MA The Maintenance Academy Maintenance 215 · Black Boots Initiative · shared with Foundational Fundamentals

Green jobs

Workforce Development for Green Jobs

9 units · 19 lessons · 9 section tests · 9 written questions · final exam · 7 hands-on skills

Green jobs protect the environment, and many of them are skilled trades: solar installation, weatherization, heat pumps, recycling and urban farming. This course shows you where the jobs are and the skills and credentials they need, and it's reviewed by experienced professionals.

What you will be able to do

  • Explain how buildings use energy and why efficiency comes first.
  • Understand energy audits: blower door testing, ACH50, combustion safety, and air sealing and insulation priorities.
  • Describe solar PV systems and their safety rules, and the path to solar work.
  • Handle waste, universal waste and hazardous materials the right way.
  • Know the environmental laws that govern your work and how communities shape decisions.
  • Plan your green career and deliver a real capstone project.

How the course works

Lessons and check questions, a test for each unit, a final exam (80% to pass), and hands-on skills signed off by an instructor, ending with a capstone project with an industry or community partner.

Pairs well with

Comprehensive Construction Skills and the trade courses. Electricians move into solar, carpenters into weatherization, and HVAC technicians into heat pumps. This course doesn't issue BPI, NABCEP or EPA credentials.

Course outline

  1. Unit 1

    Introduction to Green Jobs

    What green jobs are and where they are.

    1. What is a green job? Video 25 min
    2. Green jobs across sectors Video 25 min
    3. Section test (3 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  2. Unit 2

    Sustainable Development Principles

    The three pillars, and sustainability in practice.

    1. The three pillars of sustainability Video 25 min
    2. Sustainability in practice and case studies Video 25 min
    3. Section test (3 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  3. Unit 3

    Renewable Energy

    Renewable sources, solar PV systems and safety, and renewable energy jobs.

    1. Renewable energy sources Video 25 min
    2. Solar PV systems: design, installation and maintenance Video 40 min
    3. Benefits and job opportunities in renewable energy Video 25 min
    4. Section test (6 questions)
    5. Written answers (1 question)
  4. Unit 4

    Sustainable Agriculture

    Principles and practices, and jobs in sustainable and urban agriculture.

    1. Principles and practices of sustainable agriculture Video 25 min
    2. Benefits and job opportunities in sustainable agriculture Video 20 min
    3. Section test (3 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  5. Unit 5

    Green Buildings

    Green building design, weatherization in practice, and sustainable materials.

    1. Principles of green building design Video 30 min
    2. Weatherization: air sealing and insulation in practice Video 40 min
    3. Sustainable materials, benefits and jobs Video 25 min
    4. Section test (6 questions)
    5. Written answers (1 question)
  6. Unit 6

    Waste Management

    Waste management principles and technologies, and jobs.

    1. Principles and technologies of waste management Video 30 min
    2. Benefits and job opportunities in waste management Video 20 min
    3. Section test (4 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  7. Unit 7

    Policy and Regulation

    Environmental laws and government, and advocacy and careers in policy.

    1. Environmental laws and the role of government Video 30 min
    2. Advocacy and careers in environmental policy Video 20 min
    3. Section test (4 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  8. Unit 8

    Professional Skills

    Professional skills for green jobs, and career development.

    1. Professional skills for green jobs Video 25 min
    2. Career development, job search and networking Video 25 min
    3. Section test (3 questions)
    4. Written answers (1 question)
  9. Unit 9

    Capstone Project

    Planning and completing a real project with a partner.

    1. Planning your capstone project Video 30 min
    2. Section test (2 questions)
    3. Written answers (1 question)

  10. Final exam

    40 questions from every section, 80% to pass.

    1. Final exam

Hands-on skills

Show these to a Maintenance Academy instructor on a job site or in the shop. Each one they sign off appears on your certificate as a verified skill.

    1. Assist with a blower door test
      Sets up the frame and fan, records baseline and CFM50 readings correctly, calculates ACH50, and uses a smoke pencil or IR camera to locate leaks.
    2. Perform a combustion safety check (with an instructor)
      Zeroes a CO meter outdoors, checks ambient CO, tests spillage under worst-case depressurization, and records results.
    3. Air seal attic bypasses
      Seals top plates, penetrations and chases with the right materials (sheet metal and fire-rated sealant at chimneys), safely, in a real or mock attic.
    4. Install insulation correctly
      Installs batts with no gaps or compression and blows loose-fill to the target depth with baffles and hatch dams.
    5. Identify solar system components and hazards
      Names modules, racking, inverter type, disconnects and labels on an installed system and explains why DC is live in daylight.
    6. Conduct a waste audit
      Sorts and weighs a waste sample by category, calculates the diversion potential, and recommends changes.
    7. Plan and present a capstone project
      Delivers a scoped plan with safety controls and measurements, completes it with a partner, and presents results.