MONROE - Can Green County get any greener?
A webinar on "Green-Collar Jobs" Tuesday at the Green County Government Services Building helped local attendees identify movements toward preparing for future careers that preserve or enhance environmental quality.
The discussion left questions about how to bring the green economy to local communities, businesses and governments and created a desire among local attendees to include other community members to share ideas.
"It's a matter of getting people together who are passionate," Chris Wellington, dean of the Monroe campus Blackhawk Technical College, said.
The webinar was presented by Gary Green, a professor at the University-Wisconsin Department of Rural Sociology; Andrew Dane with the UW-Extension in Barron and Chippewa counties; and Sarah White, senior associate at the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS), a national policy center at UW dedicated to "high-road" (family-supporting) economic development.
Green-collar jobs are well-paid, career track jobs that require more than a high school education, but less than a four-year college degree.
The presentation provided information on jobs connected with energy efficiency, renewable energy, transportation, and "green strings" economic development.
One green string involves education and workforce development.
Blackhawk Technical College is infusing its course work with more green technology classes.
"Students do not leave without knowing their relationship to ecology," Wellington said.
One example of transformation of course work is the landscape and turf course which now trains students as green energy technicians. And cooking classes include lessons on recycling organic wastes.
But Wellington said schools and communities must be careful not to train for jobs that don't exist yet or may never exist in the area.
"Young people would be more interested in returning to Green County, if there is something to return to," she said.
Likewise, students may not be interested in training for a renewable energy job if it requires moving from their communities.
A community's move to a greener economy starts with determining which green industries would be most advantageous in the area. That decision depends upon city and county leaders, Wellington said.
One obstacle to the green movement is the efficiency of the energy-producing mechanics, which determines the time for a return on an investment.
"There's a lot of proven technology out there that does work," community development specialist Tom Purdy said.
However, government-funded subsidies should be included when calculating a true return on investment, he added.
"We all pay for that," he said of subsidies.
Another obstacle is the present economic crisis.
"There's not a lot of investable income right now," Wellington said.
The webinar attendees believe many people are interested in conserving energy and producing renewable energy, but do not know what is available to them or believe investment efforts are too large and costly.
"People want to know 'what can I do?'" Wellington said.
The group shared dates of upcoming local presentations and seminars starting in April. Those dates need to be more broadly advertised, they said.
Proponents of green jobs praise renewable energy for generating more jobs than fossil fuels. The most conservative estimates suggest green jobs could grow to 8.5 million in renewable-energy and energy-efficient industries by 2030. High estimates place the job number at 40 million.
For communities, a greener economy is about more than jobs.
Green economies also provide a cleaner, greener impact on the environment, and a social equity and energy security impact on the community.
An article on green-collar jobs by Gary Green and Andrew Dane delves into many of the obstacles facing the green economy movement. It is available at http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cced/communities/documents/GreenCollar.pdf
The Webinar series is co-sponsored in Green County by the UW-Extension and Green Count Development Corporation. For more information contact Cara Carper, Green County UW-Extension (328-9440), or Anna Schramke, GCDC (328-9452).
A webinar on "Green-Collar Jobs" Tuesday at the Green County Government Services Building helped local attendees identify movements toward preparing for future careers that preserve or enhance environmental quality.
The discussion left questions about how to bring the green economy to local communities, businesses and governments and created a desire among local attendees to include other community members to share ideas.
"It's a matter of getting people together who are passionate," Chris Wellington, dean of the Monroe campus Blackhawk Technical College, said.
The webinar was presented by Gary Green, a professor at the University-Wisconsin Department of Rural Sociology; Andrew Dane with the UW-Extension in Barron and Chippewa counties; and Sarah White, senior associate at the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS), a national policy center at UW dedicated to "high-road" (family-supporting) economic development.
Green-collar jobs are well-paid, career track jobs that require more than a high school education, but less than a four-year college degree.
The presentation provided information on jobs connected with energy efficiency, renewable energy, transportation, and "green strings" economic development.
One green string involves education and workforce development.
Blackhawk Technical College is infusing its course work with more green technology classes.
"Students do not leave without knowing their relationship to ecology," Wellington said.
One example of transformation of course work is the landscape and turf course which now trains students as green energy technicians. And cooking classes include lessons on recycling organic wastes.
But Wellington said schools and communities must be careful not to train for jobs that don't exist yet or may never exist in the area.
"Young people would be more interested in returning to Green County, if there is something to return to," she said.
Likewise, students may not be interested in training for a renewable energy job if it requires moving from their communities.
A community's move to a greener economy starts with determining which green industries would be most advantageous in the area. That decision depends upon city and county leaders, Wellington said.
One obstacle to the green movement is the efficiency of the energy-producing mechanics, which determines the time for a return on an investment.
"There's a lot of proven technology out there that does work," community development specialist Tom Purdy said.
However, government-funded subsidies should be included when calculating a true return on investment, he added.
"We all pay for that," he said of subsidies.
Another obstacle is the present economic crisis.
"There's not a lot of investable income right now," Wellington said.
The webinar attendees believe many people are interested in conserving energy and producing renewable energy, but do not know what is available to them or believe investment efforts are too large and costly.
"People want to know 'what can I do?'" Wellington said.
The group shared dates of upcoming local presentations and seminars starting in April. Those dates need to be more broadly advertised, they said.
Proponents of green jobs praise renewable energy for generating more jobs than fossil fuels. The most conservative estimates suggest green jobs could grow to 8.5 million in renewable-energy and energy-efficient industries by 2030. High estimates place the job number at 40 million.
For communities, a greener economy is about more than jobs.
Green economies also provide a cleaner, greener impact on the environment, and a social equity and energy security impact on the community.
An article on green-collar jobs by Gary Green and Andrew Dane delves into many of the obstacles facing the green economy movement. It is available at http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cced/communities/documents/GreenCollar.pdf
The Webinar series is co-sponsored in Green County by the UW-Extension and Green Count Development Corporation. For more information contact Cara Carper, Green County UW-Extension (328-9440), or Anna Schramke, GCDC (328-9452).