As tradespeople are retiring and fewer youth are entering the trades, contractors and homeowners are facing a shortage of skills and experience. Now is the time for communities to mobilize to ensure the transfer of knowledge to the next generation. Touch a Trade is an initiative designed to address this problem by sparking the individual’s interest in working with their hands. Reinvigorate interest in historic trades and crafts • Give target audiences hands-on experiences in a range of trades and crafts. • Provide a venue for trades and craftspeople to share their passion, expertise and experience. • Create an environment that is friendly and conducive to children who learn differently and would benefit from experiential education. This includes children and adults on the Autism Spectrum and those with ADHD, dyslexia and other alternative ways of experiencing the world around them. • Showcase historic trades and crafts in a way that gives them modern appeal. Shine a light on their relevance to everyday life, highlight the people behind the tools, and render the trades accessible and understandable to the public. Evolve what trades and crafts professions look like • Increase participation by groups traditionally under-represented in the trades and with historically low economic participation: Women, people of color and immigrants. • Advocate for broader and more formal participation by these groups. Develop the next generation of talent • Understand, raise awareness, and dismantle systemic barriers to participation in the trades. Create pathways for women and immigrants to participate in trades and crafts. • Provide training, resources, and experiential learning opportunities for communities, including children, potential tradespeople.