By: Kethaki Nair
Cap- and-trade programs have been a point of contention in political and business circles for a while now. Under these programs the government will impose a restriction on the amount of pollution that is permissible and then generate permits, each with a certain pollution allowance, that total to this permissible level. These permits are distributed to industry. The key benefit of the cap-and-trade program is its ability to check pollution while maintaining market efficiency. The Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act attempted to introduce a cap-and –trade program in the US. However, there were disagreements over how permits would be distributed and other intricacies, the bill failed in Congress. Yet many industry specialists believe that legislation enforcing some kind of cap-and-trade program will be on the books soon. In response many US-based industrial manufacturers are already looking closely at their carbon emissions.
According to a report released by Pricewaterhouse Coopers 43% of manufacturers are already implementing plans on reduce their carbon emissions and 15% are in the process of developing these plans. Industry is changing fast! And if the government follows it will be forced to change even faster. The direction the industry is moving in has created the demand for a new service, carbon trading. This essentially involves giving carbon a price and then trading it in a market, perhaps similar to the stock market. Some amount of trading is already happening in the US through the voluntary Chicago Climate Exchange and the mandatory Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Carbon trading is also booming in Europe.
While it may seem a little early to think of a career in carbon trading getting involved early can have its advantages. A word of caution: there are many who question the environmental integrity of carbon trading and are concerned about the way the industry is developing. Nonetheless it is a great emerging field to keep your eye on, and perhaps shape in the future!
Pricewaterhouse Coopers report:
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/home.nsf/docid/B08C50859881E216852574A500578A4F
NY Times Article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/us/16carbon.html?scp=1&sq=carbon+trading&st=nyt
Carbon Trading
Plugs on the Go
Free charging stations are popping up across the country, in encouragement and support for electric vehicles. California is leading the way with over 500 public charging stations at parks, malls, and grocery stores. Most charging stations are free, but require calling ahead. Others charge about $5-10/hr.
Taking Action: Demand that Your Potential Employer Be Green
By: Shane Sabine
How many of us have heard how important it is to truly enjoy your profession? The wise of us should follow this advice as opposed sucking ourselves into the evil traps that money provides. Independent consultant Ms. Jen McDonnell has taken that advice and prospered: five years after earning her bachelor’s degree, she found herself working behind the counter at the local Whole Foods. She soaked up each bit of information like a sponge, actually catering towards customers’ needs and performing every task necessary. Not surprisingly, Ms. McDonnell was continually promoted and found her way to overseeing environmental programs. You could be making a measly ten dollars an hour at no expense, given your natural abilities will shine in the workplace of your choosing and you will soon be on your way to more demanding opportunities.
Demand that your employer be green. Never dare to associate yourself with any organization fraught with immoral practices and sub-par ethical standards. With your own values compromised, righteous desires will never be realized. Make a stand in the interview and ask for their environmental commitment is. Let us be realistic in that companies that lack the fortitude of embracing the future are backwards without exception and must not be trusted.
Regardless of your political standing, there is much to be said for favoring environmentally friendly policies. Both senators campaigning for president have expressed favorable perspectives regarding preserving the environment. Draw a red flag if your interviewer stumbles over his or her own explanation when you ask for the general direction of the company’s initiatives becoming greener. Much is to be said for taking a stand, as we plainly see here: http://greenbiz.com/news/2008/10/23/wal-mart-suppliers.
Keep in mind that is not how powerful, wealthy, or popular you might see yourself. Instead, who you are and how you plan to put your values into action might be more noteworthy.
I encourage you to take a break from your rigorous search and have a tree planted in your name at http://www.experience.com/alumnus/channel?channel_id=green&page_id=home.
More Baby Belugas to Come?
By: Anne Consroe
This past weekend, the Bush administration added the beluga whale in Alaska’s Cook Inlet to the endangered species list. This action will now enable the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [http://www.noaa.gov] to start impressive research to examine why the species is in such steep decline and whether any human activities in the area should or could be modified to protect the beluga’s habitat.
The Cook Inlet beluga population was about 1,300 in the 1970s; it is around 375 today. The U.S. government limited whale hunting to five whales between 1999 and 2006, but the population has continued to decline about 1.5 percent per year. Scientists hypothesize many factors could be preventing a stronger recovery: predators (such as killer whales), underwater noise, water contamination, or a significant decrease in salmon (imperative in a beluga’s diet).
Brendan Cummings, oceans program director for the Center for Biological Diversity [http://www.biologicaldiversity.org], believes the listing clears up political quarrels and finally enables preservation efforts to begin.
In your job search, if you are at all interested in working to help endangered species, through ecological/biological conservation, use these helpful job search engines:
http://www.conbio.org/Jobs
http://www.earthworks-jobs.com/ecology.htm
For environmental jobs, check out:
http://www.ecojobs.com
http://www.ecoemploy.com/jobs
And for a wider variety of nonprofits (including a ton of environmental/ecological jobs), check out www.idealist.org.
Green Career Opportunities Abroad: Outside the Red, White, and Blue
By: Shane Sabine
Green career opportunities abroad may be worth some extra consideration, especially given the current financial crisis the United States of America is facing. There are plenty of resources readily available so that no one should stop short of attempting to meet his or her own goals in this regard. Career counselors at your university, professional staffing agencies, and websites catered to the green-keen should account for more than enough support.
To reiterate Ms. Kethaki Nair’s statement, financier extraordinaire George Soros’ advice to overcome our recent woes is to invest heavily in green initiatives. Nicolas Sarkozy, France’s president, has decided that the country shall invest 400 million euros in research and development of hybrid cars and electric vehicles. There is ample attention given to corporations’ energy saving measures, general practices, and governmental guidelines and we may soon observe the most green-friendly organizations succeeding in a most pronounced respect.
Brown University’s Career Development Center has collaborated with the environmental organizations on campus with much avail. Refer to http://www.environmentjob.co.uk/ for career opportunities in the United Kingdom within the environmental sector. Browsing Idealist at http://www.idealist.org/en/ivrc/program/index.html may help you to formulate a plan, too.
Albeit roughly a year ago, President Bush himself declared the following:
“I believe oil prices are going up because the demand for oil outstrips the supply for oil. Oil is going up because developing countries still use a lot of oil. Oil is going up because we use too much oil, and the capacity to replace reserves is dwindling. That's why the price of oil is going up.”
As such may be the case, invest in green initiatives by seeking career opportunities abroad. Consult your institution’s career counselors, keep a positive attitude, and thank yourself for being so conscientious as to consider the future.
Green Corps
The Green Corps is a program that can help you make that transition. In case you’ve never heard of the Green Corps before here is the spiel: The program describes itself as a Field School for Environmental Organizing. It is a 13-month program that includes intensive training and a variety of work experiences. Training involves increasing your exposure to environmental issues and developing specific skills like devising campaign strategies. Organizers are paid $23,750 for the year and there is a placement program for alumni.
The program sounds really impressive, especially if you’re the activist type. I decided to interview Eleanor Fort, a current member of the Green Corps to check if the program is really what it claims to be. Eleanor was a Political Science major from Vassar who joined the Green corps right after graduation. Through the program she has worked with a number of organizations including the 1Sky campaign and spoke enthusiastically about her experiences so far.
I was particularly impressed by the level of responsibility corps members are given. Eleanor found herself coordinating campaigns across the country, conducting press conferences, recruiting new members and canvassing. The experience is meant to prepare members for a career in social change and environmental work. As Eleanor said, “It has given me the confidence of knowing I can make a really big impact!” The diversity of experiences provided by the different rotations can be an enriching experience. Members are involved in a ton of different things and meet many different people. This includes fellow corps members who interact closely, colleagues from many different organizations and green corps alumni (80% of green corps alumni are still active in environmental and social change fields) If you want to change this country’s environmental policy, consider the Green Corps! You can apply through Experience and will also need to apply through the website: http://www.greencorps.org/apply. If the activist in you is really excited right now remember that the early application deadline is October 24! So hurry!! If that inner activist decides to get really excited next week, no worries the Green Corps recruits on a rolling basis throughout the year.
Companies Give Green Light for Green
By: Shane Sabine
Pay attention to the recent political debates, the news on Wall Street, and the mailings asking for money towards various charitable causes and we see that our society’s future is undeniably headed towards encouraging efforts to be green. It has been my duty to present you with an in-depth perspective of such companies as Goldman Sachs and General Motors. You should consider this mainstream topic of discussion when educating yourself during your search for career opportunities, as pro-green organizations have capitalized on this market and have performed a charitable act while doing so. As for the takes of some of the world’s most respected companies, the consensus is we should welcome innovation in regards to being green.
“Goldman Sachs believes that a healthy environment is necessary for the well-being of society, our people and our business, and is the foundation for a sustainable and strong economy,” according to Goldman Sachs’ own website. Warren Buffett apparently feels the same way, as he recently invested five billion dollars in Goldman Sachs. Note General Motors, the world’s leading selling vehicle manufacturer, state under its Environmental Commitment section within its Corporate Responsibility initiative that resurgence in solar power, recycling batteries, and giving grants to educators are high priorities. Clearly these companies show interest in the environment.
Corporations grossing billions of dollars per year in net revenue are likely under much scrutiny regarding this notion, and many might understandably perceive these same companies as being against the green movement. However, the GMs, IBMs, Walmarts, and Goldman Sachs of the world are very green-friendly and feel obligated to be such. Give any organization that lives green the edge when considering career opportunities.
As an aside, remember to go green with bank statements and other such documents. Every effort on your part is much appreciated.
Proving Passion
By: Kethaki Nair
‘Passion’ is a word that often comes up when we’re thinking about our careers. People look for jobs that they’re passionate about and vice versa. It is especially important to keep this in mind when preparing for an interview. People who are passionate about the job tend to stand out during interviews and are more memorable in general.
That said, proving passion can be tricky, especially during a 30 minute interview when you’re already nervous. One method is to make sure that you’re up to date on current issues within the topic of interest and in the environmental field in general. I often find this really hard to do, with classes and everything else happening in school keeping up with the news almost seems like a luxury. To force myself to be more regular I changed my homepage to the Science section of the New York Times, this often carries news on green technologies.
Other areas in the green sphere where there is constant activity are legislation, the green job market, and environmental conservation debates. To give you a taste of what I am talking about if you’re interviewing for a job related to renewable energy it could help to familiarize yourself with the controversy surrounding Cape Wind, or the emerging Ocean Power Industry (which is amazing!). Another interesting discussion concerns what green jobs could mean for the current economic crisis. In a recent interview George Soros, one of the world’s most successful investors and richest men, says that investment in renewable energy and finding a solution to global warming could be the world’s way out of the current economic crisis!
There’s a lot of interesting green debates out there, and more coming up everyday. Keeping up with all the info can be intimidating. Listening to the radio and at least glancing at the headlines can make a big difference, and in case you’re feeling overwhelmed sites like Experience can really help. The ‘Energy Blog’ and ‘Green 101’ are fun to read and can be really informative. Good luck!
Cape Wind Project:
http://www.capewind.org/
George Soros interview with Bill Moyers:
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/10102008/watch.html
The Other Green Party
By: Anne Consroe
We have three weeks until the election. Do you know who you are voting for? From an environmental standpoint, let’s look at each candidate’s policies on energy and the environment, and what (and if at all) they propose for new “green” jobs.
Senator Barack Obama ensures ten percent of our electricity will come from renewable sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025. He has set an impressive goal to reduce electricity demand 15 percent by 2020 and to weatherize at least one million low-income homes each year for ten years, reducing energy usage across the country and therefore alleviating energy prices for all. Obama also promises to work on the construction of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline. This will not only prove to be essential for our energy security, but will also create thousands of new jobs.
Senator John McCain plans to address our nation’s energy crisis by drilling domestically. He promises to enable America to become energy independent by drilling for oil along the Outer Continental Shelf. McCain believes this will provide us with trillions of dollars worth of oil and gas, allowing us to cut our dependence with imported oil. But what are Senator McCain’s plans for alternative energy sources in the long run? McCain’s website has vague views on renewable energy, with the exception of his lofty plan to create 45 nuclear power plants by 2030.
The next president of the United States will provide a crucial turning point for America’s energy policies. Please read up on the issues and make an informed decision in November.
Visit http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/newenergy for more information on Senator Obama’s energy policies.
Visit http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/17671aa4-2fe8-4008-859f-0ef1468e96f4.htm for more information on Senator McCain’s energy policies.
Where have all the bees gone?
By Anne Consroe
They’re vanishing. Without them, our food supply will be in serious danger. Since late 2006 millions of honeybees have been dying, and we don’t exactly know why. Colony collapse disorder (CCD) is eliminating these vital pollinators and endangering our food security.
Experts claim multiple explanations for CCD, including pesticides, new parasites or pathogens, global warming, invasive species, poor nutrition, and weakened immunity. The industrial agriculture system is also contributing to CCD. Bees are shipped around the country and forced to live among various monocrops and growing seasons, which stress the bees. Stress in general compromises the immune system of bees and may disrupt their social system, making colonies more susceptible to disease. Limited or contaminated water supplies could also stress bee colonies.
Approximately one-third of the fruit- and vegetable-producing plants we consume need honeybee pollination to thrive. Since it is still unknown exactly what causes CCD, little can be done to directly fight it. It is unlikely that a single factor is causing CCD. More research needs to be conducted before it is too late.
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