The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) wants to standardize and professionalize the work of weatherization and home performance contractors. Towards that end, the government agency has launched a project called the “Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals” project.

The project has three goals:

• The DOE wants to develop standard work specifications for weatherization and home performance tasks.
• The DOE wants to identify the elements of a curriculum for training weatherization and home performance workers.
• The DOE wants to develop guidelines for the professional certification of weatherization workers and home performance contractors.

Looking for volunteers

As part of this ambitious project, the DOE has contracted with a PR company named Confluence Communications to interview weatherization workers, energy auditors, and home performance contractors.

If you want to be interviewed as part of this project, now is your chance. Confluence Communications is recruiting volunteers in four job categories — weatherization workers, home energy industry workers, home energy industry bosses, and utility program and energy-efficiency program administrators — who want to sit down for an interview lasting 30 to 45 minutes.

According to Stacy Hunt, a Confluence Communications spokesperson, the interviews will focus on “the key values, opportunities, and challenges associated with job certifications for weatherization workers and home performance contractors.”

Volunteers must have worked in their field for at least three years, and must have worked in one of the following locations: Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte (NC), Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus (OH), Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Kansas City, Madison (WI), Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Portland (OR), San Antonio, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, or Tulsa.

If you are interested in being interviewed, send an e-mail to Heather Stafford at heather [at] confluencec [dot] com.

For more information

More information on the Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals project can be found at this DOE website.

Here’s a link to a PowerPoint presentation on the project by Ruby Nahan.