Thinking about quitting your job?
Wish you could do something that allowed you to help the planet instead?
You’re not alone, as research by Supercritical found that 35% of UK office workers would consider quitting their job due to a lack of climate action by their employers. For Gen Z, this rose to 53% of workers.
The team here at EcoSend have researched potential career ideas for the climate-conscious, with salary data obtained from various job board websites. All of which can help you fast track your goal to create positive change on issues relating to the environment.
So here are 25 green job ideas to inspire your next career move.
Agronomist
While it's possible to help the planet from behind a desk, this first job idea is a little more hands-on.
Agronomists carefully study the health of soil to advise farmers on land management, based on aspects that can affect the growth rate or overall health of crops. They test and analyse soil samples and to solve complex issues.
In recent times, agronomy jobs have centred on improving the sustainability and profitability of farming through regenerative farming practices.
Typical salary: £22K-£60K
Carbon Analyst
Carbon analysts conduct carbon assessments on behalf of organisations to measure their energy and greenhouse gas emissions. The work of a carbon analyst is essential for identifying hotspots and recommending ways that emissions can be reduced.
The job responsibilities of a carbon analyst can include carbon emission tracking, carbon footprint assessments, environmental impact analysis, emission reduction strategies, ensuring regulatory compliance and engaging with stakeholders.
Typical salary: £27K-£44K
Carbon Risk Analyst
Related to the job title of a carbon analyst is a carbon risk analyst, which is someone who determines the financial and operation risks associated with carbon emissions and the overall impact of climate change.
Focusing more on the business perspective of carbon analytics, the risk analyst would conduct risk assessments, scenario analysis and stress tests. These are designed to mitigate the negative impacts of market disruptions or regulatory changes.
Typical salary: £39.2K-£88.7K
Climate Action Advisor
Climate action advisors work on behalf of schools and local authorities to coach them about how older buildings can be made greener. The recommendations help the affected buildings transition towards net zero.
Playing an important role in developing plans for new energy efficient buildings and green spaces, climate action advisors also engage the community through webinars and live events. They are also responsible for reporting back on challenges faced by local authorities or schools so that barriers to sustainability can be identified and reduced.
Typical salary: £47.8K-£51.7K
Climate and Natural Environment Officer
A job that involves working on projects that seek to improve outcomes for local habitats and natural environments. To become a climate and natural environment officer, you will also need a good understanding of environmental conservation. In urban environments, this can require a consideration of green spaces, urban planning, sustainable transport, biodiversity, waste management and water conservation.
At EcoSend, our team got a taste for this kind of work when we volunteered at a local park in London for one of our CSR days. They certainly put us to good use shifting wheelbarrows, planting hedgerows and helping to create a new forest pathway.
Typical salary: £40K-£45K
Conservationist
Conservationists study the likes of coastal areas, grasslands, forests, marine habitats, moorlands, mountains and rivers to help protect natural resources and promote biodiversity.
Much of the work of a conservationist revolves around engaging with the community to raise awareness of environmental issues, sharing insights into how individuals and businesses can have a positive contribution.
Conservationists also add valuable insights into planning developments as well as sustainable land management including through environmental impact assessments.
Typical salary: £19K-£35K
Digital Sustainability Lead
As the world wakes up to the fact that our digital activity has a carbon footprint, organisations are seeking problem solvers to help reduce digital carbon emissions.
One such job role is a digital sustainability lead, which is someone who is responsible for managing and delivering projects relating to digital activity and communication. For instance, this could be redeveloping the website so that it generates less carbon, and also ensuring that all technology used within the business is efficient in terms of energy usage and the overall carbon generated.
The work of a digital sustainability lead is important for creating awareness about digital-based carbon emissions, along with implementing change including within industries that are not specifically climate-focused.
Typical salary: £51.7K-£64.1K
Ecotourism Manager
When calculating your carbon footprint, travel is one of the key areas of questioning. That’s because travelling can have a negative impact on the environment in terms of the greenhouse gases released from physically getting to your destination (i.e. from flying or driving), as well as damage to the local ecosystems as a result of making your stay happen.
However, as travel is important for supporting local economies, ecotourism looks to provide sustainable alternatives to strike a happy medium.
Ecotourism management involves the planning, implementation and monitoring of sustainable travel initiatives. In essence, this green job idea finds ways that people can enjoy some much-needed rest and relaxation in a way that also limits the impact on the climate crisis.
At present, ecotourism also known as sustainable travel is still a relatively new concept, so it’s difficult to find salary averages to bring you for this post. However, if any sustainable travel companies want to get in touch, we’d be happy to update our content.
Typical salary: £N/A
Ecologist
Ecologists base their work around plants, animals and environmental conditions. Specifically, they look at ways that natural habitats can be protected based on the type of threats that can negatively impact populations or species. These include aspects such as the local surroundings, population dynamics, nutrient cycling and human activity.
The UK Government also lists ecology as a ‘green job’, citing that ecologists can “restore woodlands and peatlands to help tackle climate change. This can have a positive impact on the environment.”
Overall, the work of an ecologist is vitally important to minimise environmental damage, protect various species, implement sustainable design practices and advise on new policies.
Typical salary: £18K-£45K
Environmental Entrepreneur
Have a brilliant idea about a product or service that could help the environment? Your idea could just turn into your career.
In a recent edition of the EcoSend Weekly, we brought you the news that Mr Trash turned ten.
Here’s a quick overview of Mr Trash to inspire your entrepreneurial journey if you also want to help the climate crisis:
Baltimore resident John Kellett would often cross the bridge over Baltimore Inner Harbour on his way to work, where he would see the likes of plastic bottles and bags flowing past. The trash was being carried by rainwater through the city’s drains, where it would flow into the river and eventually make its way into the Atlantic Ocean.
Most people would just walk on by, but not John who wanted to do something about it. So John called the mayor’s office and pitched an idea for Mr Trash which he had drawn on a napkin. The city loved the idea so much, Mr Trash became a permanent fixture in the harbour.
Mr Trash has so far gobbled up over 5.2 million pounds (2,600 tons) worth of plastic waste and other discarded items from Baltimore's waterways.
While the idea for Mr Trash may already be taken, there are endless other environmentally friendly inventions just waiting to be brought to life.
Plus, if you want to switch to a green career but don’t fancy working for someone else, inventing your own solution is just the ticket!
Typical salary: £N/A
Garden Designer
Garden designers work with domestic and commercial clients to create their dream outdoor oasis.
Spanning skills such as landscape design, design consultancy, construction management and garden styling, garden designers help their clients to maximise the potential of their land.
Design decisions can factor in the aesthetic preferences of the client, but also the types of plants that would thrive in the soil and lighting conditions. Therefore, garden design fuses creativity as well as an intrinsic knowledge of plants to create bespoke outcomes in response.
Typical salary: £23K-£47K
Gardener
Gardeners tend to domestic and commercial land by looking after plants, trimming lawns and hedges, controlling pests and clearing paths.
An ideal career path for anyone who wants a job in the great outdoors rather than working in an office, being a gardener means you’ll literally be hands-on with our natural world on a daily basis.
While much of the work of a gardener involves making cosmetic improvements to the land, there are also important tasks to be done that ensure the overall health of the soil and plants. The result of which can make a positive impact on the local community.
Gardeners also promote biodiversity, as their green creations often support animals, birds and insects with food and shelter.
Typical salary: £20K-£40K
Green Building Architect
Architects can specialise in a number of areas, but as a green architect, the focus is on how to design buildings with the climate in mind. This can include a consideration of materials, energy saving technology and also efficient design strategies to reduce the carbon emissions of the building throughout its lifespan.
Requiring expertise in green building benchmark systems such as LEED, BREEAM, WELL and Fitwel, green architects need to be able to come up with innovative solutions to various environmental challenges.
Like many green career ideas on our list, green architecture is a highly rewarding field to work in, since the finished designs can positively shape future generations along with the overall outcomes of communities.
Typical salary: £47K-£87K
Green Living Wall Installer
Also known as landscape maintenance technicians, green living wall installers create stunning art installations that vastly improve air quality and purification.
Most people see moss in a negative light, but as a green wall installer, you’ll use moss for the greater good as it's a plant that is phenomenal for carbon sequestration.
Moss is a key plant found in green walls, though you may also be tasked with adding other live plant species into your creations found on the likes of office walls and other types of commercial buildings.
Typical salary: £27-£34K
Green Marketing Specialist
Green marketing specialists look at every possible way that a business can reduce the environmental impact of its marketing campaigns.
Every physical and digital asset has a carbon footprint. As a green marketing specialist, you can actively reduce emissions from the likes of websites, social media campaigns, event attendances and printed media.
Another aspect of green marketing is promoting products and services that are better for the planet. By helping consumers to make more sustainable choices, this also helps the business have a wider positive impact on the planet.
Typical salary: £25K-£50K
Horticulturist
Horticulturists are consultants that provide specialist advice relating to gardens and crops on behalf of commercial clients and other botanical sites.
Key to the development of parks and leisure facilities, horticulturalists help preserve the beauty of the natural world, including through problem solving to encourage the health of plants as well as the wider site.
Their varied work can involve studying ancient plans of the land, partaking in restoration programs and providing expert opinions for litigation cases.
Typical salary: £21K-£60K
Renewable Energy Specialist
As the world looks towards cleaner energy solutions, renewable energy specialists provide valuable insights across technical considerations, regulations, procurement and the supply chain.
Specialising in wind, solar, hydrogen and other sustainable fuel types, renewable energy specialists identify current inefficiencies within commercial or domestic energy supplies to implement renewable alternatives.
Salaries for renewable energy specialists vary, but top level consultants or project managers can command the highest pay range.
Typical salary: £29K-£150K
Retrofitting Surveyor
Low carbon retrofitting is a specialism that’s increasingly in demand, as companies look to make their existing buildings greener without having to rebuild or relocate.
You can begin a career in retrofitting surveying as someone relatively new to the trade, or with a professional with decades of experience. Naturally, the level of experience will impact the salary, but it’s good to know that there is plenty of career progression in this role if you’re newly graduated.
The role of a surveyor who specialises in retrofitting is to assess the environmental performance of a building to make suggestions of where improvements can be made. The surveyor would then oversee the retrofitting works as part of an ongoing project to improve the energy efficiency of the building.
Typical salary: £27K-£83K
Sustainability and Environmental Compliance Specialist
All companies have environmental targets to meet, and compliance specialists are tasked with measuring, reporting and monitoring on the progress.
Ideal for purpose-driven individuals, sustainability and environmental compliance specialists can work across practically all sectors, opening this role up to a wide range of people.
There’s a large salary fluctuation for this role, as it really depends on your area of specialism. For sustainability specialists in the built environment with BREEAM accreditation, the salaries are the highest we could find for UK job roles.
Typical salary: £23K-£80K
Sustainable Email Marketer
Email has long offered fantastic results as a growth marketing technique, averaging between $36 and $45 ROI for every $1 spent. But did you know that it’s now possible to make your digital marketing including email sustainable?
Sustainable email marketing takes into account the carbon footprint of email, which can be as high as 26g CO₂ for every email sent. That might not sound a lot, but with 300 billion emails sent per day the carbon footprint of email actually adds up to a huge problem.
By becoming a sustainable email marketer by using platforms such as EcoSend, you can reduce the emissions of your campaigns without having to sacrifice success. If you create email campaigns on behalf of your clients, then sustainable email marketing can also reduce their business emissions as a whole too.
Typical salary: £24K-£55K
Sustainable Event Planner
From transport to catering — events can have a seismic carbon footprint even before you consider all of the travel involved in getting people there.
Sustainable event planners are on a mission to change the environmental landscape of events, by coming up with innovative ways to reduce emissions and waste.
They are responsible for creating measurable impacts across all areas of putting on an event, so that businesses and attendees can lower their environmental footprint.
Typical salary: £39K-£46K
Sustainable Fashion Designer
Sure, if you’re a fashion graduate you could work for any fashion brand out there. Or, you could look to break out on your own to become a sustainable fashion designer instead.
There is a grave need for sustainable fashion, since the fashion industry is sadly one of the biggest contributors to climate change. In particular, fast fashion and ever-changing trends mean our clothes are not made to last. This results in seismic waste being produced along with the huge consumption of water, energy and other natural resources.
As a sustainable fashion designer, your insights could be instrumental in changing things for the better so that the impact on the environment is greatly reduced.
Curious about sustainable fashion? We’ve previously written about this topic in our post The Impact Of The Fashion Industry On Climate Change.
Typical salary: £N/A
Waste Reduction Coordinator
Waste is of huge environmental concern, whether the waste is classed as household waste, plastic waste or even hazardous waste. One way to influence sustainability and positive environmental outcomes within waste of all kinds is to work as a waste reduction coordinator.
Specifically, as a waste reduction coordinator, your role is to create and implement strategies that look to prevent waste and pollution. Factoring in government legislation, careful management of waste and recycling can ensure that various targets are being met.
Typical salary: £22K-£45K
Water Quality Sampler
Drinking water, surface water and groundwater all require testing to ensure specific targets relating to laws or legislation are being met. Therefore, one of the many ways you can use your career to help the environment is by becoming a water quality sampler or scientist, which involves analysing the contents of water, identifying areas of concern and taking action to improve standards.
In recent years especially, the quality of water in UK rivers and seas has come into question. So by being in charge of testing and upholding water standards, you can create better environmental outcomes for marine life as well as the wider community.
Senior water testing roles can involve liaising with businesses and local authorities, as well as addressing the public along with others involved in the water industry.
Typical salary: £25K-£55K
Wildflower Development Specialist
There is perhaps not a more beautiful sight when you’re out and about in the countryside than when you stumble across a wildflower meadow.
As a wildflower development specialist, it will be your job to create and maintain such landscapes to encourage biodiversity net gain. You will need expert knowledge on how plants act in response to their pollinators to encourage the applicable species to thrive.
Wildflower development specialists work at a variety of locations across the UK from fields to indoor habitats such as The Eden Centre. Depending on your level of specialism across aspects such as novel varieties, disease-resistant strains and climate-adapted cultivars, this can influence how much the job will pay.
As with many green career ideas, you could also decide to become a self-employed wildflower consultant.
Typical salary: £N/A
How Is The Green Jobs Market Looking?
Data from Statista has revealed that there were 560,000 full time green jobs in the UK as of 2020, up from 507,000 in 2015. That’s an increase of almost 4% in just 5 years, which is significant in terms of the wider employment figures across the UK.
We also asked the aptly named Green Jobs for some insights about gaining employment within green sectors. Unlike generic recruitment websites such as LinkedIn or Indeed, Green Jobs lists vacancies solely related to environmental jobs such as clean energy and conservation.
If you are someone who is eyeing up an environmentally-conscious career, information shared by Green Jobs with us that you may find useful includes:
☀️ - Employment in the solar industry is expected to almost double from 3.9 million to 6.6 million by 2030. As a result, demand for renewable energy engineers is growing.
💷 - 50% of low-carbon energy professionals received a pay rise in the last year, with pay increases reported as both ‘significant’ and ‘frequent’ for engineers and hiring managers.
🧑🌾 - It is widely perceived that a university degree is needed to enter a green career, despite vocational training often being a top requirement for many roles. This is creating barriers to employment, particularly for young people.
👩💻 - The National Grid is urging more women to enter green careers, with just 25% of roles expected to go to women by 2030.
Overall, it is clear that various types of green jobs exist in the UK jobs market. However, more awareness is needed to break down barriers to employment.
For anyone who has a genuine passion to make a difference on various environmental issues, we hope you’ll find a role that allows you to make a positive contribution, regardless of your skills, background or experience.
Above all else, remember that caring about the cause is one of the most important attributes of any green job role!
Top Things To Look For When Searching For Green Jobs UK
✅ - B Corp status - Companies that hold B Corp certification look beyond profit to also consider people and the planet. There are over 2,000 B Corps in the UK, which can help you identify the types of companies that align with your environmentally conscious mission.
✅ - Company values - Your mission to help the planet will never reach its potential unless the company you work for is also on the same page. Carefully study the company and their overall commitment to reducing their environmental impact before applying.
✅ - CSR activities - Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is when everyone downs tools to help those in the community. At EcoSend, we have CSR days once a month where we volunteer our company time at the likes of food banks or green spaces. CSR days can make a huge impact, so we highly encourage you to find businesses that already partake in them or would be open to starting.
✅ - Cycle to work scheme - Cycling to work is a far more sustainable way to travel. Cycle to work schemes help reduce the cost of a new bike for employees so that commuting to and from the office is also affordable.
✅ - Environmental impact - Companies that openly disclose their environmental impact along with measures they are taking to improve their green credentials are taking their commitment to the climate seriously. As a green job hunter, transparency could not be more important.
✅ - Four day weeks - It’s a well known fact that working four days can actually boost productivity, while improving mental health. Reduced journeys travelling to and from can also result in reduced carbon emissions.
✅ - Remote or hybrid working - Do you really need to travel an hour to the office just to sit in a meeting? Research by ClimatePartner suggests that the average carbon emissions of every employee that commutes in the UK is 4.96 kg of CO₂. By allowing for remote or hybrid working where possible, this can seriously reduce the carbon footprint of the business.
EcoSend - Grow Your Business With Our Sustainable Email Marketing Platform
Involved in a climate-conscious business? Did you know it’s possible to grow leads while also planting trees?
Switch your email marketing platform to EcoSend, and you can continue to grow your mission without harming the planet in the process. That’s because our systems run on renewable energy sources to reduce the server-side emissions of your campaigns. Plus, we’ll plant trees on behalf of your business!
Discover more about EcoSend by starting your free trial today.
Or, if you’d like to discuss your sustainable email marketing needs with us first, please drop us a message and we'll be right with you.
