Green Works, the free education programme for jobseekers, has announced dates for more than 50 new courses taking place across Ireland in 2011.

The courses, which focus on opportunities within the emergent Green Economy, will take place in the Green Works Hubs in Dublin, Cork, Sligo and Tipperary between January and June of this year.

Students can enrol in a wide variety of modules selected from the broad themes of Green Building, Sustainable Tourism, Green Business, Land Use and Practical Skills. The modules can be taken individually or combined to achieve a FETAC Major Award. The courses are free for anyone receiving unemployment payments.

“Our courses are all delivered from a ‘green’ perspective and are clearly focused on helping participants to find sustainable employment,” said Green Works Outreach Coordinator, Alice Ryan. “For example, retrofitting houses for energy efficiency is not only good for the environment it is also currently one of the only growth areas in the construction sector.” Popular building courses on offer include BER (Building Energy Rating Assessment), Thermal Insulation Installation, Renewable Energy Systems, Domestic Energy Management, Environmental Design of Buildings, and Green Building.

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Budding green entrepreneurs are well catered for too with modules in Start Your Own Green Business and Green Business Marketing on offer in all four of the Green Works hubs.

Land Use courses have also proved popular. Particularly Permaculture Design which teaches students to apply the principles of natural systems and ecologies when designing everything from technology and buildings, to food production and even communities. Courses in Sustainable Tourism and Tourism Enterprise will examine the benefits of low impact tourism whilst utilising Ireland’s readymade ‘green’ brand.

The Green Works programme also includes Practical Skills courses such as Sustainable Fashion Creation as well as workshops in Community Resilience and Green Interior Design.

(GK)