Imagine standing in the main quad of a bustling university campus. As the new Sustainability Officer here, you’ll develop a campus-wide program to encourage environmental stewardship and energy conservation. This initiative includes expanding the university’s existing research on applied environmental science and policy and an ongoing community outreach program to raise awareness about sustainability issues.
Since your role is central to public perceptions about the university, you will report directly to the university’s President. Even though it is still your first week on the job, you have a full, fast-paced day ahead of you. You’ll lead several meetings with stakeholders to get more information on their needs and expectations for the university’s sustainability programs. You’re also planning to finish your research on a cost-benefit analysis for the program and start writing a grant proposal to ensure enough funding is available to support upcoming program additions.
You know you are up to the challenge of this new role as a sustainability officer. Throughout your past work experience, you have developed strong skills in leadership, strategic thinking and connecting different departments and teams. These abilities will help you excel as you support the university’s goal of long-term, financially feasible sustainability projects.
Job duties vary significantly from one position to the next, but in general, sustainability officers are involved in the following job duties:
Sustainability officers work in a variety of locations, including:
The office:
The field:
Sustainability Officers are usually employed by:
Search for jobs on the ECO Canada Job Board.
Most sustainability officers have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in the following areas:
In addition to the fields of study mentioned above, sustainability officers also need extensive management experience. Current sustainability practitioners can boost their soft skills for a future sustainability officer role with professional development courses in:
Our Environmental Professional (EP) designation can also help you progress in your chosen environmental career.
Technical Skills
Personal and Professional Skills
Environmental employers seek professionals who combine technical knowledge with personal and professional skills. Watch our free webinar “Essential Not Optional: Skills Needed to Succeed in Canada’s Environmental Industry” or take our Essential Skills courses.
Many of us consciously try to make efforts in our daily lives to create a more sustainable environment, from swapping plastic bottles for reusable ones to hopping on trains and exploring on foot. But all those changes are based on choices that we make on our own - so what about big firms with hundreds of employees? How can they ensure a sustainable workplace?
While finding solutions to sustainability concerns can feel overwhelming on a bigger scale, like a business, a sustainability officer is always up for the challenge. In this role, you help with the implementation process and the monitoring and evaluation of each project to ensure that sustainable practices continue in the long term.
Here are just a few ways a sustainability officer can help spaces become more sustainable:
Sustainability specialists may be classified into the following occupational grouping:
NOC Code: 41400 – Natural and applied science policy researchers, consultants and program officers
What is an NOC Code?
The National Occupation Classification (NOC) provides a standardized language for describing the work performed by Canadians in the labour market. It gives statisticians, labour market analysts, career counsellors, employers, and individual job seekers a consistent way to collect data and describe and understand the nature of work within different occupations.
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