Tina Winterlik: Help the Oil Sands Workers Go Green!

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Help the Oil Sands Workers Go Green!

ALL HANDS ON DECK!!

We have all heard about the high employment and the stress that everyone is going through as we transition from Fossil Fuels to Solar & Wind and other "truly renewables" (NOT LNG!! LFG!)

Anyways, here's a great video (SEE BELOW) and great idea of how we can turn things baby around.
Take all these hard working bright workers and help them go green.

If they are like me at all, who worked in the agriculture and labour industry they will be fabulous at this. They could be our heroes.

Now I am not so sure about the mass production of anything.

Thinking too big got us into this mess.
My idea is a solar panel on every roof.

And for that we are going to need a lot of educated skilled hard working people.

So let's get going. Everyone around the world is already ahead of us.

Let's get everyone on board," IT'S ALL HANDS ON DECK!" like the video above states. Let's start training and going solar.
We have a ton of catching up to do, but I am sure we can.

Laid-off By Oil Sands, Alberta Trades Seek Solar Relaunch

Boilermaker Lliam Hildebrand admits he's been living a "double life."

The Victoria native grew up enjoying Vancouver Island's natural beauty and developed a passion for the environment. But unable to find work in his desired field of renewable energy, he applied his training for years in what may be the most controversial industry on the continent: Canada's oil sands.
"When I entered the trade, I didn't have any understanding of climate change and the impact my trade is having on the world," Hildebrand said. "But that awareness has been growing within me and our society."

So Hildebrand rolled up his sleeves and built a non-profit oil sands-worker-led initiative called 'Iron and Earth' -- and on Monday, he and a cadre of other oil workers launched it at a press event in Edmonton.

Earlier this month, Hildebrand attended the GLOBE sustainable business summit in Vancouver. His idea won encouragement from other attendees David Suzuki and Canadian Labour Congress president Hassan Yussuff, and according to those present caught the attention of Canada's Minister for the Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna. The federal Liberal government has promised to invest significantly in clean energy this year.

The go-green training concept comes at a tough time for the oil industry. The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers has said that some 100,000 jobs were lost in 2015 due to low global oil prices.

Read more here! http://thetyee.ca/News/2016/03/21/Oil-Sands-Solar-Relaunch/
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http://www.ironandearth.org/

Iron & Earth
http://www.ironandearth.org/
http://www.ironandearth.org/take_the_pledge
Iron & Earth is led by oilsands workers committed to incorporating more renewable energy projects into our work scope. We created this organization during the spring of 2015 when oil prices started to fall. We were losing work and conversations about needing to diversify our energy grid was dominating our lunch conversations on the job site. This moment acted as a catalyst for us to realize our shared vision for a sustainable energy future for Canada - one that would ensure the health and equity of workers, our families, communities, economy, and the environment. We founded Iron and Earth as a platform to engage in renewable energy development issues, and to empower us to advocate for an energy future we can be proud of creating. Our membership has since grown to include workers from a variety of industrial trades, including boilermakers, electricians, pipe fitters, ironworkers, and labourers.

http://www.ironandearth.org/

"A company called Iron & Earth is asking the provincial government to help support its Solar Skills campaign, a project that aims to train 1,000 electricians from the oilsands sector to install solar panels on 100 public buildings, making their skills marketable across the energy sector.

“Now is definitely the time to be launching this organization,” said Iron & Earth founder Lliam Hildebrand, who came up with the idea during lunchtime discussions with fellow oil workers who felt oil and gas tradespeople could become the workforce behind Alberta’s renewable energy sector.

“My dream is that one day I’ll be able to go to my union hall and have a renewable energy job to choose from.”"
http://edmontonjournal.com/…/oilsands-workers-call-on-alber…#

Iron and Earth from Iron and Earth on Vimeo.

http://thetyee.ca/News/2016/03/21/Oil-Sands-Solar-Relaunch/

'Iron and Earth' officials, from left to right: boilermaker Joseph Bacsu from Gunn, AB; boilermaker Lliam Hildebrand from Victoria, BC; electrician Adam Cormier from Cornerbrook, NFLD. Photo by Mychaylo Prystupa.