Non-Tech Backgrounds in Climate Tech

Hey connections! 👋 Something hit me hard today. I read this thought that stopped me in my tracks: Sitting here in Delhi, where we're literally wearing masks inside our homes due to air pollution, this isn't just another LinkedIn post for me. It's personal. And you know what? It's also a massive career opportunity. Let's talk about where the jobs are going to be (spoiler: they're green! 🌱) The climate crisis is real, but here's the exciting part: it's creating an entire new economy. We're seeing a BOOM in climate careers, and I'm not just talking about environmental scientists. Here's where the opportunities are exploding: 🔋 Clean Energy: From solar project managers to battery storage engineers 👨💻 Climate Tech: Software developers building carbon tracking tools, AI specialists optimizing energy use 🏢 Corporate Sustainability: ESG specialists, sustainability consultants, carbon accounting experts 🌿 Sustainable Agriculture: Agritech innovators, vertical farming specialists 🚗 Electric Vehicles: Not just engineering - think charging infrastructure, battery tech, supply chain And here's the coolest part: Traditional roles are going green too! - Marketing? Companies need climate communicators - Finance? Green investment analysts are in huge demand - HR? Companies need people to build sustainable workplaces - Supply Chain? Circular economy experts are the future Want to pivot to climate work? Here's your game plan: 1. Start upskilling - tons of free courses on platforms like Coursera and edX about climate science and sustainable business 2. Join climate tech communities (happy to connect you with some) 3. Follow climate startups and companies in your domain 4. Volunteer for sustainability projects in your current role 5. Follow Arthan and drop in your resume on our careers page. ( Link in comments) I'm seeing more and more of my network transition into climate careers, and they're not looking back. The best part? These roles often pay as well as (or better than) traditional jobs. Here's my take: In 10 years, every job will be a climate job. The question is: do you want to be ahead of the curve or playing catch-up? Drop a 🌍 in the comments if you'd like me to share more specific resources about climate careers in your field. Let's turn climate anxiety into climate action - and build awesome careers while we're at it! #ClimateJobs #GreenCareers #Sustainability #ClimateAction

“Breaking into Climate Tech was super hard!” A VP at a climate company just told me. Here’s why 👇 Context for this person: → High-profile background (aka Obama administration). → Applied for roles that fit his skill set (e.g. policy). → 10+ years prior work experience. One would think this was an easy hire. But it was not 🤯 And here’s why: 👉 Every Climate Tech company struggled to assess his skills for their needs. → They saw the experience → They saw the talent. → They saw success. But they could not easily see how he could fit into the climate tech company. Here’s how you de-risk the hiring decision: 1️⃣ Find your Transferable Skills Most people completely underestimate their professional skills. Write down the answer to: “What am I really good at and why?” Then find your current dream job within a climate company. And map your skills to that job. 3️⃣ Learn the Language Find somebody doing your “future” job in a climate company. Ask them how they do their job. Pay attention to: → How they describe their work? → What tools do they use? → What KPIs matter? Focus on their words. Learn the language of a climate company in your target sector. And then use that intel to refine your pitch. 👉 Find people to talk to here: → #OpenDoorClimate climate by @Daniel H ill has many climate tech execs.  → MCJ Collective by Jason Jacobs, Yin Lu, Leone Baron is one of the best. → Work on Climate by Eugene Kirpichov, Eva Marina, Nicole Sturzenberger is equally great. 3️⃣ Demonstrate your Skills Ask: “What is a key challenge in [marketing/sales/biz dev/policy/etc.] that you want to tackle but somehow never get to?” Then go solve that challenge for them. A simple outline is enough. Demonstrate that you can hit the ground running on day 1 💪 Use this post to make yourself successful! 🙌 —   PS. The VP from above is hiring and will be part of the Climate Drift Career Accelerator (link in comments). PPS. In case you’re wondering ❓Why trust my advice❓ Maybe this helps (slightly blushing as I write this 😳) → I taught 100s of students at the best universities (Harvard, etc.) → Personally helped 1,000s of people transition careers. → Built a 6-figure, 7-figure, and a 8-figure business. → Advising 10+ early-stage impact companies.

𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗼, 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯—𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗱. So many solutions, so many paths. I made plenty of mistakes before I found my niche. If I could go back, here’s what I wish I knew: 🔬 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀. I started with books like ‘How to Avoid a Climate Disaster’ by Bill Gates and Speed&Scale by John Doerr. These books were helpful, but were very tech and VC-centered perspectives. Project Regeneration’s Cascade of Solutions was ultimately a better, more objective, and comprehensive resource. 📕 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀. Work on Climate’s #i-got-a-job channel is full of successful climate transition journeys by engineers, designers, marketers, PhD candidates, and more. 👋 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. Terra was mine, but My Climate Journey (MCJ), Work on Climate, or Job Search Councils are great options. 😡 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. What do you want to protect from climate change? Who do you want to build for? What pisses you off? Your answers can point you to your niche. ⚓ 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲. If possible, keep your role & location the same while switching to climate—it makes the transition easier. 🚗 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀: come up with 2-3 ideas for where you might fit. This could be a climate solution (residential solar), a type of organization (large environmental nonprofit), or even a way to effect change in your current role. Use networking, side projects, or small actions to validate your fit. 🤝 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲: The Open Door Climate directory is full of folks happy to chat. After many twists & turns, I focused on software product management roles at climate tech startups where business and climate incentives were aligned. This led me to organizations like food waste and renewable energy, and away from areas like carbon removal. What climate niches are you interested in? How are you finding where you fit?