Call for Applications: 

The City of Austin is devoted to increasing equitable access to green jobs in pursuit of its climate, workforce development, and equity goals. In pursuit of these, The Innovation Office, alongside the Office of Sustainability, Economic Development Department, Parks and Recreation Department, and Austin Resource Recovery, will hold the City of Austin’s Green Workforce Accelerator (GWA) - a capacity-building accelerator to help organizations develop or expand green workforce programs. Accelerator participants will receive a $15,000 grant to support their work during the program. 

Organizations selected for the GWA will participate in a needs assessment, cohort-based accelerator, and post-program data collection. "A strong ecosystem of organizations providing equitable access to green jobs is key to creating a sustainable and thriving Austin," explains Daniel Culotta, interim Chief Innovation Officer for the City of Austin. "We are excited to launch this innovative program that will strengthen the capacity of the City and community to provide good green careers that help achieve our strategic goals."

Eligibility:

This program may be a good fit if:

• you represent a nonprofit organization OR a social innovation for-profit organization;
• a decision-maker in your organization has capacity to attend (virtual) sessions twice a week for 12 weeks in early 2024 (anticipated end in May); and 
• your organization is ready to begin, expand, or reconfigure a program that does one or more of the following: 
  • Green jobs training
  • Green jobs placement
  • Green jobs provision or creation

UT’s Green Economy Study defines green jobs as "1) involving work that produces goods or services that benefit the environment and/or conserve natural resources;" and/or "2) involving work that makes production processes more environmentally friendly or consuming fewer resources."

Application and Program Timeline:

• Application Open for Submission Now 
• Application Submission Deadline: 11:59pm CST January 5, 2024
• Awardee Selection and Notification: late January/early February
• Program End: May 2024

RSVP for December 13th Informational Webinar:

There will be an informational webinar on Wednesday, December 13th that will be open to the public to review the program and application process and answer questions. Slides and all Q&A will be available on the GWA webpage after the webinar. 

Informational Webinar:

When: Wednesday, December 13, 2023 11:30am Central Time (1 hour)

Register in advance for this webinar: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84945459098 

**After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Additional Information:

You can find more information, background, and a link to the application on the Green Workforce Accelerator webpage. If you have any questions, please contact annabel.osburn@austintexas.gov.