Climate Jobs: Make your Career Aligned With your Values

The world is on fire. Climate change has never been more of an issue than it is now, spurring prolonged and dangerous heat waves, devastating natural disasters, and natural bodies of water drying up destroying the surrounding biodiversity. The injurious effects of climate change are endless, and as a result – more and more people are becoming interested in aligning their lives with sustainable and green values. 

Given we spend much of our lives working, many have grown interested in climate jobs. How can you assemble your career to be in line with your environmental values? 

Common climate jobs include becoming an environmental engineer, climatologist, scientist, or an energy – but the list of climate jobs is endless. 

If you’re seeking a career path that specifically pertains to climate jobs – what are the necessary requirements to qualify for such positions?

As millennials and those a part of Generation Z are growing up with the cognition of the increasingly dangerous state of the world due to climate change, more of them are becoming interested in studying climate change or environmental measures for their college degrees. In fact, U.S. colleges are increasingly the amount of environmental and climate science degrees available to study. Even colleges like the University of Florida and UC Davis in California are beginning to offer degrees garnered towards sustainability – such as majors towards sustainability studies and sustainable agriculture.  

Other useful majors for those seeking climate jobs include degrees in biology, meteorology, engineering, or law. If you already have a bachelor’s degree in a field that doesn’t pertain to climate jobs, then upping your resume to represent your desire to align your career with climate change measles can include pursuing a master’s degree in a relevant field. For example, a master’s degree in climate science can help to demonstrate your understanding of the mitigation measures necessary to implement sustainable change. 

Given climate change is a problem that impacts but economic, social, political, and scientific factors as well – it’s imperative that those seeking careers that qualify as climate jobs work to improve their research skills, knowledge on climate and green finance, seek to understand data analytics, and practice their communication skills in order to illustrate the climate change predicaments at hand to future colleagues and business partners.

Once you have acquired the necessary skills to pursue climate jobs, you can start to evaluate which career path may be most suitable for you.

Environmental Lawyer

You know lawyers usually fight for people, but what about lawyers who fight for what’s best for the environment?

These types of lawyers qualify as climate jobs as they strive to work for firms that pertain to sustainability, promote renewable energy, and fight for the right to implement the measures necessary to fight against climate change. An example of a day in the life as an environmental lawyer is questioning a company that breaks environmental laws – such as a car dealership selling gasoline-powered cars beyond the year 2035. 

Environmental lawyers, just like any other lawyers, have to go to law school and pass their respective state’s bar exam.  

Engineer

There are several different types of engineers, but specifically – environmental, chemical, mechanical, or electrical engineers might suit your interest if your goal is to create sustainable architecture, modify buildings to be energy efficient, reduce the water consumption in infrastructure, or build devices that reduce their environmental impact. 

Urban Grower

Green roofs are all the rage, and there’s a good reason for it. 

Besides plants and foliage becoming the new Instagram-worthy decoration – creating a garden on a roof can be a fun side-gig. Unlike most climate jobs, pursuing the life of an urban grower doesn’t require any specific certifications – and can help to provide those in your city with local produce that will help promote sustainability and reduce emissions from importing and transporting international produce. 

Climatologist 

Climatologists help improve the environment and potential negative impacts from climate change as they monitor typical weather patterns and conduct research to conduct how excessive carbon emissions are ultimately impacting the climate. In general, it’s necessary for climatologists to acquire at minimum a bachelor’s degree, though a masters degree is usually required. 

Renewable energy Scientist 

Scientists come in all shapes and sizes, but did you know that there are scientists that work specifically to better the environment?

The main role of those who become renewable energy scientists are those who seek renewable energy sources in order to reduce the need for fossil fuels and excessive energy consumption. This can include seeking the best ways to harvest energy sources like wind energy, hydropower, solar energy, or geothermal heat. Renewable energy scientists may also seek new, innovative ways to harvest energy to decrease the need or dependence on fossil fuels that pollute the environment. 

Renewable energy scientists strive to make renewable energy more efficient.

To become a renewable energy scientist, a master’s degree in a related field is necessary, as well as a company willing to help you carry out your renewable energy research. 

There are several more climate jobs that can be discovered – but what if one of these climate jobs doesn’t speak to you? 

Maybe the life of a lawyer, scientist, or engineer just isn't for you – and as a writer, trust me when I say I completely understand that. However, you don’t have to pursue an entirely different profession to contribute in the fight against climate change or align your values with your work life. 

For instance, some may think that as a writer – I am not really making a difference in climate change writing about the sustainability of avocados or how awful fast fashion is for the environment. However, the chances that you were intrigued to click on this article (or any other one of mine) are due to the fact that it piqued your interest in some way. After reading an article, you suddenly become more curious about Greenly and what we do as a company. 

It’s all a chain reaction and an overall team effort. The articles I write help to increase SEO traffic which in turn, make people aware about Greenly and what we do. 

Instead of writing about shoes and makeup, I’m writing about topics relevant to a global crisis that can help to increase awareness. Therefore, it’s important to note that it’s not necessarily what you do – but how you do it. Seeking a place to perform your desired role with a company that fights against climate change, or is generally committed to environmental well-being by making strong efforts to reduce emissions, waste, or water and electrical consumption – will still delineate your environmental values.

Remember, fighting against climate change doesn’t just take place from 9-5. How else can you fight against climate change while you aren’t working? 

You’ve already heard of the simple actions you can take on a daily basis to reduce your own carbon footprint: like using reusable shopping bags to avoid plastic consumption, taking public transportation whenever possible, or changing your household appliances to be more energy efficient. 

The primary predicament with fighting against climate change, is that the fight itself can’t be successful if everyone isn’t wholeheartedly committed to it. If you aren’t in a position to pursue a climate job, the next best thing you can do is encourage your family and friends who are already passionate about fields such as science, engineering, and landscape design to pursue jobs that pertain to environmental improvement. 

We all have to seek and simultaneously encourage others to go after careers and climate jobs that will bring us intrinsic satisfaction as well as environmental justice. However, it’s important to remember what was explained earlier – that you don’t have to pursue climate jobs specifically in order to align your career with your environmental values.

More and more companies are beginning to recognize the importance of sustainability for business longevity and success. Investors are more likely to financially support organizations that demonstrate their commitment to the environment by striving to achieve net-zero emissions or implement sustainability wherever possible. 

Want to be a fashion designer? Aim to start a sustainable fashion company that values slow fashion and reduces the amount of waste that gets thrown into landfill. Want to be a photographer? Make use of natural lighting whenever possible to mitigate the use of excessive lighting and electricity. Want to be a school teacher? Encourage your students to buy recycled notebooks or alter your classroom to pertain to the environment.

When I was in the sixth grade, one of my teachers had an infamous chalkboard in his classroom. No one understood why – what was the reason for making his life more difficult with chalk when he could have a whiteboard and make use of the multicolored markers? 

I’ll never forget his introduction speech on the first day of class. “Many students and teachers at this school wonder why I have a chalkboard. Well, it doesn’t smell like chemicals. And when I’m finished with it – it goes back to the earth.”

My sixth grade teacher didn’t hesitate to implement his environmentally friendly values into the job he loves, and you can do the same. Whether your career can be categorized as a climate job or not, there is always something you can do to align your work life with your environmental values. 

If reading this article about climate jobs has made you interested in reducing your carbon emissions to further fight against climate change – Greenly can help you!

Greenly can help you make an environmental change for the better, starting with a carbon footprint assessment to know how much carbon emissions your company produces. Why not request a free demo with one of our experts - no obligation or commitment required.

‍Click here to learn more about Greenly and how we can help you reduce your carbon footprint.