Tompkins County Green Jobs

The Green Career Pathway on the following pages has been created to help address the increasing workforce demand by providing information and resources on entering the "green" jobs workforce in Tompkins County.  Whether you are just entering the green jobs sector or an experience professional looking to "green up" your skills, this site is for you. Looking for a career change? How about a Fresh Start?

Today's "green" jobs can cover a wide variety of professions associated with sustainability and renewable energy. Most green jobs are common or familiar jobs with specialized tasks, skills, and knowledge requirements.  For example, a general contractor can become a "green" contractor after completing training and credentialing in green building and construction. Many skilled trade professions are becoming "green" as plumbers, carpenters, engineers, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning professionals complete "green" credentialing programs. These "green' pros will be able to take advantage of funding from the new Green Jobs-Green New York program. Green Jobs-Green New York will provide over 100 million dollars in funds to promote energy efficiency.  As a result, qualified homeowners in Tompkins County will have access to much needed funds to supplement the cost of making their homes more energy efficient through whole-house energy retrofits, weatherization, and installation of renewable energy systems.

The emergence of green jobs in Tompkins County is becoming increasingly more evident as more homeowners begin to take steps towards making their homes more energy efficient.  As the demand for home energy improvements increase, the need for a qualified workforce to meet those demands will likely increase at a rate higher than the current workforce can accommodate.