Create a Green Career for Earth Day

All of us can celebrate Earth Day through our work, even if we do not have what's considered a "green career."  Whether you are choosing a new career or happy in your current job, you can make Earth Day more meaningful and make positive contributions to the environment at work.

Match Your Personality with Green Careers
Career Key has a great article on Green Careers that explains the role of careers in the green economy.  It includes lists of green jobs by the six Holland personality types (or Holland Codes) and Career Key work group. These lists match the results of Career Key's valid career test that measures these types and shows lists of matching occupations linked to helpful career information about each one.

Not Your Typical "Green Career"
But the Green Careers article also talks about ways we can contribute to environmental causes through careers not typically associated with being "green," like religious leaders and teachers.  Pope Francis recently declared protecting the environment as a focus in his new papacy.  Teachers can educate students in many ways about the environment that are relevant to their subject.

Being Greener in the Workplace
You know your workplace best.  Are there ways to decrease your carbon footprint that are not being used? Are there lessons learned or experiences from other similar employers that you could adopt?  Some may cost additional money but some may not. You'll never know unless you ask.

Another way to contribute is to join or start an environmental committee or program within a professional association. Be creative in coming up with a project or program that's relevant to your job.  Sometimes, as long as you volunteer to do the research and startup work, people are willing to follow your lead.

There are different views about climate change and people differ on how much they are willing to participate in environment-related efforts. But even making people aware of a more environmentally-friendly way to do something or serving as a (not too preachy) example can help.

What Career Key is Doing
For many years, Career Key has donated 10% of its website sales to charity. The Nature Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund are two main beneficiaries because Career Key's author, Dr. Lawrence K. Jones and his wife Jeanine are interested in protecting nature and the environment.  Our server also runs on green, renewable energy.

To put a final, personal touch on this post, Dr. Jones emailed me last week to ask if I had signed up yet for Seattle City Light's Green Power Program. The Program allows customers to "Green Up" their electricity bill using Renewable Energy Credits. (like wind - we don't do much solar here in the Pacific NW for obvious reasons!) So I did - and soon this computer I'm using to write this blog will be 100% powered by wind or similar renewable resources.  There's nothing like pressure from your boss (and your father) to be green!

But I'm not perfect, like everyone else. Occasionally I use plastic sandwich bags for my son's lunch and no doubt other green faux pas I'm not even aware of.  But I make efforts to be environmentally conscious both at work and home, and that's good enough for me.

What do you do at work to be green - or to make your career green?