Buffalo Sustainable Development Worker Training Center

BUFFALO, NY — The Sustainability Workforce Training Center officially opened Thursday on Buffalo’s West Side, the first green jobs training center focused on meeting climate and energy standards while increasing access to clean energy training and career opportunities.

“The green workforce revolution is here, and Western New York is ready to meet the needs of sustainable businesses,” Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement. “By investing in green workforce development like PUSH Buffalo’s new training center, we can ensure the next generation of New Yorkers are prepared to fill the jobs of the future in our green economy.”

It is a project of PUSH Buffalo and Buffalo Neighborhood Stabilization Company (BNSC), funded primarily by grants from New York State. PUSH hopes the center will “at least double the number of graduates from its Green Workforce Training Program, from 50 graduates per year to more than 100 per year.”

JPMorgan Chase also announced Thursday a $3 million philanthropic commitment to support PUSH Buffalo’s work to decarbonize affordable housing. PUSH Buffalo will build and rehabilitate climate-resilient affordable housing with the help of skilled workers trained by the Sustainability Workforce Training Center.

The center’s primary goal is to train residents for careers in clean energy and sustainability and help close the racial gap by providing more opportunities to historically underserved communities. The $2.5 million project was created from the Climate Act’s mandate for climate resilience, economic equity and a transition away from fossil fuels.

It will offer a mix of classroom, office and flexible meeting spaces. The building is designed to produce as much energy as it consumes through an on-site solar PV system and a geothermal heating/cooling system, which will also serve as a learning lab for renewable energy training sessions. The center will also house PUSH’s Community Hiring Hall, which will train and place low-income residents in the construction, renewable energy and energy efficiency sectors.

“As Western New York’s first green jobs training center, SWTC will build on PUSH Buffalo’s established workforce development program in the growing renewable energy and green construction trades,” said Hope Knight, president, CEO and commissioner of Empire State Development. “The center’s focus on residents of marginalized communities will encourage and expand access to sustainable jobs and career pathways that will support families today and into the future.”

For more information about PUSH you can visit the link here.