This is undoubtedly the era full of machines and technology. Today, we have tons of equipment that are there for us to ease every single day-to-day activities we have. Right from waking up in the morning, with the help of the alarm, to the time when we prepare ourselves for sleeping, we use tons of technologies and gadgets knowingly or unknowingly throughout the day.
Yes, we are technologically advanced today. Yes, we have made our lives comfortable and easy. But, do you ever think what it costs us to have this luxurious life? What all do we sacrifice in order to have a lavish lifestyle? Well, I believe, we are compromising nature for our selfish needs of having a pleasant lifestyle, which has more or less become a necessity. We see today, a large percentage of the people do not even think about eliminating or minimising the harm we are causing to nature. However, we cannot deny the fact that there still exist people who truly care about the environment and are religiously working towards saving the same. So, if you are amongst them, you can opt for a career as an environmentalist and professionally contribute towards to lessen the nature-destruction. So, prepare yourself to be a part of a campaign and help repair this diminishing earth from the damages we have been doing for ages.
Now, if you are thinking of a way to walk on, don’t worry, I am here to make you aware of almost all those professional career paths you can take to save this environment.
Environmental sector is also known as the green sector. Though you can volunteer in any campaign or movement related to the environment but it requires a professional training and education to become a skilled and accomplished environmentalist.
Let us take a look at various job profiles and career opportunities you can opt for in order to work in the environmental sector.
Agricultural Engineers are the experts who are responsible to apply their skills and expertise on various activities throughout the day ranging from land farming to raising foods, planning for a better environment for animals, developing equipment for agriculture and so on. An Agricultural Engineer not only designs many types of equipment to develop the agricultural process but also produces various technologies and tools to improve the agricultural lands, water and soil etc.
You should have a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Engineering in order to enter in the field of agriculture. Though there are other undergraduate degrees in Agricultural Sciences, however, a technical degree is required to become a professional engineer. In addition, in case you choose to work in an environment where you want to get in touch with the public directly, you will require a license authorised by the Ministry of Agriculture and/ or Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). For detailed information, you can visit the official website of the National Portal of India i.e. https://www.india.gov.in/topics/agriculture.
A Conservation Scientist is a specialised scientist who is known as various other names including Conservation Biologist, Environmental and Conservation Biologist, Environmental and Conservation Scientist etc. Just like the multiple designations, the job description of a Conservational Scientist is immense. As a Conservation Scientist, you are responsible for not only protecting the environment and natural resources but also finding different methods and techniques to utilize them in the finest way. A Conservational Scientist is an expert who works with landowners and government personnel simultaneously. S/he advises them the approaches they should take to improve the overall land quality and how can they use it for the agricultural purpose.
There are various degree courses that will lead you to become a Conservation Scientist. You may either earn a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, Biology, Ecology, Environmental Science or Natural Resource Management as well. Furthermore, you can upgrade your qualification in any of these fields in order to become a professional Conservation Scientist.
An Environmental Scientist is assigned a lot of tasks that help prevent air, land and water pollution. As an Environmental Scientist, you will be required to find the causes of pollutions and invent techniques to eliminate or minimise the pollutions. You will be asked to create various plans and strategies to remove or recycle the toxic waste, groundwater contamination, and take care of various other environment-related issues. You will also be responsible to create reports based on the collected data and present the stats.
Though you can go for the environment-related jobs with having a Bachelor’s degree in Environment Science, however, you will need to upgrade your qualification with a postgraduate degree in either Environmental Science, Hydrology, Natural Science or any other relevant fields.
Environmental Technician primarily works under the direct supervision of the Environmental Scientist. A job of an Environmental Technician is associated with performing laboratory tests and investigate the roots that are polluting the environment. An Environmental Technician might have to work with a team of various Environmental Engineers, Scientists and other technicians as well.
You need to have an associate degree in Applied Science or other related fields in order to work as an Environmental Technician. In addition, a certificate in the same field will also make you eligible for the job. However, to open more career opportunities, you will require to have a Bachelor’s and/ or Master’s degree in the same field.
Geoscience is another field that makes you eligible to contribute something to make the environment clean and green. As a geoscientist, you will study the earth’s composition, conduct the research and surveys, visit various locations to collect the samples and make plans to help preserve the environment. Apart from that, Geoscientists prepare geologic maps and scientific reports as well.
You will require to have a Master’s degree in order to be eligible to become a Geoscientist. Besides, you can have a Bachelor’s degree in Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics or even Engineering or Computer Science provided that you must take up the coursework in Geology along with your degree.
Hydrologists are the experts who deal with the process of water moving across and through the earth’s surface and inner layers. They manage, monitor and protect water and the resources of water. In addition, they also study about the rainfall, snowfall, and other factors that may affect the river flow. They also collect samples of water and soil from various sites and conduct the research to examine their properties.
A Bachelor’s degree would help you enter the field of hydrology. However, you should possess a Master’s degree in Environmental Science, Geoscience or Engineering with the coursework in hydrology or water sciences in order to work as a Hydrologist.
The tasks of the Landscape Architects is to plan, design and supervise the construction of parks, gardens, parkways, school and college campuses, shopping centres and other external land areas. Landscape Architects help conserve the environment through their artistic skills and expertise. Along with it, they do surveys of the sites, prepare environmental reports, and discuss their strategies with clients as well.
You either have a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture or Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture in order to practice as a Landscape Architect. If you do not possess a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, you can still opt for the Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture.
As the name suggests, an Urban or Regional Planner create comprehensive plans and programs to help the government and the local jurisdictions to make the best use their lands. They conduct the market research, collect data and scrutinise various factors that may affect the development of communities. Apart from that, they hold the power to approve or decline the proposal of construction.
You need to earn a Master’s degree in Urban or Regional Planning in order to become a professional Urban or Regional Planner. You can have a Bachelor’s degree in any specialisations. However, I would advise you opt for an undergraduate degree in either Economics, Environmental Design or Geography as it will help you grasp the knowledge of the Urban or Regional Planning easily.
