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Energy and Natural Resources Career Cluster

Building Tomorrow's Workforce

Energy companies will hire hundreds of thousands of people in the coming years to build, support, innovate, engineer, and protect America’s Clean Energy Future. Creative and technical thinkers are needed for critical mainstream careers that are the hallmarks of today’s energy industry and even more will be needed to work with new and emerging technologies that will shape the world of tomorrow.

Here’s why the work to be done is critical:

  • 61% of Gen Z workers say they want to get a green job within the next five years. Fewer than 20% say that they see a clear path to getting those jobs.
  • (Fewer) than 1 in 5 Gen Z has a very good awareness of the different (clean energy) career paths to break into.
  • By 2030—an important milestone on the path to net zero—only one in 10 Gen Z workers will have sufficient green skills. Gen Z is expected to make up a third of the workforce by 2030.
  • 78% for Gen Z believe that if they were offered training, they would be able to learn new or improved green skills that will allow them to perform a green job.
  • And further, a recent study from GED Testing Services found that while 90% of GED learners were interested in “green careers,” fewer than 5% understood available options. Need one more data point? 9% of the industry’s workforce is comprised of Gen Z workers, yet Get Z is expected to make up 27% of the workforce in 2025.

While Gen Z expresses interest in green jobs, educators who are instrumental in providing visibility to those jobs in the energy sector and nurturing interest into opportunity, don’t have the resources or aptitude to do so. Nearly 60 percent of polled teachers in a recent study conducted by NPR/Ipsos felt “unconfident and unprepared to weave climate change lessons into their core classes, (which poses) a serious obstacle to building an informed generation capable of addressing the challenges of the climate crisis.” Non-Profit Quarterly reports that many teachers lack educational confidence in the subject matter, noting “teaching STEM, environmental issues, and climate change is challenging for any teacher due to the vast amount of information and the speed at which it changes.”

Action Agenda

While the adoption of the new cluster is exciting, it may be considered daunting as educational systems explore what to teach, at what grade level, and with what experts. Help is on the way! CEWD wants to partner with educators to support their learning journey, to they can confidently drive opportunities for their students. Here’s what to expect from CEWD in the journey before us.

National Energy Competencies and Framework

High School Learners
Post-Secondary Learners (available Q1 2025)
K-8 Learners (available Q2 2025)

Access to the free Energy Industry Fundamentals 2.0 curriculum for high school and post-secondary learners

EIF 2.0 curriculum
  • Webinars and Office Hours to learn about energy, energy careers, and adoption in school systems
  • Collaboration and information through FFA and the National Council for Agricultural Education as CEWD works in partnership with these organizations, vital to support for CTE educators
  • Connections with energy employers, who can serve as partners in energy education, often including field trips, guest speakers, internship, and scholarship opportunities
  • Support for in-service workshops and externships to help educators take deeper learning dives in adopting energy curriculum

Get Updates on the Energy & Natural Resources Career Cluster

If you would like to learn more about the Energy and Natural Resources Career Cluster and CEWD’s support for the educational community, please provide information here for inclusion in our updates and material dissemination.

ENR Career Cluster Contact Form

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Name*
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Do you have experience teaching energy education?*
For which school year are you considering adopting energy curriculum?*