One Day, One Job » green

Holstee

Willy Franzen — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:47:43 +0000

Usually we associate with brands based on our experiences with their products. After a while we know what brands we like and use brand names as a heuristic to make purchasing decisions easier. Occasionally when a brand has an exceptional story, the brand actually becomes the product. That seems to be the case with Holstee, a New York, NY based company that focuses on “lifestyle design with a conscience.” The only reason I had heard about them is that they’re often on Fab.com, yet there are a ton of people who have bought a printed version of the Holstee manifesto to put on their walls (see the manifesto here). The brand has literally become the product. Some may write off Holstee as an online store for “hipsters,” but the “People, Planet, Product” approach has a lot of meaning for a lot of people, and it’s enabled Holstee to grow their business.

Design Your Lifestyle

Holstee’s product line is pretty small, and it’s pretty random, but it’s all tied together by a story. They’ve curated a collection of products that help people live their ideal life. Whether you’re buying the Holstee original with a bizarre pocket on the side or Sugru Hacking Putty to repair old stuff instead of buy new stuff, you know that you’re making an ecologically conscious decision (while also sending a message about who you are). You’re also empowering “entrepreneurs in the developing world through,” as Holstee donates 10% of all sales to Kiva. If you’ve already ordered a copy of the Holstee manifesto to hang on your wall, then you’re probably dying to hear about Jobs at Holstee. They take a slightly different approach in that they don’t post job openings. They expect you to tell them about your dream job and why they should give it to you, so go do it!

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you purchased anything from Holstee?

Environmental Law Institute

Willy Franzen — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 18:17:04 +0000

It’s amazing how a good snowfall can quiet a city down. It may not be as serene as a natural landscape, but it reminds you that nature still exists in a setting that has been almost completely altered by man. It’s easy to forget about the environment when you live in a city, but I’m sure that’s not a problem for the people at the Environmental Law Institute. It’s a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that “makes law work for people, places, and the planet.” That’s an important role because environmental health is a public good that can be ruined by the actions of a few. Environmental changes can have all kinds of externalities, so it’s important that our legal system is set up in a way that promotes “a healthy environment, prosperous economies, and vibrant communities.”

A Good Environment for You

The Environmental Law Institute was founded in 1969, and since then they have been providing “insightful and impartial analysis to opinion makers, including government officials, environmental and business leaders, academics, members of the environmental bar, and journalists.” They do this with a focus on six program areas: Freshwater & Oceans, Land & Biodiversity, Environmental Governance, International Programs, Climate & Energy, and Environmental Health. One of the organization’s major accomplishments is training “over 50,000 lawyers and managers as well as 1000 judges from 16 countries in basic and advanced environmental law and practice,” and that has led to some of the success stories you’ll find on this page. If you’d like to be part of future successes, then you should take a look at the ELI’s Careers page. Right now they’re looking for a Research Associate and a Graphic Designer. There are also postings for some Law Clerk positions and a Public Interest Environmental Law Fellowship, but the application deadlines have passed.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about the Environmental Law Institute?

Switch

Willy Franzen — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 16:13:40 +0000

The University of Chicago has a number of entry level positions open right now. Check them out here.

Call me whatever you want, but I still buy incandescent light bulbs. I tried a few CFL bulbs in the past, but they were an utter disappointment–not very bright and a disgusting color of light. I paid more for them because they’re supposed to pay off in the long run, but they can’t save me money if I don’t use them. It’s going to take a more compelling energy efficient light bulb design to get me to switch. And that’s exactly what Switch has come up with. They’re a San Jose, CA based startup that is using LED technology to replicate the beautiful light of an incandescent bulb without wasting so much energy. They’re close to achieving the holy grail of light bulbs (and a big pay day), especially considering that there will essentially be a ban on incandescent bulbs by 2014. Now they just need to convince people to switch.

How Many College Grads Does It Take to Screw in a Light Bulb?

Right now Switch is testing their light bulbs at “several distinctive hospitality properties,” but it sounds like they’re close to making them available to the general public. This article does a fantastic job of telling the Switch story and mentions that they were planning on shipping in October, but that date seems to have slipped. The story that really makes Switch’s bulbs compelling is all numbers. This spreadsheet from the aforementioned article will show you how the bulbs compare with incandescent bulbs. You break even in year 4 of owning a Switch bulb, and you come out almost $100 ahead over 20 years (yes, a Switch bulb is supposed to last 20 years). Multiply that out by an average of 45 lightbulbs per household (source: the internets), and you are looking some really meaningful savings. And that’s exactly what it will take to get people to switch. If you want to be part of the future of light bulbs, then consider a Career with Switch. They don’t list specific openings, but they do appear to be interested in hearing from candidates who want to work with them. They’re a small, young, growing company, so it’s worth a shot to reach out to them.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Will you Switch?

Grist

Willy Franzen — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 17:50:30 +0000

So far our survey says that you find the job search frustrating. Tell us more so that we can help.

When I was in Ann Arbor, MI last weekend, I noticed that there’s a tremendous amount of interest in the environment there. Maybe it’s because two of the friends I was visiting got Master’s degrees from University of Michigan’s School of Natural Resources and Environment, but it was also the LED street lights and the students who I met who were asking about green careers. That’s why I wouldn’t be surprised if there are a lot of subscribers to Grist in the Ann Arbor area. Grist is a Seattle, WA based magazine that “has been dishing out environmental news and commentary with a wry twist since 1999.” They’re a non-profit organization, so they’re “funded by foundation grants, user contributions, and advertising.”

Get the Grist of Things

A fair criticism of most of the environmentalist movement is that it lacks a sense of humor. It’s hard to have a laugh when you’re constantly screaming “the sky is falling.” Grist is certainly an exception, as their about page starts with:

Laugh now — or the planet gets it.

You know how some people make lemonade out of lemons? At Grist, we’re making lemonade out of looming climate apocalypse.

It’s more fun than it sounds, trust us!

The sense of humor comes through in articles like Live Your Tiny House Fantasies by Renting One on AirBnB, but there are also plenty of more serious ones like Making Federal Buildings Green Cuts Costs by a Fifth. If you’re digging Grists’s approach, then you may want to consider working for them. Their Jobs page shows that they’re looking for a Web Developer and Idealist shows that they’re looking for an Office Assistant. If neither of those positions sound right for you, you may want to take a look at Grist’s Writer’s Guidelines. There are both paid and unpaid opportunities for writers.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read Grist?

Synthetic Genomics

Willy Franzen — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 16:31:40 +0000

When I think of the energy industry, I think of big machines like oil drills, windmills, and coal elevators. Microbes and genetics just don’t come to mind. Synthetic Genomics is a company that is aiming to change that. Energy is just one of the industries that they are working to disrupt as they develop “breakthrough genomic-driven solutions for major global issues.” Right now Synthetic Genomics, which is based in La Jolla, CA, has put a heavy emphasis on working with the energy and chemical industries because there is so much potential for gain–especially in terms of the environment; however, they’re also working on things like food production, human health, and water availability. It’s all about “turning novel science into life-changing solutions.”

Synthetic Opportunities

Obviously commercialization is a key concern for Synthetic Genomics–they need to develop technologies that can actually make money, but they seem to have decided that fixing some of the world’s most pressing problems will provide plenty of revenue opportunities. Makes sense to me. From what I can tell Synthetic Genomics is really all about developing the technology. Once they have something that is ready for the market, they find partners in the industry to put the technology into action. I wish I could dive deeper into the specifics of what Synthetic Genomics does, but words like “environmental genomics, microbiology, biochemistry, bioinformatics, plant genomics, genome engineering, synthetic biology, and climate change” tell me that I’m in over my head. If you have no problem following along with their What We Do page, then you may want to consider taking a look at their Careers. Right now they’re hiring a Research Associate and a Research Associate – Production R&D. They have a bunch of other positions that require more experience/education, and the only other job that you might want to take a look at is the Business Development Associate position.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Synthetic Genomics?

Sacramento Tree Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 15:56:59 +0000

I used to wake up every day, look out the window, and see the Chicago skyline. In my new place, I wake up and see a whole bunch of trees. Though I know I’ll miss being able to watch the city from a few hundred feet up, it’s a nice change. Who doesn’t love trees? Well, the people at the Sacramento Tree Foundation probably love trees even more than the average person. The Sacramento Tree Foundation is a non-profit organization based in Sacramento, CA that is “working to grow healthy, livable communities in the Sacramento region by empowering people to plant, protect, and learn about trees.” They have a goal of planting 5 million trees in the area by 2025. Though they have a long way to go, they’ve already gotten off to a great start.

Turn Over a New Leaf

As awesome as trees are, Sacramento Tree Foundation isn’t promoting the planting of trees just for the heck of it. They’re promoting trees because trees create all kinds of positive outcomes. They provide shade, clean the air, look beautiful, and even bring communities together. The Sacramento Tree Foundation pursues all of these goals through a number of different Programs and Services. These include Sacramento to Shade, Seed to Seedling, NeighborWoods, nature: Native Trees in the Urban and Rural Environment, Mature Trees, Greenprint Initiative, Community Education, and Parking Lot Retrofits. Right now they’re looking for a Greenprint Relations Coordinator. The job is posted on Idealist, but surprisingly not on the Sacramento Tree Foundation’s Jobs page (which has no current postings). Give the job a look and see if it’s worth applying for.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite kind of tree?

Greencitizen

Willy Franzen — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 15:55:44 +0000

Usually when I get a pitch from PR or Communications agencies, I ignore them. Why? Most of the pitches are terrible. They’re not relevant to me, and they show no respect for my time. Even worse, some of them are downright spammy. That’s why I was pleasantly surprised when I was going through my backlog of e-mail to see a really good pitch on a company that has entry level jobs for environmentally minded grads. (Did I mention that more than 160 people applied for an internship with ODOJ? I’m still getting through all of them.) The company is called Greencitizen, and they’re based in San Francisco, CA. They’re business is all about dealing with the “E-Waste Crisis.” They “help consumers and businesses reduce their environmental footprint of their computer and electronics… by keeping electronics running efficiently through online and in-store repair services, along with environmentally responsible electronics recycling.” So they do a lot of the same things as a typical IT services company (computer repair, data security, tech support, etc), but they’ve made a name for themselves by making everything they do green while also putting a huge emphasis on recycling.

Are You a Greencitizen?

Greencitizen has already served more than 110,000 consumers and 10,000 businesses, so they’re having some serious impact on the environment. They’re also making customers very happy–Greencitizen has 5 stars on Yelp with 55 reviews. That’s impressive. I really like how Greencitizen has positioned itself. Offering free recycling of e-waste is really an ingenious customer acquisition strategy. They must have a constant flow of potential customers walking through their doors. Anyway, Greencitizen seems to be pretty focused on promoting their Career opportunities to those who are interested in Green/Environmental Careers. Their Jobs page shows a number of opportunities that may interest recent grads. These include Entry Level Part to Full-time Warehouse Staff (Burlingame), On-Call to Full-time Warehouse Technician, and PC Technician (Burlingame). These jobs are certainly “hands on,” but they do pride themselves on allowing people to progress through the ranks rapidly (they claim to offer a “Green MBA”). You could also reach out to them about other types of positions.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

How many pieces of hardware do you have lying around that need to be recycled?

BlueStar Energy Solutions

Willy Franzen — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 16:21:24 +0000

I find it weird when a company tries to convince me to use less of their product and spend less on it. That can’t be good business… or can it? It can be when you’re competing in commoditized markets with entrenched players. It’s a tactic that seems to be working for BlueStar Energy Solutions, a Chicago, IL based (just a block from me) alternative energy supply company. They already serve “customers in Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Delaware, Maryland and Washington D.C,” and they’re “considering expanding [their] supply services to New York, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine.” They’re bringing competition to all of these markets, and they’re offering a lot more than traditional utilities–great customer service, lower prices, and a much greener approach. It should be no surprise that BlueStar Energy Solutions’ revenue continues to grow rapidly.

Get a BlueStar

I’ve heard a lot of negative things about energy deregulations, but it seems that it has opened up the market for innovators like BlueStar to really make a difference. The hard part is getting customers to switch utility companies–many people don’t even realize that they have a choice. There’s huge potential for BlueStar to have a ton of impact by helping people save money on energy while making choices that benefit the environment. If that sounds like something that you want to be a part of, then check out jobs at BlueStar Energy Solutions. Right now they have a number of positions that seem suitable for new and recent grads including Business Development – Energy Manager and Associate Project Coordinator. It looks like a really cool company to work for, and they’re located in a great neighborhood.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about BlueStar?

Center for Science in the Public Interest

Willy Franzen — Sun, 22 May 2011 14:57:42 +0000

You wouldn’t think that I’m actually happy when people unsubscribe from this list, but if it means that they landed a job or internship, then I’m as pleased as can be. I always try to find out where former subscribers go to work so that I can tell you about opportunities at those places (e-mail me at willy@onedayonejob.com if you have a recommendation). One reader e-mailed me and told me that she went to work at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which is a non-profit organization that acts “as the organized voice of the American public on nutrition, food safety, health and other issues.” They’re based in Washington, DC, and they’ve been acting in the public interest since 1971. The organization’s main goals are to “educate the public, advocate government policies that are consistent with scientific evidence on health and environmental issues, and counter industry’s powerful influence on public opinion and public policies.” Most of us forget how important of an issue food actually is, but it’s a major public health issue that is only getting worse.

The Food Detectives

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has an interesting funding model. Instead of constantly soliciting for donations and chasing down grants, they publish and sell subscriptions to the Nutrition Action Healthletter. It’s circulated to nearly 2 million people, and it’s completely ad free. Some people call the Center for Science in the Public Interest the “food police,” but they prefer to be called the “food detectives.” Whatever you want to call them, they’re focused on eliminating many of the negative externalities that are caused by today’s food industry. To learn more about the organization, you should definitely watch this video from the organization’s founder Michael Jacobson, Ph.D (e-mail readers may need to click through).

The video mentions some of the many accomplishments of the CSPI. The list is extremely long, and it includes some really impressive things like winning a “decade-long campaign” to pass “a federal law requiring nutrition labeling of packaged foods and a ban on deceptive health claims.” If you want to be part of future CSPI wins, then you should head over to their Jobs page. Right now they have a few interesting positions open: Project Assistant – Nutrition Action Healthletter, Research Associate, and Policy Associate – Health Promotion Policy. If you’re big on nutrition, this could be a great place to work.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think about what the CSPI does?

GRID Alternatives

Willy Franzen — Sat, 07 May 2011 15:05:12 +0000

While most of us have become accustomed to higher energy prices, this latest spike has been pretty ugly. I haven’t seen any gas prices starting with a 5 yet, but I’ve seen a few come dangerously close. The situation for home energy doesn’t appear to be quite as dire right now, but it all adds up (and it’s May when most of us turn our heaters off and haven’t yet turned our air conditioners on). Energy costs keep increasing as a percentage of household budgets, and this has an especially negative effect on low-income families and individuals. GRID Alternatives is an Oakland, CA based non-profit organization that is trying to fix this problem. They “empower communities in need by providing renewable energy and energy efficiency services, equipment and training.” Not only are they helping people manage and lower energy costs, but they’re also creating jobs and training people to fill these jobs.

Get on the GRID

GRID Alternatives was founded during the 2001 California energy crisis. I don’t know for sure, but that seems like it was about 6 or 7 energy crises ago. I find organizations like GRID Alternatives really exciting because they’re able to address a number of very different problems through a group of closely connected programs. GRID Alternatives’ core program is called the Solar Affordable Housing Program. It focuses on training and leading “teams of job trainees and other community members to install solar electric systems for low-income families throughout California.” They’re taking on pollution, poverty, and unemployment all at once. If you want to be a part of that mission, then you should check out jobs at GRID Alternatives. Right now they have a few positions that should interest new or recent grads including Outreach Coordinator (Chico, CA), Outreach Coordinator (Carson, CA), Americorps VISTA (IE): Outreach and Program Associate (Inland Empire, CA), Americorps VISTA (IE): Volunteer and Training Associate (Inland Empire, CA), Americorps VISTA (NV): Outreach and Program Associate (Chico, CA), Americorps VISTA (NV): Volunteer and Training Associate (Chico, CA), Americorps VISTA: Volunteer and Outreach Associate (San Luis Obispo, CA), LISC AmeriCorps Outreach and Program Associate at GRID Alternatives (Oakland, CA). Take a look and see what interests you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about GRID Alternatives?

Washington Wilderness Coalition

Willy Franzen — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 13:30:17 +0000

Sponsored Jobs: Love restaurants and looking for an entry level job? SinglePlatform has a ton of positions that are perfect for you. They’re our sponsor this week, and you can check out all of their positions here.

Yesterday I was too busy talking about candy to mention that it was Earth Day. Luckily, a good friend reminded me that I should probably cover an environmentally minded non-profit today. I did a quick search, and came across the Washington Wilderness Coalition. They’re based in Seattle, WA, and they aim to “to preserve and restore wild areas in Washington State through citizen empowerment, support for grassroots community groups, advocacy and public education.” That’s something that I can get behind since I’ve enjoyed Washington State’s wilderness. In 2007 I spent a day fly fishing the Klickitat River. I didn’t catch anything but one tiny rainbow trout/steelhead, but I got to enjoy the scenery and spot some cool wildlife. It’s just the kind of place that Washington Wilderness Coalition aims to protect, and it’s definitely worth protecting.

Join the Coalition

Washington Wilderness Coalition is over 30 years old and 10,000 members strong, and they keep working to idnetify new issues and put together new projects to achieve their mission of preserving Washington’s wildlife. Some of the issues that they’re currently concerned with include mining, logging, off-road vehicle access, and endangered species. One of the organization’s relatively early successes was raising “the public support necessary to pass the 1984 Washington Wilderness Act, which protected over a million acres of wilderness.” You can read about more recent successes here. If you like what you see, then you should check out Washington Wilderness Coalition’s Jobs page and their Idealist page. Right now they’re looking for a Volunteer Coordinator and a Telephone Outreach Organizer and Membership Assistant (part-time). The latter position is posted on the organization’s Jobs page, so give it a look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about Washington Wilderness Coalition?

OPOWER

Willy Franzen — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 15:09:39 +0000

SinglePlatform is our sponsor this week. They’re looking to hire new grads from all majors as Outside Sales Consultants in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC. They’re also building an Inside Sales team out of their New York City headquarters.

Have you ever heard of a company or industry that wants you to use less of their product? Doesn’t really make sense, does it? It does if you’re in the power industry, at least to some extent. Some of the biggest proponents of energy efficiency are the utilities themselves. The reason for this is decoupling, or the “disassociation of a utility’s profits from its sales of the energy commodity.” It’s a tactic used by many states to create positive incentives for energy companies to be more green. Still, promoting energy efficiency to consumers is no easy task. That’s where OPOWER comes in. They’re based in Washington, DC and San Francisco, CA, and they use “cutting edge behavioral science and patent-pending data analytics” to enable “utilities to connect with their customers in a highly targeted fashion, motivating reductions in energy use, increased program participation and overall customer satisfaction.” It’s all about helping consumers make better informed decisions (which usually are also better decisions for the environment).

You Got the OPOWER

If I remember correctly, I had a friend in college whose roommates were some seriously nerdy Electrical Engineers. They spent an entire day using voltmeters (or something similar) to figure out the average daily energy consumption of each roommate. They then prorated the monthly electric bill based on usage. OPOWER takes a way cooler approach to doing something similar. You can get a feel for exactly how they do it by taking a look at their Approach, Products, and Results. Because they work directly with utilities, OPOWER is able to get into the homes of millions of consumers through monthly bills. It’s a pretty cool model, and it seems to be working. If you’re excited about what OPOWER is doing, then you need to check out their Careers page at OPOWERJobs.com. They don’t seem big on entry level positions (they like work experience), but there are a few jobs that you should at least take a look at. The Virginia/DC positions include Software Support Engineer, Consumer Marketing Coordinator, Quantitative Analyst, Software Engineer in Test, Policy Analyst, Associate Product Manager, User Experience Prototyper, and Proposal Writer. There are also some Software Engineerings in San Francisco. Take a look at all the jobs, and see if you can match up with the qualifications.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Does your utility work with OPOWER?

Transportation Alternatives

Willy Franzen — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 15:09:59 +0000

I must admit that I probably use my car more than I should to get around in Chicago. It’s often just so easy. I still walk and take public transportation when it makes the most sense, but I could definitely be convinced to do both of those things more often. That’s the job of Transportation Alternatives, although they do it in New York, NY. They’re a non-profit organization with a mission to “reclaim New York City’s streets from the automobile, and to advocate for bicycling, walking and public transit as the best transportation alternatives.” There are a ton of negative externalities with cars (pollution, danger to pedestrians, noise, etc.), and plenty of positive externalities (less congestion, healthier citizens, etc.) with alternative forms of transportation, so it makes sense for an organization like Transportation Alternatives to be so adamant about their position.

Transport Yourself

New York City has already made a ton of progress on the transportation front. Since 1973 there are five times more cyclists on the streets and there are half as many pedestrian fatalities, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement. Transportation Alternatives is all about the idea of “the livable street,” so they’re constantly “pushing city agencies and elected officials to introduce this innovation into the urban landscape.” To get a better sense for how Transportation Alternatives is approaching their mission, you should check out their Advocacy Campaigns and their Action Center. If you like what you see, then you’ll want to head over to the Transportation Alternatives Jobs page. Right now they’re looking for a New York City Bicycling Ambassador Program – Lead Organizer, New York City Bicycling Ambassadors, and a Press Secretary. All of the positions look great, so if you’re all about alternative transportation, then check them out.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite mode of transportation?

Better Place

Willy Franzen — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 16:08:32 +0000

Sponsored Job: Marathon Building Services is a Gaithersburg, MD based company that offers construction cleaning services. They’re currently looking for new and recent grads to join as Sales Representatives to help them grow their business. If you’re interested, send a résumé to Meredith Berlin at hr@movementtechnologies.com.

You’d be hard pressed to find anyone but an oil executive who isn’t excited at the prospect of electric cars. Yet, the only ones that I’ve seen on the road are from Tesla Motors, and those are few and far between. The problem is two-fold. First, the technology is just getting to the point where it’s actually reasonable to have an electric car as your everyday automobile. Second, the infrastructure for charging electric cars away from home is nearly non-existent. Better Place is a Palo Alto, CA based company that is working to change this. They “build and operate the infrastructure and systems to optimize energy access and use” for electric vehicles, so that they can achieve their mission of “accelerating the transition to sustainable transportation.” They have a long road ahead of them, but they’ve already made a big impact.

Better Jobs

When we think about fueling our cars, we automatically think of gas stations. Many assume that charging an electric vehicle will be similar, but that’s not necessarily true. Better Place is working on all of the potential options for battery charging. These include home charging stations, battery exchange, and charging networks. Because electricity can be transported so easily, the need for a gas station like system will probably fade. (The only question is where we’ll stop for bathroom breaks and Doritos.) Better Place is working on all fronts to make electric vehicles “affordable to buy, easy to use, and amazing to own.” Beyond charging solutions they’re also developing driver services and network software that will deliver increasing benefits as more people go electric. Better Place is even working with international standardization bodies to ensure that market fragmentation doesn’t slow the adoption of electric vehicles. If you want to be part of the transition to sustainable transportation, then it’s time to take a look at Better Place’s jobs. At first look it seems that their positions are either internships or require too much experience, but the Knowledge Management Associate Internship actually looks more like an entry level job. The descriptions for the year-long Market Development and Product Strategy positions also look pretty serious, so maybe you could take one of them and turn it into a full-time job.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Better Place?

Perkins+Will

Willy Franzen — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:25:29 +0000

Despite having a father who is an architect, I have to admit that my appreciation for architecture is quite basic. Except when my Dad drags me along, I don’t go out looking at buildings just for the fun of it, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t notice things that are architecturally interesting. When I came across a link to some positions at Perkins+Will, the first thing that I did was look at their work. I was surprised by how many of their projects I’ve noticed and enjoyed. Just a few of them include the San Francisco Ferry Building, Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, and The Contemporaine (which is only a couple of blocks from me). And that’s just a small sampling of the work that the firm has done. Perkins+Will was started in Chicago, IL in 1935, but since then they’ve expanded to 23 offices across the world (including locations in Atlanta, GA; Boston, MA; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Dubai, UAE; Hartford, CT; Houston, TX; Los Angeles, CA; London, UK; Miami, FL; Minneapolis, MN; New York, NY; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Research Triangle Park, NC; San Francisco, CA; Seattle, WA; Shanghai, China; Toronto, ON; Vancouver, BC; and Washington, DC.) I spent some time trying to figure out if they have an actual headquarters or main office, but I couldn’t come up with anything.

Where There’s a Will There’s a Way

Like I said before, I’m not much of an architectural critic. It definitely says something that Perkins+Will’s work caught my eye, but what’s more important is that they’re constantly getting recognition from big names in the industry. They’ve been ranked #1 Sustainable Design Firm and #2 overall in the “Architect 50″ by Architect magazine, #2 University Design Firm by Building Design+Construction, and #2 Interior Design Giant and one of the Most Admired firms by Interior Design. I’m even more impressed by the names that they’ve worked with, which include: Cornell University, Chicago O’ Hare International Airport, NASA, Mayo Clini, Stanford University, UCLA Medical Center, Perspectives Charter School, Crate & Barrel, and plenty more. If you want to get the full view of all of Perkins+Will’s noteworthy accomplishments, just check out their Press Kit. Anyway, if you love Perkins+Will’s work, then you have to check out their Careers page. Their current job listings include entry level positions like Architect I (Chicago, IL), Architect I (Seattle, WA), Graphic Designer (Dallas, TX), Interior Designer I (Glastonbury, CT), Interior Designer I (Washington, DC). That’s it for now, but I’m sure that they regularly have positions popping up all across the world.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Which of Perkins+Will’s projects is your favorite?

Rock the Earth

Willy Franzen — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 14:48:31 +0000

Music has always been connected with social change. There’s just something about it that gets people motivated to take action. But often the music can also be a distraction. It takes a delicate balance to combine the power of music with a specific cause to elicit a positive response. That’s what Rock the Earth is all about. They’re a Denver, CO based non-profit organization that is “dedicated to protecting and defending America’s natural resources through partnerships with the music industry and the world-wide environmental community.” They were founded in 2002, and since then they’ve been “defending the planet one beat at a time.”

What Are You Rocking?

Rock the Earth identifies specific projects and works tirelessly to increase awareness about a variety of environmental threats. Some of their past projects include protecting wilderness from drilling on Colorado’s Roan Plateau, protecting marine ecosystem off the coast of the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, and targeting cruise ships for their discharges and emissions. They’ll often tie in their music partners to help with specific causes. There are some big names on their partner list including Alanis Morissette, Allman Brothers Band, Barenaked Ladies, Dave Matthews Band, Guster, Incubus, Ozzy Osbourne, Phish, Tom Petty & the Heatbreakers, and lots more. If these artists aren’t tied to specific causes, then they’re participating in the Rock the Earth Tours. If you’re digging what Rock the Earth is all about, then you should check out their jobs on Idealist. Right now they’re looking for an Office Administrator. It’s not totally an entry level job, but I’m pretty sure that the right new grad could be a great fit for this position.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you rockin’ the Earth?

Sapphos Environmental

Willy Franzen — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 17:23:21 +0000

It used to be that if you wanted to build something, the hard part would be actually building it. These days the biggest hold up in construction and development is often environmental compliance. There are a multitude of regulations that limit what you can build, where you can build it, and how you can build it. The rules are often complex and they can vary greatly between jurisdictions. Sapphos Environmental is a Pasadena, CA based company that helps its clients resolve “planning, resource management, and environmental compliance issues through the development of pragmatic solutions and exemplary client service.” In other words they offer a range of services that ensure that development projects are done in an environmentally sensitive and compliant way.

Turning Compliance into Poetry

That maybe an odd heading, but it appears that Sapphos Environmental is named after an Ancient Greek poet. To get a feel for what the company does, you need to take a look at some of their past projects. They’ve worked on things ranging from the Hyundai Automotive Test Course to a Comprehensive Citywide Historic Survey of Santa Ana, CA. Looking at these cases, I can tell that Sapphos Environmental really digs in and looks at all of the issues surrounding a given project. Their job is to understand all of the factors that affect a given project, and then offer their clients a suite of options to their that work within the environmental and compliance constraints. It looks like fascinating work, which is why you may want to take a look at their Jobs page. They offer some really cool job titles like Archaeologist, Botanist, Avian Wildlife Biologist, Cultural Resources Coordinator/Architectural Historian, and Wildlife Biologist; however, most of these positions require significant prior experience. The two positions that you should look at are Wildlife Biologist/Botanist and Resources Specialist (if you have a Master’s Degree). If you have the right education and an interest in environmental consulting, you should be a good fit.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Sapphos Environmental?

Alliance to Save Energy

Willy Franzen — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 16:51:24 +0000

When we talk about energy efficiency, we often think about the environment. If we use less energy, we do less harm to the environment—but that’s only half the story. Energy efficiency is also essential to keeping our world’s economy growing. Nearly all economic activity requires some sort of energy input, and energy is quite obviously a limited resource. If we can find ways to use the energy that we have more efficiently, we can stimulate more economic growth. The Alliance to Save Energy is a non-profit organization that was started in response to the oil embargo of the 1970s. They saw how reliant our economy was on foreign oil, and they wanted to take action to decrease that reliance through conservation. The Washington, DC based organization obviously still has a long way to go, but they have a great track record of helping businesses and the environment at the same time.

Join the Alliance

Beyond looking at the Alliance to Save Energy’s Topic Areas and Programs, the best way to get a feel for what the Alliance to Save Energy does is to watch the video below (e-mail readers click through):

As you can see the Alliance to Save Energy is doing everything they can to promote “energy efficiency worldwide to achieve a healthier economy, a cleaner environment and energy security.” If you’d like to be a part of that mission, then you should check out their Jobs page. Right now they’re looking for a Public & Corporate Relations Administrative Associate. They also have a few more advanced positions posted.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

How do you save energy?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Willy Franzen — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 13:56:39 +0000

Generally, we as a society trust scientists. We see them as unbiased and smarter than us, so we look to them when we need answers to complex questions. However, we often don’t respond to those answers as well as we should. Part of the problem is that science is ever changing—what was thought to be true last year has now been updated (or reversed) based on new research. When you have different experts on the same subject saying different things, you as a layperson don’t know whom to listen to. But when scientists come together on an issue and vocally push for action, it’s time to listen. The Union of Concerned Scientists is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1969 “by a group of scientists and students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to protest the militarization of scientific research and promote science in the public interest.” They’re based in Cambridge, MA, and they are “now an alliance of more than 250,000 citizens and scientists” with members “from all walks of life: parents and businesspeople, biologists and physicists, teachers and students.”

Show Your Concern

The Union of Concerned Scientists focuses on three fronts: government policy, corporate practices, and consumer choices. By being vocal in these three areas, they hope to help build a safer and healthier world. The key area of focus for the Union of Concerned Scientists is very clearly the environment, which makes sense if you look at their specific program areas which include Scientific Integrity, Global Warming, Clean Vehicles, Clean Energy, Nuclear Power, Nuclear Weapons and Global Security, and Food and Agriculture. If you want a closer look at the kind of work that the Union of Concerned Scientists does, then you can take a look at their history of accomplishments. If that list inspires you, then it’s time to start thinking about getting a job with the Union of Concerned Scientists. Their Jobs page shows two openings that look well suited for a new or recent grad: Benefits and Accounting Associate (Cambridge, MA) and Program and Outreach Associate (Washington, DC). Both jobs look really interesting, so see if they’re what you’re looking for.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about the Union of Concerned Scientists?

RecycleBank

Willy Franzen — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 16:05:00 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I try to recycle when its convenient. Like the time my college roommates threw a huge party and I stole all of the empty cans and returned them for the nickel deposits. It was easy money. But I must also admit that I’ve thrown away plenty of recyclables when there wasn’t a proper receptacle for them. Environmentalism is great; however, people respond to incentives, and a healthy Earth a century down the road isn’t much of an incentive for the average person. People need a push, and that’s exactly what RecycleBank does. They’re a New York, NY based company that rewards people for “taking positive green actions.” By doing things like recycling at home, you can earn RecycleBank points. Those points can be redeemed for rewards ranging from Amazon Gift Cards to museum memberships, with lots and lots of other options in between—you can even donate your points.

Take It to the RecycleBank

Now, RecycleBank doesn’t make it all that clear how their business works—even their How It Works page doesn’t do a great job of describing the basic idea. From what I’ve gathered, RecycleBank is all about partnerships. They start with municipalities and haulers, since they’re the ones in charge of local recycling programs. This way you can keep bring your recyclables to the curbside like normal, but RecycleBank works with haulers to record exactly how much you are recycling (and you don’t need to sort your recyclables). The next set of partnerships is with Material Recycling Facilities that end up processing all of the recyclables that go through the RecycleBank program. Then come the advertisers (both local and national)—these are the companies that supply the rewards. They get new market exposure to environmentally conscious consumers in return for providing rewards for RecylceBank members. That’s the only cost. Finally, there’s you, the end user and recycler. If you sign up, you can earn 2.5 points per pound of recyclable material up to an annual cap of 5,400 points per year. It’s hard to find out what those points are actually worth without signing up, but I’m sure you can get some pretty good stuff.

If you’re excited about the nexus of marketing and recycling, then you should check out jobs at RecycleBank. They have quite a few positions open, though most of them require a decent amount of experience. The Outreach Specialist is probably the best fit for a new or recent grad (and they say they want 3 years of experience). There are also some Software Development positions available, but those also seem targeted towards more experience hires. The best option is to reach out to them without applying to a specific position. You can e-mail jobs@recyclebank.com and tell them what you think that you can add to their team. It can’t hurt—they’ve had a lot of interns in the past, (in Community Outreach, Finance, Social Media, and Design) so they certainly value young talent.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you recycle?

Conrad Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 16:30:34 +0000

When I was in high school, I got good grades, did community service work through my church, played baseball and basketball, and ran a fan website about my favorite rapper (it was a long time ago, and it was profitable). It may sound like a lot, but I can’t believe how much time I wasted. High schoolers are capable of a lot, and they need to be challenged. That’s exactly what the San Francisco, CA based Conrad Foundation does. They’re a non-profit organization that challenges “high school students to create innovative products using science, technology, and entrepreneurship to solve real-world, 21st century problems.” They do so through the Spirt of Innovation Awards, which is a competition put on in honor of Pete Conrad (whom the foundation is named after), the astronaut who commanded Apollo 12. Pete was expelled from a prestigious high school because he couldn’t read or spell. It turned out that he was dyslexic, and the headmaster at his new school was able to help him make the most of his genius. After high school he went to Princeton and the moon. Not bad for someone who couldn’t read or spell in high school.

Making the Most of High School

High school is the time to start getting serious about life, yet many talented students don’t get on the right track because they’re not engaged at school. The Conrad Foundation and the Spirit of Innovation Awards is all about giving students an alternative setting to pursue their interests. The Foundation’s vision is three-fold—they envision:

An education system where every student is engaged in and excited about learning.
An innovative, 21st century STEM workforce capable of solving society’s grand challenges and sustaining our knowledge based economy.
A movement in transformative education where innovation and entrepreneurship play an integral role in developing leadership & thinking skills.

The main activity of the Foundation is The Spirit of Innovation Awards Competition, which focuses on three specific areas: Aerospace Exploration, Clean Energy, and Cyber Security. You can read about all of the specifics of the competition on the Conrad Foundation site, and if you like what you see, then you may want to consider Getting Involved. They’re looking for Mentors and Supeheros on the volunteer front, but their Jobs page doesn’t show any opportunities. Luckily, I checked on Idealist, which says that they’re looking for an Administrative Assistant and a Fundraising Manager. If you are a fan of innovation, entrepreneurship, and education, there couldn’t be a better place for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’d you accomplish in high school?

Framework:CR

Willy Franzen — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:23:19 +0000

I love it when I get tips from readers on cool companies to feature. I understand that a lot of you don’t want to hurt your chances by spreading the word about jobs that you’ve applied for, but sometimes it helps to pay it forward. So e-mail me at willy@onedayonejob.com and tell me about cool companies that you’ve found that you think that we should feature. If it weren’t for a reader suggestion, I wouldn’t have known to look at Framework:CR and the entry level position that they’re trying to fill. Now, Framework:CR is sustainability consulting firm based in Stamford, CT that “helps clients develop integrated sustainability strategies and initiatives that build brand value, cut costs, and, ultimately, enhance profitability.” They’re a small company with only a handful of employees, but they’ve been around for 8 years and appear to be growing.

A New Framework

Framework:CR use the tagline: “When sustainability is profitable, profitability is sustainable.” I like that a lot. No matter how much social good comes from sustainability, companies aren’t going to make changes unless they help the bottom line. Framework:CR helps “clients understand how they perform relative to their competitors and the expectations of key stakeholders” and offers “guidance and tools to facilitate their transition to better and more sustainable business practices.” You can get a feel for Framework:CR’s work here, and you can also check out their client list, which includes names like Avon Products, Citigroup, H.J. Heinz, Staples, and Symantec. You’ll also want to read up on Framework:CR’s Team—there are only four of them, so it shouldn’t take long. Finally, the Framework:CR Blog is updated frequently, so you should give it a look. The most recent post details how they negotiated with their new landlord to get sustainable paint and carpeting in their new office. Once you do that, you can check out their job posting for a Junior Analyst. It’s a perfect position for sustainability minded new grad, so check it out and apply.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think about Framework:CR?

Duron Energy

Willy Franzen — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 13:53:30 +0000

Believe it or not, I’ve been on vacation in Aruba for the past week (I’m sneaky like that). I have a few friends who are locals, and one of them was telling me that he will soon be moving out on his own. His expected rent is dirt cheap at $400 per month, but he expects that his electricity and water bills will easily surpass the monthly rent. We often take affordable clean water and electricity for granted in the United States, but even in a highly developed tourist destination like Aruba they can be insanely expensive. Now just imagine living in a developing nation with low income and high energy costs. Electricity is an extreme luxury. But not for much longer if Duron Energy has their way. They’re a company that came out of Idealab, and they are “a leader in affordable power products designed for off-grid use in emerging markets.” Duron Energy is headquartered in Bangalore, India, but they also have offices in Ahmedabad and Lucknow (both in India) as well as in Los Angeles, CA.

You Got the Power!

How does Duron Energy provide affordable and reliable electricity? They’ve built the Duron, an “all-in-one, off-the-shelf solar system” for rural users. It’s not going to run a home entertainment system, but it provides lights, cell phone charging, and enough power to significantly improve everyday life. Whether it’s for a shop owner or a family, Duron can make a huge difference in productivity. And the best part is that there’s no infrastructure required—it just requires the investment of an individual, family, or group to buy a unit. Obviously, the Duron is also environmentally friendly since it replaces kerosene lamps and other unsafe and polluting energy and lighting alternatives. What’s really cool is to see the impact that Duron Energy is having in rural India. If you want to be a part of it, then you should consider a job with Duron Energy. They don’t list specific positions, but they seem more than open to taking unsolicited applications.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think of Duron Energy?

Marrone Bio Innovations

Willy Franzen — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:10:07 +0000

Ten days ago we took a look at Rodale Institute, a non-profit that is “dedicated to pioneering organic farming through research and outreach.” We talked about how industrial farming has led to amazing boosts in productivity, but it’s also created a lot of problems. Marrone Bio Innovations is a Davis, CA based company that is taking a natural approach to one specific area of agriculture: pest control. They’re aiming to be “the world leader in natural product innovation” by making “natural, effective, safe, environmentally friendly products the mainstream future of pest management.” Usually you don’t hear organic and pesticide in the same sentence, but Marrone Bio Innovations’ business is predicated on bringing the two together.

Don’t Be a Pest

Marrone Bio Innovations has a range of products that solve problems from Fungal and Bacteria Disease Control to Blight Control. Now, I’m not a Plant Scientist, so I don’t know anything about the effectiveness of Marrone Bio Innovations’ products, but I do know that they recently received a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation for the development of a natural biopesticide for control of invasive zebra and quagga mussels. If the NSF is backing them, then you know they’re one of the leaders in the field. If you’re excited about a world with less harmful pesticides, then you should check out jobs at Marrone Bio Innovations. Nothing is explicitly entry level, but if you’ve been working in a lab throughout college, I could see their Associate Research Scientist – Formulation position being a good fit. There’s also a Zequanox® Sales manager position that could be worth checking out.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think about biopesticides?

Rodale Institute

Willy Franzen — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 16:51:51 +0000

Last week I got an e-mail from a One Day, One Job reader who is just wrapping up a seasonal position and looking for her next gig. In doing so, she realized that other readers might be interested in her current position, so she wrote me to tell me about it. When I saw the name Rodale Institute in her e-mail, I swore to myself that I had already featured the organization, but it was actually a publishing company named Rodale that was started by the same person as the Institute and used to be financially linked to it as well. The Rodale Institute is a Kutztown, PA based non-profit organization that is “dedicated to pioneering organic farming through research and outreach.” They’ve been at it since 1947, and they’re going to keep “researching the best practices of organic agriculture and sharing [their] findings with farmers and scientists throughout the world” because they believe that eating organic is the healthiest option for people and for the Earth.

Go Organic!

What’s old is new again. For most of human history, farming was organic—there was no other option. But as technology moved forward, more and more chemicals made their way onto our farms—and this was great because it enabled us to produce food on a massive scale. Unfortunately, there are a lot of negative effects that come along with industrial farming. J.I. Rodale was one of the first people to realize what was going on, which is why he founded the Rodale Institute “to study the link between healthy soil, healthy food and healthy people.” The mission hasn’t changed over more than 60 years, and The Institute continues to be a leader in research and advocacy for organic farming. They’re proving that improvements in farming technology don’t require chemicals and industrial practices. If you want to be part of the organic movement, then you should consider jobs at the Rodale Institute. The Seasonal Research Technician is the position that I was e-mailed about (there are 5 different options), and there’s also a Part Time Store Assistant position.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you eat organic?

The Mountain Institute

Willy Franzen — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 16:47:35 +0000

I love the mountains. They are some of the most untamed and untouched pieces of land left on the face of the Earth, and I’ve come to appreciate them more and more as I’ve lived in Chicago where you can see flat, developed land to the horizon. People who live in mountain communities are extremely reliant on the ecosystems that exist above them, yet these ecosystems are some of the most sensitive known to man. The Mountain Institute is a non-profit organization that works to “develop policies, investments, and participatory approaches to enable mountain people, and the billions affected downstream, to understand, harness, and manage the interrelated and complex issues confronting the world’s mountains in the 21st century.” Their Executive Office is located in Washington, DC, while their Corporate Business Office is in Morgantown, WV. Additionally, they have program offices across Asia, North America, and South America.

Climb to New Heights

The Mountain Institute was founded in West Virginia in 1972, and it went international in 1987. TMI operates a variety of different programs, all of which are clearly focused on making the most of our mountains. It all started with a 400-acre nature preserve on West Virginia’s tallest peak, but TMI has evolved to offer programs that focus both on environmental conservation and cultural and community development. Education is also a very large part of what The Mountain Institute does. If you’re intrigued, you should check out jobs at The Mountain Institute. Right now they’re looking for both Seasonal and Resident Field Instructors along with HQ Office Volunteers. The Field Instructor positions don’t pay all that much, but they offer unbelievable opportunities to be one with the mountains. I’m sure it could lead you in some pretty cool directions.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite mountain?

The Cadmus Group

Willy Franzen — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 16:02:31 +0000

I’m sure that you keep hearing about the green job revolution and how environmentalist ideals are actually going to start fueling economic growth (instead of hindering it), yet you’re probably wondering where all of these opportunities are. Most of the green entry level jobs that I come across are either in the non-profit or energy sectors. However, if you look a little more closely there are a lot more options—some of which have been around a lot longer than you would have expected. Take The Cadmus Group in Watertown, MA for example. They were founded in 1983 to “take advantage of a change in how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) procured contractor support,” and they’ve evolved into a leading environmental consulting firm. They’ve done this by gathering “the best minds across a variety of disciplines to help address the nation’s most pressing environmental, energy, and health challenges.

Cadmus Was a Phoenician Prince

The Cadmus Group works in a variety of areas that include Water, Energy Services, Social Marketing and Communications, Green Building, Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, Strategic Environmental Management, and International Development. There’s a lot there, but they’re a decent sized consulting firm, so it makes sense for them to cover a lot of service areas. To get specifics on the kind of work that they do in each of these areas you can look at this section on their website. You may also want to read through their blog, although it hasn’t been updated in quite a while. Although Cadmus doesn’t get specific about client projects on their website, they provide plenty of information for you to be able to figure out where you might fit in. Their Careers page says that they generally seek applicants with backgrounds in Engineering, Public Policy, Public Finance, Statistics, Economics, Ecological Modeling, Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment, Ecosystem Analysis, Media and Marketing, Public Relations. You can find their current openings listed here. In terms of entry level positions, you’ll want to look at the following jobs: Entry Level Communications Professional (Arlington, VA), Part-Time Computer Support Technician (Watertown, MA), Part-Time Environmental Research and Policy Analyst (Watertown, MA), Research Analyst (Arlington, VA), Research Analyst (Watertown, MA), Research Analyst – Energy Services (Watertown, MA), and Research Analyst/Analyst (Arlington, VA). And in addition the locations that I mentioned, they also have offices in Portland, OR; Boulder, CO; Salt Lake City, UT; Los Angeles, CA; Helena, MT; and Madison, WI.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about The Cadmus Group?

Environment America

Willy Franzen — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 16:44:36 +0000

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Now, I’m not one to worry much about Global Warming, especially when I’m enjoying a snap of 60-plus degree weather in Chicago in mid-November, but that doesn’t mean I’m not concerned about the environment. There’s no doubt that our way of life has numerous negative impacts on the natural world around us, and we’re not doing enough to minimize those impacts. Environment America is a nationwide, non-profit “federation of state-based, citizen-funded environmental advocacy organizations” that is headquartered in Washington, DC. Their strategy is focused on combining “independent research, practical ideas and tough-minded advocacy to overcome the opposition of powerful special interests and win real results for the environment.” (Yes, they’re another special interest that is fighting special interests.) They’ve been around for 30 years, and I’m sure that they’re going to keep on going as long as mankind is harming the environment.

Try a New Environment

While much of Environment America’s work is focused at the state level, some of of the broader initiatives that they’re currently working on are Repower America (Green Energy), Stopping Global Warming, Our Rivers, Lakes & Streams, and Stop Toxic Pollution. As you can see, Environment America spreads their work across a lot of issues, which means that they have a ton of different job opportunities. You can find the full rundown here. For students and recent grads, their Fellowship Program is probably the best fit (and I believe potential locations include Mobile, AL; Little Rock and Fayetville, AR; Phoenix, AZ; Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Francisco and Santa Barbara, CA; Denver, CO; Hartford, CT; Washington, DC; Miami and Tallahassee, FL; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Des Moines, IA; New Orleans, LA; Portland, ME; Baltimore, MD; Boston, MA; Ann Arbor, MI; Minneapolis, MN; St. Louis, MO; Gulfport, MS; Missoula, MT; Las Vegas, NV; Concord, NH; Trenton, NJ; Albuquerque, NM; Albany and New York, NY; Raleigh, NC; Columbus, OH; Portland, OR; Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, PA; Providence, RI; Austin, TX; Richmond, VA; Seattle, WA; and Madison, WI), but you may also want to check out positions like Communication and Development – Grants Associate (Los Angeles, CA), Financial Assistant (Washington, DC), Executive Assistant (Boston, MA or Washington, DC), Communications Associate (Boston, MA or Philadelphia, PA), Web Associate (Boston, MA), and Online Organizing Software Developer (Denver, CO). There are all kinds of options, so give everything a good look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What environmental issues are you most concerned with?

Alteris Renewables

Willy Franzen — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 13:00:26 +0000

Unfortunately, I can’t report on the election results because I’m writing this a day in advance because I will have flown to Munich last night. However, I can guarantee that regardless of how the people voted, green energy is still going to be a huge market. Renewables are big, and they’re becoming more and more accessible to average people. Alteris Renewables is a Wilton, CT based company that offers affordable renewable energy solutions to residential, commercial, and educational customers. They also have offices in Stonington, CT; Stamford, CT; New Bedford, MA; Albany, NY; Saratoga Springs, NY; New York, NY; Parsippany, NJ; Malvern, PA; Providence, RI; Waitsfield, VT; and Montpelier, VT. Yes, they pretty much have the Northeast covered. They also have the awesome growth rate covered, as they’re #417 on the Inc. 500 with 710% three-year growth to $56.4 million in revenue last year.

Renew Your Job Search

One of the requests I get more and more often from students is info on green jobs, specifically those jobs focused on energy. It’s a field that is certainly growing in popularity, but it often requires a background in Engineering. Luckily, Alteris Renewables is more consumer focused, so they have some options that aren’t quite as technical. Right now their Jobs page shows Renewable Energy Consultant positions in Northern New Jersey and an Operations Assistant position in Albany, NY. Both look suitable for new or recent grads, so check them out. And don’t be afraid to inquire about other opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Warrior Group

Willy Franzen — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 14:42:30 +0000

Today is Job Action Day 2010. Check out our post on Creating Opportunity with No Experience.

I’m guessing that the large majority of you lived in a dorm or some other form of student housing during your time at college. They’re not typically the most luxurious places to live, but they get the job done. And as more and more people pursue higher education, more and more dorms are going to need to be built. That must be why DeSoto, TX based Warrior Group has been growing so quickly. They’ve seen 731% three-year growth to $124 million, which puts them at #405 on the Inc. 500. Their revenue is actually flat over last year, but you can’t blame them for hitting a plateau during a brutal recession that has hit the construction industry especially hard. I guess the market for “permanent modular construction and construction management services” has held up well—Warrior Group has become “the largest woman-owned, minority-owned construction services company in the U.S.”

Are You a Warrior?

By focusing on markets like Education and Healthcare, Warrior Group has been able to avoid many of the problems in the residential and commercial real estate markets. They’ve also put a focus on green building and sustainability, so that should only help their long-term growth. If you’ve always wanted to work in the construction industry, but have been thwarted until now by the recession, give Warrior Group a look. Their Jobs page doesn’t include specific positions, but it does allow you to apply generally. My guess is that there are positions in construction management, marketing, business development, and probably a few other areas.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Were your dorms built by Warrior Group?