GROWING LOCAL TALENT
Building the neighborhoods of tomorrow starts with the people who live there today. OakTREE begins with the basics: creating spaces where residents can see these technologies in action, understand what they do, and imagine what becomes possible when communities control their own systems. From there, we connect eager learners with experienced mentors and educators who can turn that spark into skill, because every thriving ecosystem needs people who know how to tend it.
Much of this training happens on the ground, hands-on. It starts at OakTREE’s demonstration sites and continues as we scale, giving resident trainees their first paid opportunity to apply what they’re learning in real-world conditions. The skills needed to build and maintain inter-structure are as varied as the systems themselves:
- CAD design
- Systems engineering
- Software development
- Rooftop and ground-based thermal systems installation
- Greenhouse management
- Pipe laying
- Plumbing
- Heat pump installation
These aren’t just technical skills. They’re pathways to economic self-determination. Trainees gain the capacity to imagine, design, and build a vision for their own community while developing high-demand expertise in fields that require human judgment, local knowledge, and relationships. As the economy becomes increasingly automated, these are the skills that root people in stable, meaningful work that can’t be outsourced or replicated by AI.