Tree Hugging Family » Environmental Jobs

Seven Myths About Green Jobs

Jennifer — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:19:24 +0000

There’s been a debate recently about whether green jobs save the economy? and now a new study has been released that further questions this issue. The study, a collaboration of academics and researchers from four U.S. universities, looked at report data from some major organizations, including…

The American Solar Energy Society (ASES)
The Center for American Progress
The U.S. Conference of Mayors
The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP)

THE MYTHS OF GREEN JOBS:

According to the findings of this new study, the following are the 7 myths of green jobs.

“Everyone understands what a “green job” is.
Creating green jobs will boost productive employment.
Green jobs forecasts are reliable.
Green jobs promote employment growth.
The world economy can be remade by reducing trade and relying on local production and reduced consumption without dramatically decreasing our standard of living.
Government mandates are a substitute for free markets.
Wishing for technological progress is sufficient.”

WHAT I THINK:

Well, here’s the thing; IF everyone considered sustainability a natural decision, a necessity, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation. All jobs would attempt to be more sustainable naturally, green jobs would be a norm with clear goals set, and perhaps green jobs wouldn’t be looked at as if they were the black sheep jobs of the family.

I get that people who are opposed to government spending for green jobs have questions and concerns though because as of yet, there’s not a clear “green job” definition. I also think the green job hype is bad news for all those students jumping into green college courses and degree plans right now because who knows if these degrees will even lead to jobs.

When it comes down to it, I think green jobs should be more important and clear cut than they currently are. I think some spending to promote green jobs is smart, but don’t agree that placing all the money in one green job pot is a good plan. I also think this is a HUGE conversation, one that we simply don’t have enough space for in this one post. This new study alone is a huge amount of info to digest. If you’re interested (it is a good read) check out the following links:

Seven Myths of Green Jobs, (21 page article reviewing the issues) – purchase copy.

Green Jobs Myths, (100 page, in-depth analysis) – purchase copy.

See the whole press release (the general idea is given – decent piece.)

[image via stock.xchng]

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Where To Find Green Jobs

Jennifer — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:00:12 +0000

In the last post I mentioned the NPR piece on green jobs and economic stimulus. If you’re pro-green jobs, and wondering how you can get one, I’ve compiled a list of places you might start looking.

The Treehugger job board -everything from writers, to program directors, to LED lighting sales, and more. Updated fairly frequently.

Green Jobs – mainly employment that’s renewable energy related.

Grist: Jobs – educational jobs, green building, tech, and more. Not oodles of jobs, but updated often.

Care2 JobFinder - seems to have mostly high tech green jobs, but I haven’t spent too much time there.

GreenCareers by MonsterTRAK – smaller amount of entry level green jobs – mainly energy related.

idealist.org – not all perfectly green jobs, but all jobs are geared toward making a difference, and there’s tons.

Green Non-Profit Jobs – excellent list of where you need to be if you’d like to be in the thick of the green non-profit revolution.

Green Career Conferences & Events – awesome list of green career fairs.

Green Gigs – this is one of the only green job boards I visit regularly, as they often post writing gigs. Other types of gigs are posted too.

Planet Green has a must read article for anyone interested in a green job. Tips GALORE.

My best green job hunting tip:

You can browse the job boards frantically, or you can take a more direct approach. Most organic cosmetic, green building, and eco-fashion companies (among other green places) have job listings on their website.

For example:

And more. You can muck around with job boards, or find a company you adore, locate their contact info, and start career-flirting with them.

Are you interested in green jobs? Why or why not?

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Will Green Jobs Save the Economy?

Jennifer — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 18:11:09 +0000

NPR recently had a nice little piece going on, Can ‘Green Jobs’ Stimulate The Economy?.

On the side of yes: Many folks, among them, Barack Obama, think that green jobs are a key component of stimulating our sadly strangling economy. There’s tax incentives for green building projects along with, of course, the people who will be needed to install said green projects. According to NPR, green tech evangelist John Doerr says, “The green revolution has much greater potential for job creation than the Internet did.”

On the side of no: People think that green is too long a project to create sudden economy stimulus. Sure, you can plan green jobs, but when will they start and how long will it take for them to pay off?

I’m all for green jobs. I’m all for a MUCH better economic outlook. How do I think it all ties together? I’m not sure what I think. Personally, I’d guess that 85% of my personal income comes from green-minded projects – but then, I’m in this little green writer niche; my situation is not typical I wouldn’t think, not to the majority of Americans.

Not being an economy expert, I’m not feeling too qualified to say much. I do agree that green jobs have long term advantages, but then I also know that green projects take longer to get up and running. It’s a toss up. If someone held a gun to my head and made me answer, I guess I’d say, go for it. Go green jobs BUT green jobs should just be one plan on the plate, not the whole picture for solving this economy crisis, we’re currently experiencing.

What do you think – are green jobs the way to stimulate the economy, or do you agree that green jobs may be too future forward to help right now?

Let me know in the comments.

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Green Jobs Now

Peggy — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 04:00:41 +0000

If you’re looking for a way to spend your Saturday, check out one of many events being held to help promote Green Jobs to Build a New Economy.

Just click on the banner above for more info.

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Green Your Business

Jennifer — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:00:41 +0000

Allison over at Greener Assets has this great new series going on; the Go Green with your Small Business Series.

So far she’s covered:

You can read the current posts in the series or even email a suggestion to Allison about a small business that she should cover. You’ll really like this series. Check it out.

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Around the Web with Peggy & Jennifer

Jennifer — Thu, 22 May 2008 20:15:05 +0000

So, it’s been awhile since we did one of these round-ups. We’re due. Here’s the green we’ve been writing elsewhere that may interest Tree Hugging Family Readers.

Building, buying, or remodeling your own green home:

Home & Living:

Architecture:

Baby:

Eco friendly baby shirts
Easy ways to go green with your baby
Organic baby clothing
Sweet organic baby tees
Happy summer organic baby finds
Cutest baby babble story ever – note that this is not so green, or even really useful for human parents, but it’s so darn cute I keep spreading it around. Sorry.

Work related:

Miscellaneous stuff:

Click here to learn about all the current contests, themes, and green challenges going on at Tree Hugging Family in May 2008

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Grand Central Terminal Holiday Fair Design Competition

Peggy — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:00:38 +0000

Are you into green design or know someone who is?

The very popular Holiday and Spring Fair events at the Grand Central Terminal in New York are going green. The competition judges — world-renowned designers and architects — are looking for a green design that incorporates and highlights the historic integrity of Vanderbilt Hall.

If you’re a designer, don’t miss the opportunity to be part of this exciting collaborative effort between USGBC New York, leaders at Grand Central and designers like you.

What could be more fun than incorporating something green into something old?

The deadline to enter is May 30, 2008. Go here for more details on entering.

Image via Grand Central Terminal.

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One Small Step: Add Tree-loving Message to Your E-mail

Peggy — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 17:00:43 +0000

You’ve probably seen the message, “Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail,” at the end of e-mails you receive.

Adding a green message to your e-mail signature can be an effective way to draw notice. After all, the people you’re e-mailing know you. If you care about the environment, they may wonder what more they can do as well.

Here’s a story to illustrate my point. Michael, that’s my husband in case you didn’t know, added an e-mail signature like the one above to his work e-mails. Others in his department started doing the same. In a staff meeting, the organizer said something like, “Well, I didn’t print out an agenda for everyone this time because of all that save-the-paper messages in your e-mails. I wrote it on the board instead.”

That’s a small, but great change. E-mail signatures can help people think. Now here’s something for you to think about:

Do you actually refer back to those e-mails you print? How often can you make PDFs of documents instead of printing them?

Here are some e-mail signatures I came up with just for you to consider:

•If you hug a tree, you’ll be hugged back twice. Please think about not printing this e-mail.

•Trees like you, so please wink back by not printing this e-mail.

•Love a tree, don’t hit print.

•Make sense, not waste. Don’t hit print.

•Ask me why you should think twice before printing this e-mail.

•Does e-mail make us print more than we did before?

•You’re too smart to print this e-mail.

•Lower your impact today by not printing this e-mail.

•Even recycled paper takes energy to make. Do you really need to print this e-mail?

If you have a green e-mail signature, please tell us about it.

Photo via MorgueFile.

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The Post Office Blessed Them: ecoEnvelopes

Peggy — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 07:27:52 +0000

I learned about ecoEnvelopes from our friends over at ecofabulous in their recent post: Pushing this Envelope.

And I must say, how very awesome of the US Postal Service to approve the first ever reusable envelope. These babies delete the need for reply envelopes.

According to ecoEnvelopes, their product can cut business mailing costs by 15 to 45 percent. That’s some sweet change.

These envelopes use certified paper from managed sources.

You can head over to ecoEnvelopes to request some free samples for your company. And if you work at an ad agency, what a great item to suggest to the production team, eh?

Photo from ecoEnvelopes.

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Find the Perfect Eco-Job for 2008

Jennifer — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 05:36:19 +0000

One way to get involved in the green movement is to actually get a job that relates to green living. You can do something simple, say like run a green living blog or publish articles on green topics.

You can try to get on with a minor or major green organization but many are non-profits so as far as money goes it may not be a long-term career plan. Most nature and eco-organizations have job available pages like this one at American Rivers.

There are some organizations that can help you find a green job. These are also great sources for simply learning about green topics; especially for youth. Many people offer mentor situations at their place of business or even just a chance to chat about what they do. Finding a situation like this can be a great way to motivate youth about the environment.

Here’s where to look for your brand new career:

SustainableBusiness.com offers not only news about green businesses but a great search form for Green Dream Jobs.

Environmental Careers also has news updates and green jobs.

Environmentjob.co.uk has a lot of cool jobs listed including one right now for an Eco Kids Club Tutor (awesome).

EcoEmploy has really annoying pop-ups (that even got past my trusty browser and security system) but may be worth it if you’re looking. They also post resume tips.

I LOVE Cool Works. Not an environmental site exactly their jobs are mainly earth based. This site offers great seasonal opportunities at some commercial sites like resorts but also placements at national parks. Plus Cool Works caters to various age groups with pages for, “Older and Bolder,” “Teens,” and more.

The other thing you can do is enter popular green terms into regular job search engines like Monster. Terms to try include just about anything you see to the side in my category section; green, eco-work, eco, recycling, ecology, energy. etc., are all good terms to try.

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