Apr 01, 2008 -- STATE DEPARTMENT RELEASE/ContentWorks

Participants in a California energy summit resolved to introduce more jobs in the renewable energy industry and implement training and information programs at state, city and community levels.

"Advancing the New Energy Economy" was the theme of the one-day meeting that summit chair Kri Bolding calls highly successful. Bolding, the California Public Utilities Commission's senior communications adviser, told America.gov that about 800 people from "very different sectors" attended the January 14 meeting.

"They were from all socio-economic backgrounds, but particularly from the four sectors of renewable energy ... the green technology community." Policymakers, educators, investors, community leaders and "underserved community members" who "can motivate people that are not right now focused on renewable energy" attended.

Dialogue among these diverse interests, meant to make "California fertile ground for renewable energy and energy investment and jobs, particularly," was an accomplished aim, Bolding said. It "created a lot of interest and momentum that wasn't there already" and moved it forward.

The highlight came from Joseph Perkins, president of the Home Builder's Association of Northern California (HBANC), which has pledged to impose strict environmental building standards that would cut carbon emissions to half the 1990 output by 2020 through low-emissions building technologies. "The association is committed to green building," Perkins told summit participants. "We want to collaborate with different sectors to get things done."

Construction activity releases a major share of global carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to global warming. "The building sector accounts for almost half" of all annual domestic greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), a figure that is mirrored globally. The USGBC certifies projects internationally using the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.

Until recently, the mainstream construction industry resisted going green. The HBANC decision is a significant turnaround.

"It was really exciting to have them participate," Bolding said. Especially encouraging was the promise of up to 25,000 "green collar" jobs the HBANC plans to create. "This is going to have a multiplier effect on our economy, on the industry and on our underserved communities, to funnel people and our state to a new green economy," Bolding said, adding the new jobs and training efforts "are starting now."

THE GREEN ECONOMY IS HEATING UP

Energy auditors, who assess the energy efficiency of buildings, are in demand. So are electrical contractors, installers and builders certified to install solar panels, link them to the electric grid and upgrade older homes to new energy standards. New jobs will come as the manufacture of renewable energy products expands. Technologies such as photovoltaic film, which can replace bulky solar panels, will become lucrative commodities once their greater availability makes them affordable for the average homeowner.

California's new goal of net zero energy usage in all new homes by 2020 and all new commercial buildings by 2030 has invigorated the green energy industry, as has the highly successful California Solar Initiative.

"We are overwhelmed trying to keep up with the demand," Bolding said, adding, "We hadn't anticipated the response that we have had." Energy audits and efficiency retrofits are required before consumers may collect the generous rebates that provide incentives for solar installations in homes.

Upfront costs of solar energy installations can be daunting, and some cities, like Berkeley, are designing programs to put such energy upgrades within the reach of lower income groups, Bolding said.

SunPower Vice President Julie Blunden said at the summit that the San Jose-based manufacturer of solar power systems has seen phenomenal revenue growth, from $11 million in 2004 to $1 billion in 2007.

Education is another vital component, not only for job training, but for disseminating information about renewable energy and the opportunities it offers.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who is committed to achieving sustainability in his city, called community action in urban centers imperative in his address to the summit. "We need to move away from the dreaming stage to the doing stage," he said, advocating local offset plans for carbon dioxide emission and incentive programs that promote renewable energy and create new jobs.

Van Jones, co-founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, told summit participants "We need to connect people who most need work with the work that needs to get done. There can be green pathways out of poverty."

California also partners with other countries to develop new renewable energy strategies. Australia, Britain China, France and India are among countries collaborating with California on ways to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and introduce clean technologies.

"We need to recognize that we've been subsidizing a fossil fuel economy and undo this," Nancy Pfund, JP Morgan managing director, told the summit.

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