Much of the world marks the 41st annual Earth Day today. Amid increased warnings about climate change and long-standing calls to make our air and water cleaner, many employers have embraced efforts to improve the environment as part of their corporate social responsibility agendas.
Whole industries and career paths have emerged to control the natural resources and energy we use, creating a new category of jobs with the label "green collar." Green jobs aren't just for environmentalists; they require people with construction, science, and engineering backgrounds, as well as experts in finance, law, marketing, sales, customer service, and business management. Even corporate IT departments have embraced "green IT" programs, in part to limit the energy they use to keep computer networks up and running.
If you're currently job searching, you might want to consider one of these roles (as long as you have some of the experience employers are looking for). Here are five sites that promote listings for jobs in the green arena:
Greenjobs.com—This is also a good place for candidates to post their resumes and get job search guidance.
Green Jobs Network (and greenjobsearch.org)—You can browse for jobs under 30 categories, from "air quality" to "wind power." Or, browse by city and state.
GreenBiz.com—This also offers advice to businesses on how to align environmental responsibility with corporate goals. One recent job posting: Marketing Director for a San Francisco-based broker of clean technology for corporations.
Green Dream Jobs—You can read the latest news affecting the environment and get advice on investing in green industries while you browse for jobs.
TreeHugger.com—Find jobs, take part in contests, and take a quiz about the history of Earth Day. (I answered only 5 of 10 questions correctly; I'm sure many of you can do better.)
How much does a "green job" interest you? Share your perspective below.
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Thanks for the post. I love it when people actually pay attention to Earth Day. It's so important for us to maintain our Earth. I was told that getting standard maintenance on my HVAC system is good for the environment. Is that true? How does it help?
One green job that you all might want to think about is working in <a rel="NOFOLLOW" href="http://WWW.EXTREMESONEHOUR.COM">hvac</a>. You can really help people choose to be more energy efficient and make the environment a cleaner place to live.
Check out http://www.extremesonehour.com for more details.
Thanks so much for your post. I really want to get involved in the green movement, and my girlfriend is helping me look of a green job. I think people who fix HVAC systems are doing that these days. They're cleaning up old systems that are polluting our earth. Do you think that too?