How to “green” your job in 2024
Feeling overwhelmed about climate change is normal. But working on it could change your life. And the good news is – there are millions of green jobs out there, or you can “green” the job you already have. As a mom working on climate, I look my kids in the eye each night knowing that I am building a better future for them. You can too.
Over the past few years, I’ve mentored hundreds of job seekers through Environmental Defense Fund’s Climate Corps program. I also host a podcast called Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers. Since I started mentoring, something big has changed. Today people in nearly every profession can make big changes to help save the planet – from engineering, to investing, to design, to transportation. Even if “sustainability” is not in your job title, you can center climate action at work.
Taking action at work can bring an enormous sense of purpose and connection to our lives. When Gilbert Blue Feather Rosas secured the grants to electrify school buses and add solar power to the Stockton Unified School District, he helped to reduce air pollution for many thousands of school kids, cut demand for fossil fuels, save money for the district, and build a community of supporters along the way.
Greening our everyday products is also a business opportunity. When Ciara Imani May grew frustrated by the tremendous waste in the hair care industry, she designed a new, zero-waste organic material alternative. She has since founded the company Rebundle, cut out toxic ingredients, raised over $1.4 million from venture capital, and diverted significant waste from landfills.
Turning anxiety into action is good for our mental health. As Rebecca Weston realized when she founded a new branch of climate psychology, emotions can be ‘mobilized’ into action on personal and community levels.
Even if you’ve never done this before, you are not alone. Connecting with like-minded people can help to create a movement.
As you look around for opportunities at your current job or for a new job, here are some tips:
- Start a sustainability group at work. At Microsoft, the sustainability team co-founded by Drew Wilkinson grew to 10,000 people. EDF’s Net Zero Action Accelerator or Project Drawdown’s Job Function Activation Guides are great resources for changemakers working inside organizations
- Find a new job that will help you make a difference in the world, with advice from job coaches Shannon Houde or Trish Kenlon.
- Organize in your faith community. Get involved in a green group and check out our episode with Reverend Dr. Ambrose Carroll.
- Find job listings and resources from the Green Jobs Board, Work on Climate, Terra.do, and EDF’s Jobs Hub.
- Connect with people on LinkedIn and join the #OpenDoorClimate movement founded by my colleague, Daniel Hill.
While the challenges may seem staggering, we have the power to build a better future. With new incentives available to make more sustainable choices, now is the time to capture “win-wins” at work, for people and the planet. With business incentives from the largest climate law in U.S. history, and a new mandate from COP28 from countries around the world, there has never been a better time to focus your talents on climate action.
And since I love other sustainability podcasts, my team created a playlist on Spotify to share some of our favorite episodes from Degrees, Brown Girl Green, Bloomberg Zero, Carbon Copy, Catalyst, Climate Rising, Conscious Chatter, Drilled, TILclimate, The Big Switch, How to Save a Planet, My Climate Journey and more. These podcasts offer a trove of learning, audio inspiration and ideas. I invite you to join this movement of people who are rising up to ‘green’ their jobs in 2024, and build a better future for all.
