Westchester County is taking steps toward a greener future with workforce trainings and developing new coalitions to promote clean energy plans. It takes a village to make changes, and some of these influences are paving the way for advocacy, certification, and education.
The clean energy sector continues to grow, and Westchester is a top-five county for clean energy employment in New York. According to E2 Clean Jobs NY 2024, there are nearly 9,600 jobs in this sector. Plus, for many, this career path leads to greater job satisfaction. The NYSERDA 2025 Industry Report states that nearly all (92%) clean energy workers indicate being very or somewhat satisfied with their career compared to 77% for those not working in clean energy.
“The most dominant trend we’re seeing is in building decarbonization and energy efficiency, which represents 73% of the state’s total clean energy workforce [NYSERDA 2025 Industry Report], says Angela N. Son, founder of The Green Launchpad. “In Westchester specifically, there is an urgent need for electricians, HVAC technicians, and energy auditors as we accelerate local heat pump and solar transitions [Sustainable Westchester 2024]. Geothermal and biofuels are relevant for Westchester.”
Son founded The Green Launchpad in 2024 to drive market transformation. “I realized that while we had motivated job seekers and eager employers, the ‘bridge’ connecting them was broken,” she shares. “We exist to build that infrastructure—aligning workforce training directly with real-time employer needs to ensure the green economy creates sustainable, long-term value for everyone involved.”
In 2026, The Green Launchpad is gearing up to promote its Accelerator for Green Workforce Developers and expand the NYC Energy Efficiency Workforce Coalition. It also plans to launch new collaborative projects with the New York Power Authority and its community-based organization partners to create more holistic career pathways.
What is clean energy?
Ron Kamen, co-founder of the Clean Energy Action Coalition (CEAC) and EarthKind Energy, says that there are various ways of looking at clean green energy. You can break them down by the three different sectors: electricity, heating and cooling, and transportation. Beyond those sectors, there are some that focus on different technologies. Then, there are different levels of incentives for government entities and nonprofit, for-profit, small, and large businesses.
“Specifically, ‘clean energy’ isn’t just one thing—it is a combination of massive sectors, from energy efficiency to renewable energy, each with its own distinct definitions and opportunities,” Son says. “Philosophically, however, I view the ecosystem as a ‘garden’ that requires cultivation. It’s a mindset shift towards growth and regeneration. For a job seeker, this industry offers the rare chance to do well financially while doing good for the planet—you no longer have to choose between a stable, high-growth career and a meaningful impact.”
The Business Council of Westchester (BCW) is the county’s largest business membership organization with over 11,000 members. Its focus is economic development, advocacy, and helping members grow, build relationships, and network with stakeholders. The BCW launched the CEAC in April 2024 and currently has over 120 participating organizations. It is proud to be recognized statewide as a model for clean energy leadership. The main focus is on practical, near-term solutions that reduce energy costs and emissions.
In today’s world, many have noticed rising electric demand and extreme weather stressing the grid. CEAC has found that energy efficiency, peak demand respond, distributed solar energy, and battery storage deliver the fastest, lowest-cost solutions. Overall, renewable energy is key for affordability and efficiency.
CEAC’s 2025 Findings
In its latest report, CEAC documented how much energy the community was using by town. Its findings showed that 5% of electricity was coming from solar. As locals know, there is limited land in Westchester, so many have questioned where solar resources could be placed. Some companies in Westchester have put solar panels over parking lots. In 2025, CEAC identified 800 MWs of solar carport and BESS (battery energy storage systems) opportunities.
Public Education
CEAC wants to help communities overcome fears and continue to keep local elected officials engaged in the project and have them focus on their districts. The organization has documented municipal solar and BESS laws, bans, and moratoriums. For example, Mount Pleasant passed a ban on all battery energy storage systems including new residential systems, Mount Kisco banned all BESS, and Yorktown banned BESS and community solar (except for two projects that were grandfathered into operations).
As technology and safety continue to improve, CEAC wants to lower concerns about batteries while continuing to advocate for and educate elected officials and community members who understand the importance of having a reliable grid.
CEAC has also compiled the first database of providers and programs of who is doing what in each sector.
“We were kind of astonished that no one had compiled all the providers of all the different programs that are out there, so when you take a look at the incentives that are out there and who is delivering on those technologies, you have various different silos of folks,” Kamen says. “You have the solar programs, the heat pump programs, geothermal, the air source programs, the efficiency programs with utilities, and state programs with NYSERDA.”
Renewable energy infrastructure
“It can be a real incubator for workforce development [when] creating jobs that are long-term and sustainable and give folks an opportunity to be trained in the different areas that again are going to build our future. The impact it would have on individuals and families, in terms of those jobs being created, is very important,” John Ravitz, the executive vice president/COO of the Business Council of Westchester, observes. “That’s why we are going to continue to bring it up.”
Clean green energy can be a vast field of information, with new incentives, programs, and technologies. Specific groups in the area are making an impact on Westchester County community members to help launch their skills and potential opportunities.
Soulful Synergy, a workforce development agency that helps sustainable communities, is one of those groups. Co-founded by Dwayne R. Norris and Alejandro Alvarez in 2013, it has changed the landscape by helping community members find high-quality jobs and learn curriculum in the clean energy and green construction fields.
Originally, Soulful Synergy began offering OSHA and safety training and has evolved to the energy-efficiency space. Services include clean energy and sustainability, consulting services, employment and staffing, and training and certifications.
In the clean energy and sustainability sector, participants study clean energy training, green construction electric vehicles, energy audits, energy retrofits, solar projects, and urban farming.
Soulful Synergy’s classes start with a macro-level of understanding how all systems work together. Some of the courses focus on weatherization, like installing insulation and weather stripping, as well as HVAC, heat pump maintenance, and light installation. With the electrical classes, students learn the new technology that is emerging with efficient heating and cooling methods. On the construction side, students gain greater understanding of hand and power tools and the installation of clean energy technology.
Soulful Synergy has a direct partnership with Willdan Energy Solutions, ConEdison, the NYSERDA, and others that form the Clean Energy Academy. This training program helps individuals in the clean energy field and folks interested in becoming energy efficiency professionals.
Trainings at Soulful Synergy
Soulful Synergy has trained over 11,000 people since 2013, with employment rates exceeding 75%. Trainings are a mix of hands-on and virtual and range from three to 200 hours. All of the training at Soulful Synergy is directly funded by public and private entities and is free to participants. These programs are accessible to many of the disadvantaged communities in Westchester County and have had a direct impact on promoting training equity.
The following Westchester funders help provide programming free to community members: NYSERDA, NYPA, Westchester County, Westchester Putnam Workforce Board, NYS Department of Labor, the City of New Rochelle, and the New York Community Trust, a.k.a Westchester Community Foundation.
Soulful Synergy has had success with Westchester employers who have hired graduates and/or came to speak to candidates in the classroom from the following companies: Con Edison, Murphy Brothers Contracting, Candela Systems, Robison Energy, Skycore, Cenergistic, Empire Firestopping, Kaila Construction Corp, and HomeThesis.
This past year, Soulful Synergy conducted a class in Spanish and is dedicated to continue diverse partnerships in recruitment, training, and job placement.
Overall, Alvarez and Norris want to give back to this planet as much as they can while creating their own curriculum and helping participants learn more about the field and find a career path.
“When participants come back [and say] they got into the union or they’re getting a better paying job, their life has changed and they see their own purpose in the work that they’re doing, I would say has been part of the things that bring us most joy,” Alvarez shares. “Seeing people getting the “aha!” moments and knowing that you were part of that journey for them and were able to be part of the solution is something that brings us much pride.”
For some participants, this is their first time learning about clean energy, and there is a newness that comes with it. The journey doesn’t end with the certification or the classes, as students can use their learnings as a stepping stone to go onto their next phase and career path.
“Something that we’re the most proud of is the transformations that happen in the class and the way they just find a new level for themselves and tap into a whole new set of passion, inspiration, motivation, but also their ability to problem solve and figure things out,” Norris says. “There’s a transformation that happens from the beginning of a class to realizing how capable you are at the end of a class. And I think that is something that’s just hard to quantify and put into things to grasp.”
Next Steps
Explore local training options available through the Willdan Clean Energy Academy.
Related: Westchester Organizations Offer Clean Energy Training and Networking
