Greening Up the Veterans

As the old saying goes, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Such is the case with a new nationwide initiative that will provide training to veterans for green jobs. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis announced the agency grants to provide about 3,000 veterans nationwide with training and employment in green jobs.

Grants are being awarded under the Labor Department's Veterans' Workforce Investment Program. In California, the Long Beach office of the United States Veterans Initiative will receive $500,000 and an additional $300,000 will go toward assisting Bay Area vets.

Greg McCormack, Long Beach director of United States Veterans Initiative, tells the Los Angeles Times, "Our goal is to work with 133 veterans, and [we] hope to provide employment placement to 75 percent, or about 100 veterans."

Hopefully these numbers will expand nationwide through the help of organizations like Veterans Green Jobs. The Academy offers classroom and hands-on training to provide education and career development that will support and empower veterans to participate in America's transition to energy independence.

Courses range from two-month intensives to year-long academic programs. Currently the Academy services Colorado, Louisiana, New Mexico and Washington, and plans to expand to an additional eight to 10 states by 2010 with the hope to having a presence in every state eventually.

This far-sighted and proactive program strikes us as a refreshing approach in aiding veterans as they transition from military to civilian life. A hand up is always better than a handout.