The Jamestown Board Of Public Utilities will be holding its second climate technology conference at the end of July.

The conference is part of the Retool WNY initiative to encourage growth in climate and clean technology in Western New York. It was the result of a $750,000 grant from New York State Energy Research and Development, given to the BPU in 2020. The conference will be held July 26 at Chautauqua Institution.

The BPU held a similar two-day conference last year — Retool’22 — at Northwest Arena in Jamestown. A survey that followed the conference revealed that conversation around climate issues in the area needed to continue, with a specific look at the issue of the workforce. The Retool’23 conference will focus on both the economic development opportunities emerging in the climate tech and clean tech sector and the challenges associated with building a workforce that can fill positions being created by new and expanding regional manufacturers.

This year’s conference will be one day and begin with a Chautauqua Institution lecture by nuclear engineer Leslie Dewan, who will speak on nuclear energy and nuclear science. Jamestown BPU’s Business Development Coordinator, Ellen Ditonto, said as the lecture relates to the subject of the conference they decided to start with that event at 10:45 a.m.

“Attendees will attend the amphitheater lecture and then there will be a private lunch at the Athenaeum Hotel,” Ditonto said. “Following that, there will be a 90-minute panel discussion at Smith-Wilkes Hall. Dennis Elsenbeck will kick off the panel for us. He is an energy consultant and will discuss how in order to prepare our economic development we have to have a workforce.”

The 11-member panel will discuss what has been done differently and future manufacturing opportunities to train the up-and-coming workforce. Workforce development experts will highlight new and innovative methods for training future employees for manufacturing and technical support positions. The day will end with an informal networking event at Chautauqua Lake Central School.

Registration for the day is $30 and can be found at Retool23.eventbrite.com. Pre-registration is required for the conference, but the $30 covers everything, including the day pass for the Chautauqua Institution. The day begins with the 10:45 a.m. lecture, with the lunch occurring at 12:15 p.m., and the panel from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. The networking event will be from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Registration is open until July 20. So far Ditonto said they anticipate 125 attendees.

Another new change for this year’s conference is the condensed schedule. Following last year’s two-day conference, Ditonto said they also heard that people who attended had a hard time getting more than one day off of work. With the condensed schedule this year, so far the attendees list has grown and includes region manufacturers.

“They know and have told us repeatedly that the workforce is an important issue for them, both today’s workforce and the future workforce,” Ditonto said. “It is a timely topic, so people will hear people talk about climate goals and how those goals affect us all.”

Ditonto said that in order to build an economy that will thrive, there needs to be training in climate and green technology for people from middle school age to those in their second careers. Additionally, more manufacturers of climate and green technology are starting to come to the area, and Ditonto said, the area needs to be prepared for that.

“People can come to the conference and listen, learn and meet people who can help them on their journeys,” Ditonto said.

The Jamestown BPU also has a focus on economic development, and Ditonto said this conference will provide the opportunity to look at development opportunities in climate and clean technologies. Additionally, she said there are many manufacturers in the area that build diesel and internal combustion engines who will need to be changing over to electric and that it is important for the region to look at this as an opportunity, especially following climate laws that are coming from the state with specific target dates in mind. The conference is a way for the area to meet those goals and to bring businesses and manufacturers into the area that can help with that.

For Ditonto, the most important thing that the conference will provide is the ability to build new relationships and strengthen old ones in workforce development.

“It’s important that manufacturers come and listen to the experts on how to train and recruit to ensure enough employment for future needs,” Ditonto said. “It is a day to learn and interact with people at the Chautauqua Institution. There are people there over the summer that are concerned with these same issues. People will hear other viewpoints and share expertise.”

Ditonto emphasized that the conference is an important opportunity.

“It’s a great chance to hear a lot about manufacturing potential in the region, specifically manufacturers who are making or in the process of making changes to accommodate climate technology,” Ditonto said. “There’s not enough time to talk about these issues. This conference will be time well spent on these issues and will hopefully lead to some successes.”