As sustainability efforts continue to grab headlines across a range sectors, we shouldn’t limit those efforts just to industries like renewable energy. As the shelf life of skills shrinks and the durability of degrees declines, individuals are under increasing pressure to move beyond a one-and-done approach to learning. Yet our national investments in education and training still reflect an era when workers learned skills that could last a lifetime.

A new approach to funding education, however, could enable the creation of renewable learning funds: sustainable resources that can support learners in getting the workforce training they need year after year.