Growing Opportunities in Green Careers

Would you like to put your passion into your daily routine and not only earn money but feel a sense of pride and personal satisfaction while doing so? Then perhaps a green career is for you.

With or without government support, numerous socially conscious job seekers are moving into green careers. “People are motivated because they want to align their values with their work,” says Marie Kerpan, founder of the San Francisco-based company

“More and more people have values that deal with environmental and social sustainability. This came into prominence because of the growing awareness of global warming, caused largely by human behavior,” explains Kerpan, adding that finding solutions and ways to mitigate this problem and convert current energy sources to renewable sources of energy has led to numerous new career opportunities. Businesses at all levels will need skilled individuals to create, oversee, and monitor such companywide green programs.

Green building design and technology are shifting toward the use of renewable sources of energy and this leads to a long chain of job possibilities, from the actual green architects and designers, to the sales, production, and marketing people. Transportation is growing as well as we move toward hybrid cars, also opening up various career options.

“Organics is also huge. There is a growing recognition of environmental pollution and health issues,” adds Kerpan of the new careers, which have expanded from the scientific, engineering, and technical to product and marketing redesign for numerous products including body lotions, hair products, and perfumes.