Recently, various countries have started a huge push to encourage green building education in order to train skilled workers in green building processes and the use of renewable energy technologies.
The US plans to test different energy efficiency and sustainable building strategies in their New Mexico ‘practice’ city, while the UK is training skilled green workers in their new Think Low Carbon (TLC) college facility.
Australia is now on board as well, backed by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) and both the NSW government and that state’s industry sector. NSW has been praised in the past for its green leadership qualities, and this new venture, which aims to implement education programs for industry management, is only solidifying its position.
The Facilities Management Skills Development Initiative will target this particular sector by brainstorning energy efficency ideas due to their ‘important role in ensuring that Australia’s buildings operate to their sustainable potential,’ says the GBCA.
This sector has been encouraged by the green building authority to partake in a survey to further understand their ‘roles and responsibilities, current skills in the field of energy efficiency, and preferred delivery modes for training.’
This information will then we used to plan strategic education programs that encourage the running of sustainable buildings. Education programs are expected to tie in with the GBCA’s Green Star – Performance rating tool. The rating tool and the accompanying education will focus on ‘closing the loop on design, construction and management of Australia’s built environment and providing a way for building owners and facilities managers to develop upgrade plans that focus on holistic environmental performance,’ says the GBCA.
The speed with which green building practices have entered the mainstream means the performances of these practices need to be tested post-implementation. We in this industry are finally at that stage and need the education tools to allow for the sector to continue developing.
