Dr. Morgan Frank, an assistant professor in the Department of Informatics and Networked Systems, has received a $194K grant from The Heinz Endowments along with Michael Aklin, an associate professor in the Department of Political Science, for a project to study the barriers fossil fuel workers may encounter when entering green industry jobs.
While recent U.S. policy seeks to transition fossil fuel workers into new, green industry employment opportunities, these workers are most likely to benefit from these opportunities if certain elements are present, such as minimal retraining requirements. Frank and Aklin’s project aims to address these factors using novel skills and employment data as well as survey experiments to assess policy alignment with public sentiment.
The Heinz Endowments is devoted to the mission of helping our region prosper as a vibrant center of creativity, learning, and social, economic and environmental sustainability. Core to its work is the vision of a just community where all are included and where everyone who calls southwestern Pennsylvania home has a real and meaningful opportunity to thrive.