Coalfield Development Corporation
115x ROI
This project is estimated to increase annual earnings by $27,400 per person, for a total additional lifetime earnings of $808,300 per person
Total lifetime earnings increase across all participants: $355,652,000
$800,000 invested
The Challenge
People in West Virginia are experiencing the symptoms of generational poverty, under-employment, and significant employment barriers due to the region’s historic economic reliance on the coal industry which has collapsed. The area though is poised to emerge as an energy leader again through economic diversification in renewable climate technologies. The workforce is well-suited for energy jobs, but the green tech skills of the future must be built. Currently, West Virginia has the US’s lowest labor-force participation, highest outmigration, and highest opioid overdose rates.
Our Grant
This project builds on Coalfield’s innovative and proven workforce development model by providing paid on-the-job training and micro-credentialing for 400+ people who live in historically excluded communities of West Virginia. The organization ensures that the Appalachian region will have the skills needed to capitalize on the historic public investment and expansion of infrastructure and climate technology jobs, including solar and geothermal energy. Coalfield provides education, training, and personal development supporting people to become problem-solvers, entrepreneurial, and imagining a new future for themselves, families, and communities.
