At the federal, state and regional level, a historic amount of public funding is being allocated to support climate resilient infrastructure for equitable and sustainable communities. As public agencies collaborate to implement projects, the need for a well-trained, skilled workforce is critical to make the promise of so many green jobs a reality in Southern California. As the Los Angeles County Sustainability Plan makes clear, “just as important as preparing the workforce for transition is prioritizing the education of younger populations in career paths in a green economy, from renewable energy to ecosystem restoration.”

According to the new report, Green Jobs in Los Angeles County: Opportunities for Economic Recovery through Equitable Workforce Training, public-private partnership will be crucial to support “curriculum alignment, job placements, and identifying enabling infrastructure holding the green economy back. This consortium would align well with the implementation of regional planning for California’s workforce development system, leveraging the leadership of the County’s seven Local Workforce Development Boards.” Plans, policies and historic funding at the statewide level are providing additional resources for this work and are reflected in UC Berkeley’s recent report, Putting California on the High Road: A Jobs and Climate Action Plan for 2030.

At this upcoming convening, we’ll take a deeper dive into what it will take to make our region’s ambitious green jobs goals a reality in Southern California. We will explore the opportunities, barriers and strategies needed to support an emerging workforce. And, we’ll learn from a set of local stakeholders working on developing a green jobs ecosystem in Southern California, with clear eyed suggestions to funders who want to support a just transition.

Register and learn more here.

This convening is part of a series of quarterly conversations hosted by the Southern California Grantmakers Environmental Funders Group. The convening will continue lifting up themes from previous SCG Environmental Funder Peer Group convenings, including our Climate, Health and Equity in SoCal, Climate Resilience Investments in SoCal, Urban, Green Infrastructure Investments Under a New Administration.

About SCG Environmental Funders Group

The SCG Environmental Funders Group meets quarterly to educate prospective and current environmental funders about environmental challenges and opportunities in Southern California and foster collaboration, and share successes and challenges. Please contact Katy Pelissier at katy@socalgrantmakers.org for more information or visit the group’s page on the Southern California Grantmakers’ website.

This program is part of SCG’s 2021 recurring programs. To register for all upcoming dates, please click the “Register for Recurring Dates” button. This feature is only open to members; please contact us if you are a non-member and wish to register for the series at programsrsvp@socalgrantmakers.org or (213) 680-8866.