a new entertainment district and using methane gas released from a nearby landfill for energy by building a pipeline under the city. The Conservation Corps has been crucial to this city's revitalization by not only training the city youth workforce, but also by changing the city's image in the process.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter outlined Greenworks Philadelphia, his plan to make Philadelphia the greenest city in America. He has also pledged to make Philadelphia the safest city in America. To address these goals, Nutter partnered with Resources for Human Development to create a Green Jobs training program for ex-offenders. The two-phase program trains participants in cradle-to-grave recycling and prepares them for re-entry into the workforce.

"The green economy and green movement is not just about tree-huggers and high level employment," Nutter stated, "it's about putting down a handgun and picking up a caulking gun."

Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster addressed his goal of making the Port of Long Beach the greenest port in the world. Since the port is such a large part of Long Beach's economy, this objective will jumpstart the city's green economy by creating demand for Green Jobs. Foster's partner, the Conservation Corps of Long Beach, is preparing the city's future workforce for the city's growing demand for green workers by training youth in environmental remediation and conservation. With a recent grant from the Wal-Mart Foundation Green Jobs Training Grant for medium'sized cities, the program plans to expand its efforts to weatherization and solar panel installation.

Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, who presided over the workshop, ended by relating several environmental initiatives he has taken in his home city including cash prizes to incentivize communities to recycle, a tax-abatement program for LEED-certified buildings and creating an Office of Environmental Quality which established an environmental plan for the city to create green jobs.