Over 250 students learned about green career opportunities and practices at the WSC Sustainability Fair last Thursday. The next Bill Gates is going to be someone who can figure out how to combine green practices with good business practices, said Anthony Poore, Assistant Dean of the Southern New Hampshire University School of Community Economic Development. According to Poore, WSC students are well prepared to enter this emerging field. Some of the marketable skills in demand in today’s marketplace include:
- Project management
- Financial management
- Organizational management
- Marketing
- Public relations
- Information technology
- Fundraising and development
Two WSC graduates currently working for the Montachusett Regional Planning Commission said they put skills they learned at WSC into practice every day onthe job. Sheri (Dufour) Bean, transportation planner, and Renée Marion, GIS analyst, worked on a project utilizing GIS mapping to promote an environmentally friendly program that encouraged students to walk to school. The project, Safe Routes to School, used accident data mapping to identify safe routes to school. They said the skills they learned while obtaining their Geography degrees prepared them well.
WSC Associate Director of Facilities and Environmental health and Safety Officer Robert Daniels outlined college initiatives at WSC designed to reduce the colleges carbon footprint. He pointed to the renovation of the Administration Building which will be a LEED certified building when it is complete; installation of photovoltaic panels on the roof of the LRC and purchase of a biodiesel processor to convert waste cooking oil into fuel among the projects his office oversees. I consider myself a green collar worker, he said, If you have an interest and understanding of these initiatives, the job opportunities are endless.
Throughout the fair, representatives from New England Biodiesel Equipment and Sales, the processors supplier, were on hand to discuss the display in front of the Student Center. The processor allows Chartwells to convert waste cooking oil into usable biodiesel fuel for some WSC campus vehicles.
Over 250 students visited employers exhibiting throughout the event to discuss career opportunities.