Career Profile: Sustainability Adviser
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What is a Sustainability Adviser?
Governments, Cities, and Businesses constantly face significant challenges related to population growth. Resource demands and constraints along with extreme weather events impact the resilience and sustainability of our communities.
A Sustainability Adviser’s role is to focus on how to incorporate energy, materials, water management, liveability, climate change and resilience to reduce the carbon footprint and impact of construction works.
Major rail projects have a big area of influence to make the right sustainable choices and to drive change. A Sustainability Adviser will assist the projects by guiding them to consider how to incorporate new and innovative ways of reducing waste throughout all stages of the project. An example of this would be identifying and using recycled materials where possible.
What might an Sustainability Adviser do?
- Work closely with engineers and subject matter experts on a project to plan to develop and implement sustainable targets and objectives to reduce the carbon footprint
- Recommend the most cost-effective, beneficial and sustainable technologies for a project. This could involve switching to alternative energy sources to lower energy costs, smarter water usage, reducing waste and lowering carbon emissions
- Manage relationships with contractors and stakeholders to monitor and provide advice on achieving their targets
- Strongly advocate for the use of new and state-of-the-art materials to raise the sustainability profile of a project
- Provide advice on the resilience of a project, such as how to avoid flash flooding over tracks, reduce the impact of heat to tracks and to assist with the longevity of the structure
- Facilitate workshops to educate and encourage new and innovative ways of thinking. For example, presenting to a group on climate risk and management
Who might it suit?
If you’re future-conscious, passionate about the environment and want to transform society through sustainable solutions, this may be the role for you.
This role would suit someone who can:
- Think critically and problem solve
- Analyse problems and evaluate the situation using evidence to form solutions and highlight the actions required
- Learn and incorporate innovation, new ideas and technology into a challenge or situation
- Balance their commitment to the environment and the need for everyday works
- Communicate with a range of stakeholders to visualise and paint the picture of their ideas and solutions
- Influence and negotiate with senior stakeholders
Where and when is the work?
The work is predominantly office based with occasional onsite visits to meet stakeholders. The hours you’d be expected to work would be in line with a standard 38-hour work week.
What is the pay?
In 2023 as a graduate you may start at $70,000 and Sustainability Adviser can earn upwards from $90,000 with experience.
What should I study?
The preference is for graduates to have studied a Bachelor of Environmental Science or Environmental Engineering. Alternatively, you can gain entry into these positions with other engineering degrees specialising in sustainability.
Career path opportunities
Contact us
If you have any questions or are interested in finding out more, please contact us:
Email address: railcareers@levelcrossings.vic.gov.au