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Sustainability Specialists

The occupation Sustainability Specialists covers people who address organizational sustainability issues, such as waste stream management, green building practices, and green procurement plans. O*NET rates it as considerable preparation, which usually means a bachelor’s degree plus a period of work experience. It leans on writing, speaking, and reading comprehension. You may also need to develop sustainability project goals, objectives, initiatives, or strategies in collaboration with other sustainability professionals. With a code of IEC, this is mostly a job for people drawn to research, analysis and working through hard problems. Enterprising interests also help, rated 5.1 out of 7. If you want research, analysis and working through hard problems, keep it on your list. If you need hands-on work with tools, machines or the physical world, it may feel thin.

What they do

Address organizational sustainability issues, such as waste stream management, green building practices, and green procurement plans.

Main tasks

  • Develop sustainability project goals, objectives, initiatives, or strategies in collaboration with other sustainability professionals.
  • Monitor or track sustainability indicators, such as energy usage, natural resource usage, waste generation, and recycling.
  • Assess or propose sustainability initiatives, considering factors such as cost effectiveness, technical feasibility, and acceptance.
  • Provide technical or administrative support for sustainability programs or issues.
  • Review and revise sustainability proposals or policies.
  • Develop reports or presentations to communicate the effectiveness of sustainability initiatives.

Skills

  • Writing
  • Speaking
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Critical Thinking
  • Active Listening
  • Judgment and Decision Making

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You enjoy working out why something happens, not just what happened.
  • You like taking the lead and making the call.
  • You are ready to spend around four years on a degree, then build experience.
  • You are comfortable relying on writing and speaking.

May not suit you if

  • You lose interest when a job asks for long stretches of analysis.
  • You want to work with your hands for most of the day. Realistic rates 2.1 out of 7 here.
  • You want to avoid a four-year degree or its equivalent.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code IEC takes the three highest, and Investigative comes first here.

Preparation

Considerable preparation. Most jobs here ask for a bachelor’s degree, and employers usually expect a few years of related experience as well.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: Bachelor's Degree. This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Campus Energy Coordinator
  • Energy and Sustainability Strategic Advisor
  • Sustainability Advisor
  • Sustainability Champion
  • Sustainability Consultant

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.