We know at Green Prophet that environmental sustainability and stewardship is a top issue in our world. With an ever increasing demand for solutions comes a huge number of job opportunities. Choosing to work in environmental science not only opens potential candidates to a secure career with longevity and much potential for progression; it gives the feel good, impact factor and job satisfaction that most spend their whole lives trying to find.

Undergraduate programs in Environmental Science are available at most top universities. Your studies will include examining the consequences of living and non-living things on our environment and look at how to apply biological, physical, and information sciences to fix these issues.

This is a large, varied and fascinating field of study that can lead to many different career paths. Areas of study will usually include: ecology (observing the interaction between plants and the earth), economics (observing how people use the earth), geology (the history and physical elements that make up the earth) and sociology (interactions between societies and the earth).

After these studies, graduates may find themselves working from home as a consultant or traveling around the world with large organisations.

Environmental Policy, Planning, and Management involves a lot of research-heavy work, Environmental Lawyers may find themselves in the exciting confines of a courtroom, Oceanographers and Meteorologists tend to slip their time between the lab and the sea and Microbiologists, Soil and Plant Scientists, and Ecologists might decide to teach in universities or market their knowledge to big name brands. Environmental science is all about identifying problems and creating solutions. This can involve collecting and analysing soil samples to analysing human behaviour data, so there really is a whole host of positions to suit interests and specialised knowledge.

Environmental scientists are future sustainability crusaders for our planet. So what do the people already working within the sector have to say to anyone considering this as a career? Professor Steve Schein talked to big names in the business and said,  “Sustainability executives are both optimistic and frustrated. They have had great successes, but all have run into resistance as well. Most recognise this is part of their job as a sustainability change agent.”

This shows that although much progression has been made, there is still a long way to go. It is the minds of young professionals that can carry on this promising and exciting work.

Both governments and businesses know just how big an issue sustainability is. An encouraging incentive for prospective employees is that governmental jobs offer very similar high salaries as the private sector, and both offer a high volume of vacancies.

With this in mind, a career in environmental science is worth every consideration.

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Emirate children will have a chance to seek their teeth into nature at the new Ecoventure Field Study Center.

Children in America were asked where their beef comes from. Their answer? The supermarket. This could be a classic case of the stupid American, or it could point to the wider implication. Many children have never been to a farm, much less the kind of beef factory that has put thousands of animal lovers off meat forever. They can’t integrate the knowledge that the calf is born, then it’s fed until it grows into a juicy fat cow, and then… well, I’ll leave out the grizzly details.

Instead, most children only see the inert piece of beef in the refrigerated section of a supermarket. If we don’t show them, we can’t expect them tocare  how it got there. The same applies to the wild. Dubai’s city children rarely get to experience nature up close and personal, to fall in love with its genius, so they have little incentive to protect it. But now they have a chance thanks to Ecoventure, the UAE’s first field study center.

“There’s no better way to learn about ecology, to learn about geographic studies, than to actually physically learn about it with your hands and see it yourself,” Matthew Cocks, the general manager of Ecoventure, told The National.

Field trips are a part of every science curriculum, but Emirate teachers such as Mr. Cocks were frustrated with the dearth of field centers that could create structured outdoor lessons. Since no such thing existed in the Emirates until now, teachers either had to do without – trying their best to render nature in 3D within four walls – or send children far afield at great cost.

A trip to the closest field study venue in Cyprus cost students over $2,000, while a trip to Ecoventure’s center one hour east of Dubai costs one quarter of that amount. This covers transportation, meals, lodging, and lessons, according to the paper.

There they have the opportunity to learn about the Northern Emirates’ Wadis, mangroves, and dunes.

“The interesting thing about young students is, as long as we can make it real for them, they’ll understand what it is,” Mr Cocks told the paper. “Those kids are there touching, poking, and feeling that organism in real life as opposed to sitting in a classroom and seeing it on a white board.”

“Pupils will learn about sustainable living through their involvement with daily activities, like composting or working at the site’s ghaf tree nursery. A majlis will be built outside the dormitories for henna painting, traditional cooking and storytelling, and volunteer initiatives may be planned with local communities, another IB curriculum requirement,” the paper reports.

Some of their teachers include Emma Smart, a biologist who discovered a new breed of fish, Sam Browning, a husky musher, and Kevin Davidson who prospected minerals in the Yukon territory.

The center, which opened on November 6th, will create priceless experiences according to Peter Milne, environmental education coordinator and a teacher at Raffles International School.

“You can stand up and talk about animals in the UAE as much as you want, and they’re interested, but they really want to see it for themselves.”

:: The National

More nature experiences in Dubai:

Dubai Is For The Birds (And The People Who Love Them)

Dubai’s Artificial World Islands Are Killing Corals and Pushing Nature Out of the Sea

Dubai Expat On Cloud Lucky Wins Nat Geo Photo Competition

image via Pink Sherbet Photography

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