Community Highlights

Investing in training and workforce development is important to ensuring hydropower continues to provide renewable energy and critical grid services in the future. In addition to direct education, training, and mentoring efforts, this includes appropriate documentation for the future workforce. With this in mind, W.E.S.T. USA, Inc. is working with hydropower owners and operators to develop technical manuals tailored to their facilities. This technical documentation is digital, specific to the facility’s equipment, and incorporates the institutional knowledge of employees that are near retirement to ensure that valuable information is retained. 

Learn more from W.E.S.T. USA, Inc.

The future of hydropower is dependent on a well-trained, diverse workforce that is ready to meet industry needs. Hydro School, hosted by Idaho National Laboratory (INL), is one example of hydropower educational outreach that is key to workforce development. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office, INL’s Hydro School summer camp engaged students from the Shoshone-Bannock Tribe to participate in a week-long program. The camp included two days in the classroom, one day in the field, and one day visiting a local hydropower plant, the Idaho Falls Power Hydropower Plant. Students learned about hydropower basics, technologies and applications, and potential career paths, and had opportunities to participate in open dialogue about the their perspectives on natural and cultural resources related to hydropower.  

Learn more about Hydro School. 

The Salmon in the Classroom curriculum, sponsored by the Benton Conservation District (BCD), is an annual program in which fourth and fifth grade students across eastern Washington raise fish in the classroom. The curriculum culminates in the release of the fish into the Columbia River during the Salmon Summit, where students learn about fish passage, hydropower, and related careers. With support from the Department of Energy Water Power Technologies Office, researchers from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) partner with BCD bring the latest science on hydropower and fish passage to thousands of students in person and via live stream, including live demonstrations of juvenile salmon tagging and release. 

The educators involved in Salmon in the Classroom are also invited to participate in PNNL’s Teacher-Scientist Partnership—a professional development opportunity for educators to work directly with PNNL researchers and staff to tackle real-world scientific challenges. The program aims to help teachers take real-world problems and lessons—in this case about hydropower—back to their students to inspire the future workforce.  

Learn more about Salmon in the Classroom at the BCD website.