A Canadian not-for-profit is simultaneously tackling the issues of youth joblessness and climate change through an innovative new employment program.
The United Nations Association in Canada launched the Canada Green Corps this fall in an effort to pair unemployed or underemployed youth with meaningful jobs, while also addressing the country’s ambitious climate change goals.
“UNA-Canada felt that youth employment and green economic opportunities went hand-in-hand,” said Scott Bohachyk, director of work-integrated learning. “Millennials are more engaged, informed, and willing to act to reduce their own environmental footprint, and feel strongly about environmental stewardship and the future of their planet.”
During four or six month work-integrated learning placements, Canada Green Corps participants will assist partnering organizations to reduce their environmental footprint or increase their overall sustainability.
The program will focus on eight cities across the country, including the Edmonton region, and is currently looking for interested youth and businesses for the next wave of placements starting January.
To be eligible youth must be between the ages of 18 and 30, be able to commit to a full-time job placement and be unemployed or underemployed.
The program will facilitate 150 youth to “get their foot in the door, launch their careers and ignite the green economy in Canada,” said Bohachyk. There are approximately 30 positions available in the Edmonton region.
Youth unemployment is on the rise in Canada – almost always double the national average at 13.2.
In Alberta, young people entering the workforce have been particularly hard hit. Since employment insurance started drying up, they have been forced to compete with laid-off oilfield workers.
This summer the unemployment rate for youth aged 15 to 24 climbed to 15.1 per cent. The latest figures show that number has improved.
In September, the province’s youth unemployment was similar to the rest of the country at 13.4 per cent. But the average in 2016 was 12.8 compared to last year’s average of 10.2.
By providing a 50 per cent wage subsidy to employer organizations, UNA-Canada hopes to remove some of barriers currently faced by young Albertans seeking their first meaningful job.
“We are very aware of the challenging economic situation in Alberta at this time,” said Bohachyk, who originally hails from St. Albert.
If the program is successful, Bohachyk hopes to bridge thousands of Canadian young people into green jobs over the years.
The call for applications for January placements will be open Nov. 7 through Nov. 25.
Application forms can be found at unac.org/unac-projects/canada-green-corps.
UNA-Canada is looking for positions related to marketing and communication, community engagement and education, engineering, trades, policy and governance, law, business, economics and arts.
Interested employers should contact project officer, Kanchan Muti at [email protected].
