Believe it or not, the solar economy is beating out the larger US economy in creating jobs. That’s good news for people looking for good employment, and good news for the country, too.
The Solar Foundation published a National Solar Job Census report that showed a doubling of the number of people employed in the solar sector with a total of about 100,000 people working in some capacity for the solar industry in 2010, up from 50,000 people in 2009. And the growth isn’t set to slow down anytime soon. According to the report, there will be a further 26% growth during 2011 in the solar industry, despite the slow economy.
The residential solar industry contributes greatly to the growth of the solar industry, with residential solar installations doubling from 2009 to 2010 which helped to create an additional 3,000 jobs in the home solar sector in just one year. The high growth rate of jobs in the residential solar sector is due in large part to the residential solar multiplier effect. Every homeowner that decides to install a solar system triggers a demand in the solar industry, which in turn create jobs in the solar sector throughout the supply chain – there is an increased need for solar installers, sales staff, administrative personnel, solar manufacturers, and solar energy research personnel. In fact, one job is created for every six home solar systems installed in America!
The keepin’ up with the Jones’ adds an additional multiplier effect in that as one homeowner installs solar, his neighbors are more likely to ask questions and express curiosity about how the system works and the potential savings. Inevitably, as individuals see the advantages of owning a solar system, more and more choose to install a system themselves. This further increases solar installations in the community and spurs even more growth in the sector.
The outlook for solar jobs is very bright, providing many opportunities for the unemployed and underemployed to find an exciting career in the cleantech field. The jobs available in the solar industry are diverse and numerous. For instance, a person looking for a solar career could procure a job in any one of these points along the solar value chain:
● Scientific research and development for designing solar cells and other photovoltaic components
● Photovoltaic manufacturing of solar cells, mounting equipment, battery systems, inverters, and so on
● Solar sales representatives for both corporate and residential clients
● Solar system design engineers for large-scale utility installations
● Solar installers and roofing experts
● Electricians specializing in solar installations
● Solar maintenance experts and monitoring technicians
With such significant and increasing growth in the solar jobs sector, now is the time for people seeking green careers to get training and begin their quest for a fulfilling job in the renewable energy sector.
This series is sponsored by Entrepreneurs for a Change, a blog the best entrepreneur interviews and awesome business ideas.
Finding funding can be one of the biggest challenges for social entrepreneurs. Fortunately, there is a growing number of options for social entrepreneurs looking for capital to start or expand their social enterprise, green business, or non-profit organization and do more good in the world.
One non-traditional funding opportunity that has seen exponential growth in recent years is the phenomenon of “crowdfunding.” Family and friends have been one of the most common sources of venture funding capital since the dawn of business itself, thousands of years ago. Crowdfunding takes this age-old source of venture funding and brings it into the digital age.
Thanks to social media and other forms of modern technology, entrepreneurs are able to build networks of friends, colleagues, and like-minded individuals more easily and effectively than ever before. Crowdfunding websites allow entrepreneurs to leverage these networks to gain funding. Typically, entrepreneurs post a request for funding on a crowdfunding site with a detailed project description. Depending on the site, funding may be provided as a loan or a donation. Once the funding request is posted, the entrepreneurs must use their networks to spread the word about their project to potential donors through word of mouth, email, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms.
Crowdfunding is not for everyone. The majority of crowdfunding sites fund entrepreneurs on an all-or-nothing basis. If the project is fully funded when the deadline arrives, the money is given to the entrepreneur. If it is not fully funded, it is returned to the donors to keep or donate to another project. It is therefore very important to have a compelling project or story, and to be a skillful marketer and networker to ensure that word about your project reaches enough potential donors to ensure that the project is fully funded before the deadline. If you are confident that your social enterprise has what it takes to become a crowdfunding success story, however, you may find crowdfunding to be the perfect option for your fundraising efforts.
The following is a list of crowdfunding websites that can help your social enterprise, green business, or nonprofit organization get off the ground:
33needs is a recent crowdfunding startup that connects microinvestors with social entrepreneurs who have big ideas in categories such as sustainable food, health, education, and the environment. Investors can earn a percentage of revenue in exchange for their support.
A unique specialty crowdfunding website that may be useful to some social enterprises is AppBackr, which allows Apple developers to get funding upfront for iPhone, iPod, and iPad apps in the concept stage by selling the app wholesale to backers, who receive a percentage of the profits for the apps they have purchased. Many app buyers also assist developers with marketing and promoting their apps, in order to ensure that their investment is fully recouped! With a growing number of social enterprises tapping into the explosive apps market to raise awareness and sell products or services, AppBackr may be a useful tool to help offset app development costs, and even gain some extra promotional help!
Buzzbnk is a crowdfunding platform especially for social enterprises that allows funders to donate either money or time to support social enterprises working in a wide variety of fields. Though based in the UK, it is open to social ventures operating anywhere in the world. Social enterprises must submit their project proposal to Buzzbnk and the Buzzbnk team will work with the social enterprise to help develop appropriate fundraising targets and benefits or rewards to offer funders.
CauseVox offers nonprofit organizations a fully customizable fundraising page that makes collecting money from supporters easy. Supporters can also create their own personalized fundraising pages. Social media integration makes it easy to embed YouTube videos, Flickr slideshows, and more.
ChipIn is a simple widget that can be posted on blogs, websites, and many social media profiles and that allows individuals, private groups, non-profits, and others to raise money easily online.
Crowdcube bills itself as “the world’s first equity-based crowdfunding community dedicated to business investment.” In exchange for microinvestments of as little as £10, investors can fund worthy enterprises and in exchange gain a share of direct equity in the business. Crowdcube is currently available only to UK-based investors and entrepreneurs who have or can start a UK Limited Company, but hopes to expand to other regions in the future.
FirstGiving has helped more than 8,000 non-profit organizations connect with more than 13 million donors and raise more than $1 billion dollars to date. The site allows non-profit supporters to create their own fundraising page to raise money for the cause of their choice.
Give.fm allows nonprofit organizations and individuals to set up a campaign to raise money for causes ranging from local soccer teams to international efforts to fight poverty, hunger, disease, environmental degradation, and more. The site works by allowing donors to set up recurring microdonations of as little as 10 cents per day!
One of the best known crowdfunding websites is Kickstarter, which rose to fame after the open source Facebook alternative Diaspora raised more than $200,000 on the site. Kickstarter funds creative projects such as independent films and music albums, books, software, citizen journalism, theatrical productions, and more. Project creators are required to offer rewards to donors, such as bonus musical tracks, autographed books, signed prints, free performance tickets, or similar. Although Kickstarter cannot be used to fund social enterprise start-ups, it can be a great source of funding for social enterprises and non-profits hoping to use creative projects to raise awareness of their cause, as well as for social-minded creative enterprises such as non-profit theater companies and independent music producers. More great crowdfunding sites focusing on creative projects include IndieGoGo, RocketHub, UK-based Crowdfunder, and Australian-based Pozible.
Peerbackers offers entrepreneurs and non-profits of all types the opportunity to raise funding for their idea from their friends, family, and peers. Rather than financial returns or equity, backers receive rewards such as free or discounted versions of the products or services offered by the company.
ProFounder caters to entrepreneurs – social or otherwise – who are looking for alternative sources of venture capital. ProFounder provides a secure platform where entrepreneurs can raise money from family members, friends, and other connections, who then receive a share of the profits when the business they have invested in succeeds. This revenue sharing system is good for investors and good for entrepreneurs, because it doesn’t commit entrepreneurs to making debt payments (potentially with high interest rates) during periods of bad business, only when the business is successful and profitable!
Razoo is a crowdfunding platform for non-profits and charities that allows individuals, organizations, corporations, and foundations to set up a fundraising page to raise money for their own cause or their other cause of choice. Razoo also allows team campaigns.
Sponsume is a 2010 crowdfunding startup that allows both creative projects and social enterprises to raise funding on the site. Sponsume is currently free to use, but does plan to start charging fees in the future.
Spot.us is a unique crowdfunding platform that supports citizen journalists by funding their investigations of specific topics. Spot.us can be a very useful tool for organizations seeking to raise awareness through hard-hitting investigative journalism or similar means.
Start Some Good is a new crowdfunding startup that launched in February 2011 with the goal of connecting social entrepreneurs with crowdfunded venture capital. Start Some Good allows both for-profit and non-profit social enterprises to post fundraising campaigns to the site. Team members will help review the campaign’s goals and rewards to ensure they’re a good match for Start Some Good’s philosophy.
Have we left any crowdfunding websites for social entrepreneurs out of this list? Please comment below to let us know!
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The green sector is already one of the fastest going sectors of the economy, and it is expected to add hundreds of thousands more jobs by 2020. If you are interested in a green career, one of the easiest ways to get started is through green jobs training and education.
The good news is, green jobs training and education services abound, both online and offline, and many programs offer certification with the completion of the course. Here is a sampling of some of the green training and certification programs available:
LEED certification is a great way to prepare for a green building career. The LEED program, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is administered by the US Green Building Council and is the most widely recognized green building standard in the US. In fact, many municipalities are beginning to require new construction to meet minimum green standards set by LEED, so the demand for LEED Accredited Professionals is expected to rise quickly. LEED offers a multi-tiered rating program for both buildings and professionals. To become a LEED Accredited Professional, you must first demonstrate an understanding of LEED’s green building principles and concepts by passing the LEED Green Associate exam. After passing the Green Associate exam and gaining relevant experience working on a green building project, you will become eligible to take the higher level LEED Accredited Professional exam and become a LEED AP. The current pass rate for the LEED exams is just 34%, so careful and thorough preparation is very important, and LEED seminars are the best way to quickly acquire the depth and breadth of knowledge required to do well on the exams.
The renewable energy industry is growing by double digits every year in many regions of the United States, and a growing number of colleges and universities around the United States are offering certifications and degrees in renewable energy technology, including programs focused on wind, solar, and geothermal energy. Some renewable energy industry organizations also offer workshops, seminars, and other training programs that can get you a good job in the renewable energy industry in a surprisingly short period of time.
Energy auditor is another career that is likely to see explosive growth in the coming years as more and more new buildings are built to green standards and existing buildings are retrofitted to make them more energy efficient. Both homeowners and business owners are realizing that going green is not only good for the environment, it’s also good for the pocketbook, and with energy costs expected to rise as demand returns to pre-recession levels, many families and business owners will be trying to lower their utility bills with green renovations and retrofits. Energy auditors are a vital part of this process, and certification is relatively simple to acquire. One of the most widely recognized programs is the Building Performance Institute’s Building Analyst program. Many colleges and training programs offer courses that can help prepare you for BPI certification.
Some green jobs, such as sustainability managers, do not require certification as a prerequisite, so green certification, while an extra feather in your cap, won’t necessary compensate for on the job experience. Some green certifications, such as LEED accreditation, are here to stay. For other jobs, like solar panel installation, training and certification requirements may vary state to state.
If you decide to invest in green education, make sure you research whether the career you have in mind truly needs it, and what the requirements are.
What green jobs training and certification programs do you recommend?
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