Turn Over a New Leaf and Get a Job in Sustainability With These 7 Tips

Turn Over a New Leaf and Get a Job in Sustainability With These 7 Tips.
Reading Time: 5 minutes

Turn Over a New Leaf and Get a Job in Sustainability With These 7 Tips. Photo by Appolinary Kalashnikova on Unsplash

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Turn Over a New Leaf and Get a Job in Sustainability With These 7 Tips

If climate change had a silver lining, it would be the rise of green jobs. Sustainability is big business because all aspects of modern civilization must become environmentally sound to avert looming catastrophic disasters.

A sustainability career promises job security because it’s futureproof, but is it as financially rewarding as it is fulfilling? How challenging is it to get a foot in the door? Discover how much you can make as a professional eco-warrior, your competition and sound advice to land your dream role.

Is Sustainability a Lucrative Career?

Sustainability can be a lucrative career. The pay can be handsome, allowing you to earn higher than the median salary in the United States. Some sustainability roles have higher wages than others, but you can earn six digits when choosing a suitable occupation and employer. 

For instance, environmental engineers in the U.S. make $63,370-$156,530 annually. The wage difference between the top 10% and the bottom 10% is $93,160. Those working for the federal government and engineering firms earn north of $100,000 yearly.

Other high-paying sustainability occupations include climate change analysts, conservation scientists, environmental chemists, foresters, industrial ecologists, landscape architects and urban planners.

Most sustainability professionals work full time. Some clock over 40 hours a week, burn the midnight oil, have irregular schedules or perform duties on weekends.

How Hard Is It to Get a Job in Sustainability?

Getting a job that pays handsomely in sustainability can be challenging without green skills — technical knowledge, expertise, abilities, values and attitudes to use eco-friendly technologies and processes meaningfully. More roles across various industries involve tasks requiring them. This trend will persist as the sustainability movement gains more steam.

The green skills gap is widening as surging demand for green talent has outpaced the expanding supply. A job search in sustainability can be a walk in the park for credentialed applicants since most of the competition is ill-equipped to stand out.

7 Tips to Land a Sustainability Job

If you’re fresh out of college or want to change careers, follow these seven steps to get hired for a promising sustainability role.

  1. Understand the Pillars

Familiarize yourself with the three pillars of sustainability — environmental, social and economic. Sustainable development is real only when initiatives positively impact the environment, value people’s well-being and enable ethical businesses to turn a profit.

One missing pillar is enough for a sustainability initiative to collapse and crumble. For example, an enterprise that overstates its eco-friendly practices but disregards the social and economic dimensions is greenwashing. Such a company doesn’t promote genuine sustainable development. Instead, it only wants to appear green for publicity while covertly harming local communities and committing unethical business practices.

Doing sustainable development properly is challenging. Thankfully, impartial third parties specializing in assessing organizations with green aspirations exist. These unbiased entities give environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores to determine how eco-friendly an enterprise is.

Many organizations keen on consistently achieving high ratings must develop a well-thought-out ESC strategy to pursue sustainable development holistically. Some create new roles to monitor performance around the three pillars, while others may form ad hoc ESG committees.

Comprehending sustainability in business settings is necessary to prepare yourself for any green job you may land.

  1. Attain a Bachelor’s Degree

Complete a four-year college program to boost your chances of qualifying for a sustainability role. Green jobs can be technical, so you most likely need a specific bachelor’s degree to enter an occupation. For instance, environmental scientists and specialists generally must major in natural science.

Some professions require licensure or certification to move up the corporate ladder. The requirements you should meet to get licensed or certified vary by state.

Do these mean no one will hire you if you only hold an associate degree? You can still start a sustainability career, but your two-year college degree can limit your earning potential.

  1. Determine Your Field of Interest

Choose your domain. Sustainability is broad, and many eco-friendly practices are universal. However, landing a green job in your chosen field of expertise enables you to contribute through your passion.

Although the sustainability movement influences almost all industries, some remain laggards. For instance, the construction and transportation sectors are notoriously environmentally unsound. The businesses operating in them may be less receptive to green practices, which can make your job more difficult than it should be.

  1. Explore Ways to Upskill

Hone the critical skills your desired role demands. If you research your target industry and position deeply, you should be able to identify the specific competencies you must have to succeed.

Employers usually expect you to have basic knowledge of business strategy and economics. Having strong hard skills should go without saying, but possessing soft skills is just as crucial. Enhance your creativity and adaptability to strengthen your problem-solving capabilities.

Interpersonal skills matter, too. Whether you work from home or full time, learn how to play well with others because you regularly must collaborate with various professionals to achieve collective goals.

  1. Develop a Green Personal Brand

Demonstrate your dedication to sustainability online to help recruiters notice you. Be a content creator and document your green projects online. Share stories that inspire you. Showcase your thought leadership regarding pressing environmental topics and recent events by articulating your ideas and opinions.

Leverage the strengths of various social media platforms and be active across all your accounts. LinkedIn carries more weight than Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and X since it’s where the HR managers are. Still, ensure your digital footprints across your profiles are coherent to reinforce your green brand. If you have a website, keep it fresh and continuously promote it on social media.

  1. Expand Your Network

Make connections with like-minded professionals and organizations. Joining relevant online communities and attending virtual events enable you to meet fellow eco-warriors and offer your value.

Volunteer your resources for local charities to make a difference, gain invaluable experience and beef up your resume. Nonprofit leaders can put in a good word for you through text-based and video testimonials, which can solidify your credibility and open doors for you. If you prove to be an asset, a social advocacy organization may offer a competitive wage to put you on staff.

  1. Identify Organizations With Clear Goals

Be selective about your prospective employers. Browse through job listings and narrow down the roles you like. Research the enterprises behind them to learn how seriously committed they are to sustainability. Dig deep to distinguish the organizations that match your goals and values from those that don’t. This way, you can enjoy a deep sense of purpose and live virtuously as you make a name for yourself in sustainability.

If you can’t find enough information, schedule job interviews. Ask recruiters about their ESG goals, current sustainability team — if any — and which departments value green practices. Your exchanges with them can help you determine whether you fit each other.

Start a Fulfilling Career in Sustainability

Having a background in sustainability promises limitless professional growth. It encompasses various industries and sectors, so you can move from one field to another without starting from scratch. These tips can help you catch the eye of recruiters and land your desired role successfully.

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