VX News is the editorial voice of the annual VerdeXchange Conference, featuring in-depth interviews with industry leaders and policymakers driving innovation in clean energy, water, transportation, and climate policy.
SoCalREN’s Charnofsky on Preparing Future Leaders for Green Careers
In conversation with VX News, LA County ISD’s Tessa Charnofsky reflects on the vision behind the Future Green Leaders Summit and the broader mandate of SoCalREN—authorized in 2012 by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to deliver energy-efficiency and workforce programs across 13 Southern California counties, with a specific focus on disadvantaged communities. Charnofsky shares why early exposure, community-designed programs, and partnerships that extend beyond the classroom are essential to growing California’s clean-energy workforce pipeline.
Darrell Steinberg: Can California Fix the Disconnect Between Public Education & the Modern Workforce?
In this op-ed originally published by the LA Times and shared here with permission, Former Mayor of Sacramento Darrell Steinberg discusses how public education reform could play a key role in connecting with young voters and expanding access to economic opportunities. In his reimaging of public education, Steinberg stresses the need for core curriculum to be relevant and connected to high-growth job sectors as well as supplemented by paid work experiences that will better prepare and support students as they transition out of high school. Steinberg believes that through this strategy, California Democrats can redefine themselves to disillusioned voters and set an important example for what the future of American education—inclusive of more than those in pursuit of a college degree—could look like.
