Long-term spending at the government level (eg. President Biden’s Infrastructure Bill, and spending around the world post-Covid) and through a wide range of company initiatives (eg. ESG–Equity Social Governance– initiatives) are about to drive environmental job demand to record levels.
Take a survey of almost any organization today and there will be some research or active initiative dealing with its future environmental impact, or its various stakeholders. Moreover, we have observed there is particularly high demand for PhDs and graduate-level students and post-docs with an interest in the sector.
According to the US Department of Labor, so-called “green occupations” (see figure below) include significant demand for environmental engineers, environmental and health scientists and conservation scientists through 2026 and beyond. Yet these are only narrowly defined jobs for the environment and many are at an entry skill level. There is another, and much larger subsection of environmental or green jobs that reach across almost every industry and occupational areas wit job specifications that include public policy, business development, data science, health, project management, investment research, and partnerships work in the US and around the world.
To illustrate, this week we’ve collected a large cache of jobs that relate to the environment, climate and sustainability–again, broadly defined. Sift through the examples below and the hundreds of other jobs in our SmartJobs section ton find out more. You might also look at environmental careers over at the PhD Career Finder to understand and process and challenges that other PhDs have successfully overcome to build careers in this area.
Finally, be open to a multitude of new career directions.
HSS
Principal Environmental Intelligence Researcher, Mitre Corporation
ESG Ratings Sector Lead, Institutional Shareholder Services
Foreign Affairs Specialist, Marine Mammal Protection Act, NOAA
Water Power Technologies Strategy, US Department of Energy
Analyst, Research and Analytics, Environmental Defense Fund
STEM
Predoctoral Researcher, Argonne National Laboratory
Environmental Scientists/Engineers/Health Specialists (multiple), Eastern Research Group
Senior/Principal Air Quality and Climate Change Consultant, Stantec
Environmental Scientist, California Water Resources Control Board
Senior Associate Researcher, Environmental Medicine and Public Health
If there are areas of work you would like us to explore in more depth, please contact at social@versatilephd.com.
We want to hear from you.
For access to more jobs as well as archived and searchable opportunities, visit our SmartJobs page. NOTE: SmartJobs access requires a university affiliation. User-generated jobs are open to all members and can be accessed here.