Finger Lakes ReUse Job Skills Program

Brief Description

Finger Lakes ReUse is a nonprofit community organization with a mission to enhance community, economy, and environment through reuse.   Organizational activities focus on transforming waste into local assets by extending the lives of materials instead of allowing them to enter our landfills. This includes generating new community job opportunities that help reverse the waste of human resources through culturally ingrained patterns of inequity, that lead to chronic unemployment and poverty. The organization has been operating for nearly 3 years, and teaching job-skills is one of three major organizational goals, the other two being reducing waste and relieving poverty.

Finger Lakes ReUse has become a popular place for many in the community, as indicated by our growth in every department. Nearly 100,000 visitors come to the ReUse Center since our opening in November 2008, and since this past March we have had over 3,000 people each month, with our busiest month ever in August, with over 4,200 people visiting the ReUse Center. This is a welcome platform to promote sustainability, and we are looking at ways to better promote these messages through our storefront as a project for 2012.

Two primary job-skill tracks include:

• construction skills through our Deconstruction Services (green demolition) program,

• technology skills through our eCenter (computer reuse) program.

In addition to building our volunteer corps, we hope to implement a subsidized job-training program, in which low-to-moderate income participants receive a stipend, modeled somewhat on union apprenticeship programs. This program will help us accomplish our goals to both increase our capacity and expand our educational services, as trainees will be helpful in processing and refurbishing materials as they learn.

The Reuse Center links directly to the objectives of the “Building Bridges” Initiative by:

• Green Energy Jobs

• Workforce Preparation, Training and Support

• Building Demand for Just and sustainable lifestyle products and services

• Local financial green investment

• Entrepreneurship and Incubating Small Businesses

For more information contact Executive Director, Diane Cohen at diane@fingerlakesreuse.org.