SWE - Winter 2008 - (Page 29)

priority, engineers are discovering unique opportunities to innovate. FINAVERA RENEWABLES INC. environmentally responsible law firms and venture-capital firms. For an engineer with excellent writing skills, another option is working as an analyst for a green stock fund, Brust said. “The technical specificity of the issues that have to be analyzed seems to me a transition for an engineer,” she added. A glance at the Web site GreenEngineering Jobs.com shows positions such as a lecturer in offshore and renewable energy technology at a university in the United Kingdom; an operations manager for an electrical contractor doing solar-power projects; and a mechanical design engineer to help develop and optimize new wind-turbine and tower systems. Brust said engineers can search other Web sites focused on green employment such as the University of California at Berkeley’s Environmental Network at http://career. berkeley.edu/Environment/Environment.stm; the Association of Environmental Professionals at www.califaep.org; Engineers for a Sustainable World at www.esustainable world.org; Co-op America at www.coop america.org; and her own organization, GC HERC, at www.gcherc.org. The AquaBuOY is a wave-energy converter that captures the movement of ocean waves to provide a renewable energy source. Wave technology is one of a growing number of engineering career options emerging from the greening of America. FINAVERA RENEWABLES INC. ENERGY STAR ® Green Grows Jobs Studies show that renewable energy and energy efficiency create jobs of all sorts. These two industries were responsible for 8.5 million jobs in 2006, according to research by Roger H. Bezdek, president of Management Information Services, for the American Solar Energy Society. The Union of Concerned Scientists estimates that a national renewable portfolio standard of 20 percent by 2020 would create 185,000 new jobs from renewable energy development; add $25.6 billion in income to farmers, ranchers, and rural landowners; and save consumers $10.5 billion in lower electricity and natural gas bills by 2020. A renewable portfolio standard is a market-based regulatory policy that requires the increased production of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal energies. The green building market alone is expected to grow to $39 billion in 2010, up from $7.6 billion in 2005. The market makes use of such technologies as engineered wood products, passive solar design features, and carpets of low-volatile organic compounds. The ethanol distillery business is hitting road bumps, however, as critics question the efficiency of corn-based ethanol as an energy source, blame ethanol for rising food prices, and see ethanol plants as sources of odor and pollution. Companies that have had dubious records on environmental commitment are starting to show and its suburbs, with 1.2 million people, are implementing measures to clean the air and water, build regional rapid-transit systems, limit new highway building, conserve natural resources, and build energy-efficient offices and homes. Salt Lake City has cut emissions of gases that cause climate change by 36,000 tons annually, including implementing steps such as putting energy-efficient light bulbs in city buildings. Salt Lake City has replaced the incandescent bulbs in its city and county office buildings with more energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. ERIC SCHRAMM, SALT LAKE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU Salt Lake City SWE WINTER 2008 29 http://www.GreenEngineeringJobs.com http://www.GreenEngineeringJobs.com http://career.berkeley.edu/Environment/Environment.stm http://career.berkeley.edu/Environment/Environment.stm http://www.califaep.org http://www.esustainableworld.org http://www.esustainableworld.org http://www.coopamerica.org http://www.coopamerica.org http://www.gcherc.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of SWE - Winter 2008

SWE - Winter 2008 Heritage Club President’s Note View from the Executive Suite Editor’s Page Readers’ Forum EWeek 2008 New Faces of Engineering The Leaky Science and Engineering Pipeline Why Do Women Leave the Engineering Work Force? A Greener America = New Growth Fields for Engineers The Off-On Ramp Revolution Recognizing the Historic Contributions of African-Americans Membership Information & Calendar A&B Women in Tune with Technology: SWE 2007 Conference Overview Keynote Address Achievement Award Region, Section, and Collegiate Awards SME Bowl and SWE Anniversaries Engineering World: Point of View: Why I Blog Career Toolbox Book Review SWE Smiles Opportunity Index SWE Scrapbook

SWE - Winter 2008

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