MNN - Mother Nature Network

Even though its been more than a year since its passing, awards from the Recovery Act continue to be announced. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced that $76 million had been awarded to green building projects, including the creation of training programs to help companies manage energy efficient buildings.

 

Green buildings and green jobs go hand in hand and this $76 million in funding will not only provide the money needed to create energy efficiency upgrades on existing commercial buildings but it will also help create jobs. In order to get the most out of an energy efficient building, it must be managed properly.

 

The training programs that will be created out of the DOE funding will help provide valuable employment opportunities for Americans in the fields of energy auditing, building operators and building technicians. All of this training will focus on the nuances of managing a building that has undergone an energy efficiency retrofit.

 

The $76 million has been awarded to 58 individual projects – 45 are categorized as advanced energy-efficient building technology projects and 13 projects for training program development.

 

The 45 green building projects have been broken down into five different categories:

The green building training programs focus on three key areas:

For more information about the specific projects that have received these awards, visit the DOE website.