Going Green to Make Green

By LAURA COVERSON
On a sunny winter's day in Southern California, a group of students sits in windowless classroom at Los Angeles Trade and Technical College, eyeing the contents of small bottles of alternative fuels.

Blue collar workers get help finding and training for green jobs.

"This is actually biodiesel, but this is not derived from the soy bean, this one is actually a plant," explains associate professor Jess Guerra to the group.

Guerra teaches a "Diesel Technology" class to those hoping to become part of the green work force, where she instructs the fine points of biofuels. It's a technology that could be just one of the businesses with the potential to drive the U.S. economy right out of the ditch.

Labor experts predict renewable energy and energy efficiency industries could create as many as 37 million jobs -- and students at technical colleges like this one are counting on it.

With President Barack Obama's pledge this week to renew the U.S. economy and jump-start the nation's clean energy future, it's a job outlook that's pretty bright.