By John F.Wasik,
Author of The Audacity Of Help: Obama's Economic Plan and the Remaking of America
Green building architects, consultants, and contractors. If you happen to be looking for a new career, it would not hurt to be accredited through the U.S. Green Building Council's (www.USGBC.org) LEED program (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), which certifies buildings and neighborhoods on their environmental attributes. Any building or contracting firm can do green rehabbing with additional training. The number of LEED-certified buildings has grown as much as 700 percent annually since 1993, according to the building council. If the Green Deal succeeds on a large scale, it will employ millions in the building trades alone, perhaps offsetting the horrendous job losses of the last several years.
Engineers, engineers, engineers. Nearly every kind of engineer does well under the complete Obama Green Deal. Civil engineers will be needed to design and manage infrastructure projects such as rebuilding bridges, highways, tunnels, and sewer and water systems. Chemical and electrical engineers will be needed to design and build new battery and power systems. Software engineers will be needed to program the smart grid. Nanotechnology and biotechnology engineers will work on the latest solar-cell design or biofuel catalyst. the sky is the limit for this profession.
Building managers, facilities consultants, and energy auditors. Green buildings require a specialized system that monitors energy use, especially if power is produced on-site. Every structure on the planet can be redesigned to save energy and resources, but it takes professionals with constantly updated training.
Project and program managers (for all green-building and green-design projects)
Energy auditors (to measure building energy use and waste)
Reliability engineers (to design and monitor energy systems)
Sustainability analysts and auditors ( to determine how organizations will benefit from green projects)
Systems integrators (to combine several energy and building systems)
Thin-films technologists (for manufacturing solar cells)
Solar design and installation technicians
Wind-power design and installation technicians
Geothermal design and installation technicians
Biological systems specialists (to design, manage, and operate energy or biomass systems)
Environmental managers (corporate positions in sustainability)
Green industrial designers
Green interior designers
Green landscapers and designers
Auto retrofitters (to convert gasoline or diesel engines to hybrids or electrics)
Lawyers (environmental law specialists)
Urban planners (specializing in smart growth and sustainable development)
Smart-home designers and technicians (to design and install computer systems that network all appliances and energy systems)
Organic farmers
Biomass energy specialists (to generate energy from waste)
Cogeneration specialists (to generate power from heating systems)
Microturbine specialists (to generate power on-site from alternative sources)
Fuel-cell specialists
Educators and trainers
Green tourism agents and planners
Tax planners and preparers (specializing in green tax incentives)