WorkLocal Event Held At Ames Middle School
On July 20th, the LEED Council and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association held a Community Jobs Initiative meeting at Ames Middle school. The goal of the meeting was to educate residents from 6 targeted communities (Logan Square, Avondale, Hermosa, Humboldt Park, West Town and Lathrop Homes) about the Green Exchange, employment opportunities that are or will be soon available at the Green Exchange and also to introduce the "green economy" and green jobs to attendees. Attendees also had the chance to attend one of two workshops: One to help job-seekers with their interviewing skills and another for completing their application on the worklocal.org website.
There were six speakers speaking about two distinct areas: "Working Locally at the Green Exchange" which included Margie Gonwa from the LEED Council, Aaron Gadiel from Baum Development and Chris Pickett from Coyote Logistics, one of the first tenants at the Green Exchange. The second section, "Prospects for a Green Economy", focused on upcoming trends in "green" jobs. The three speakers for that section were: Krista Elam of the LEED Council, Kindy Kruller from the Delta Institute, and Greg Ehrendreich with Midwest Energy Efficiency.
The speakers offered attendees valuable information about how to seek jobs in the green economy and also what kind of jobs would be available at the Green Exchange. Another thread running through the meeting was that of community engagement and involvement, with the expectation that the Green Exchange will offer more than just jobs, but also a boost to the local economy and surrounding neighborhood from the influx of employees, their purchasing power and it's impact on local shops, stores and other businesses in the nearby areas.
There will be future meetings of the "Work Local Jobs Initiative" and LEED Council will be sure to promote them to our readers, businesses, and the community.
http://worklocal.org/index.php/site/item/worklocal_event_held_at_ames_middle_school
