Trainee Andre Alston helps load the truck at the start of his workday at the Baltimore Center for Green Careers.
By: Brittany Jakubowitz | November 29, 2011
Five days a week, Andre Alston, a 53-year-old single dad, drops his daughter off at the Baltimore School for the Arts and heads to another day of training at the Baltimore Center for Green Careers.
He tries to arrive early so that he has the time to get a cup of coffee, smoke his morning cigarette and mellow out before a long, day of work.
Once the workday begins, Alston and the other trainees at the center receive their assignment and help load up the truck with any necessary equipment before taking off to their assigned location. Alston normally works in very confined spaces that require him to pay close attention to his surroundings. At the end of the workday, Alston, along with the other trainees, must pack up the truck and head back to the center where they do basic cleaning jobs and perform small maintenance chores before punching out for the day.
“It’s all a part of discipline, that’s what I believe they’re training you to understand, that if you go on a job work site you’re going to have different things that you need to do that’s not going to be on your basic list,” Alston said.
Alston is one of 41 trainees that are expected to graduate from one of the training programs at the Baltimore Center for Green Careers. The center is a Civic Works project, created in 2010 with the intentions of providing the resources and space necessary to train underemployed or unemployed Baltimore residents for the green careers of the future.
“We have built these programs into an integrated division of Civic Works that aims to create economic transformation in Baltimore using the emerging sustainability based economy as a vehicle,” John Mello, Baltimore Center for Green Careers Green Projects Director said.
For the past few years, local and national governments have focused on the increasing need for environmental sustainability. Numerous organizations and programs have devoted their efforts towards creating jobs that will benefit the quality of life for both the people in their community and the world that they live in. Baltimore is one example of a city that has made environmental sustainability a top priority.
According to the Baltimore City 2010 Annual Sustainability Report, Baltimore ranks number 29 out of 75 in a project known as Smarter Cities. This project “identifies cities that are leaders in sustainability and demonstration innovation, best practices and implementation.”
However, the need for the city to go “green,” is not Baltimore’s only major concern. With the current unemployment rate at a high of 7.9 percent, Baltimore is also in need for the creation of more jobs in order to aid the economic growth of the city. The Baltimore Center for Green Careers recognizes both of these pertinent issues and offers a positive opportunity that allows for unemployed Baltimore residents to train for a green career and eventually be placed in paid employment as a result of the training.
“We believe that we can create a life altering situation when we combine meaningful employment with a living wage,” Mello said.
Alston heard about the Baltimore Center for Green Careers by word of mouth. He was in between jobs at the time and he was interested in what the center had to offer. After attending a few interview and information sessions, Alston began training with the center on Aug. 28.
“They are training a lot of people for jobs that they can be able to take care of their families. It’s not like they just go in and just do it for the money, they are helping the city, well the world, for real. Almost every time you look on the news there’s always some new problem we have with the atmosphere,” Alston said.
The first month of training at the center takes place in a classroom setting, where trainees learn the basic skills for energy saving and weatherization. During this first month trainees also complete the hours and work that they need in order to receive certifications like the First Aid and CPR certification and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Construction Safety certification.
“It was like being in elementary school again, I haven’t been in school in so long,” Alston said. “It was hectic for me because I’m used to being out in the field you know, it was hard, it was hard going back to school like that.”
Following the first month of classroom training, the trainees move on to two months of paid on-the-job training. Alston is currently in this part of the program. This hands-on experience provides trainees with the opportunity to practice their skills in a real life setting with the ease of having supervision.
“The best part about my job is being able to change other peoples lives just like mine got change,” Karim Peoples, former Baltimore Center for Green Careers graduate and current trainer and head supervisor of EnergyReady said.
While training in the classroom or lab at the center, trainees aren’t given the chance to see the direct impact that they can have on other people. Once they get to the on-the-job training portion of the program, they interact with the people of Baltimore and see the difference that they can make in their lives.
“My favorite part was the meaning of the people, you know, being able to get out and to meet people and inform them on the basic knowledge of how a home works,” Alston said.
Towards the end of the program, the Baltimore Center for Green Careers helps their trainees to set up interviews and look for jobs with a living wage, often with one of their partner employers in the Baltimore area.
Alston plans to graduate from the center on Dec. 10. He already has several interviews lined up and if he is hired prior to graduation he is allowed to leave the program. Until then, he plans to continue to pursue this field and continue learning about energy saving and weatherization.
“This wasn’t really where I thought that I would be, but since I’ve been doing this I’ve learned a lot and I see that it does really help a lot of people, you know,” Alston said. “There are a lot of things that go on that I didn’t know before I came here and since being here I have learned that I think that I might stay in this field. I might try to start my own organization or program.”
Watch this slideshow for a closer look at what Andre’s typical morning at the Baltimore Center for Green Careers is like.
RELATED STORIES:
Baltimore’s increasing need for green jobs
Baltimore has recently put an emphasis on improving its unemployment rates and increasing its environmental sustainability. In order to do so, the government has funded organizations and programs that strive to create green jobs for Baltimore citizens. Continue reading
Green jobs training opportunity for Baltimore’s unemployed
After receiving a generous EPA grant, Civic Works in Baltimore created the Baltimore Center for Green Careers. The center is home to several green jobs training programs. Continue reading
OTHER MULTIMEDIA:
Baltimore goes green
View an interactive map that displays several areas in both Baltimore City and Baltimore County, that are devoted to Baltimore’s sustainability initiatives and aiding the growth of green careers.
The future of Baltimore’s ‘green’ economy
Watch a slideshow featuring an inside look at the hands-on training lab inside the Baltimore Center for Green Careers.
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