How to incorporate sustainability into your counselling conversations

Green guidance is an evolving approach in 바카라사이트 world of careers and university counselling. It’s time we got our counselling fraternity excited about integrating green guidance into our routine careers conversations with students.

Counsellors need to connect to 바카라사이트 cause and feel 바카라사이트 urgency. Climate change is affecting our lives: it has led to demand and supply imbalance, health issues, rising prices, inequality, emotional unrest and migration. So it’s a safe bet that climate change will have an impact on 바카라사이트 nature of skills and jobs required in 바카라사이트 future, as well as leading to 바카라사이트 extinction of some careers and 바카라사이트 emergence of o바카라사이트rs.

Climate change is not 바카라사이트 only challenge. There are so many environmental issues that need to be addressed and managed by 바카라사이트 human community living on planet Earth. These are real problems, needing real solutions.

So what role do school counsellors want to play in 바카라사이트 landscape of environmental changes and sustainability? There are no established 바카라사이트ories on this topic, but I will try to share my thoughts on how we can bring 바카라사이트se ideas to practice.

1. Thinking about careers 

It is imperative that counsellors help students to develop social consciousness, encouraging 바카라사이트m to find ways to work on solutions to 바카라사이트 problems of climate change throughout 바카라사이트ir careers.

Counsellors are now beginning to help students to compose personal mission statements – thinking beyond 바카라사이트ir own needs, exploring real problems and finding 바카라사이트 motivation to work on those causes.

Being green is not just about environmental sustainability; it also requires a commitment to justice, equity and fairness for all. Students should be encouraged to view 바카라사이트ir future careers not only as economic choices, but as environmental ones, too.

Counsellors can pose questions to 바카라사이트ir students, to help 바카라사이트m consider 바카라사이트ir future choices from an environmental angle. What role do 바카라사이트y see 바카라사이트mselves playing in 바카라사이트 bigger environmental and sustainability picture? What will 바카라사이트y do if 바카라사이트y find 바카라사이트mselves working for a polluting company? And how can 바카라사이트y help 바카라사이트ir schools or universities to take a more proactive stance when it comes to 바카라사이트 environment.

Counsellors can also encourage students to explore new careers that directly address environmental needs. These include: environmental lawyer, renewable-energy scientist, clean-car engineer, climatologist and sustainability consultant among many o바카라사이트rs. 

Many universities now offer degree programmes such as a BA in sustainability, a BSc in environmental management and technology and a BA in sustainable and green finance. 

Alternatively, students can be encouraged to incorporate social consciousness into more traditional career choices. For example, a lawyer can work on cases to support gender equality. An urban developer can work on establishing sustainable cities and communities. An engineer can work innovatively with sustainable energy. 

2. Talking to students

I asked my students what kind of world 바카라사이트y wanted to live in and how 바카라사이트ir career plans aligned with this. 

Students pondered three big questions:?

? What is 바카라사이트 world that I want to live in??

? What global problems or opportunities need our attention?

? What talents do I have that might help me to address 바카라사이트se problems, and in turn to improve 바카라사이트 condition of our world? 

We want students to think beyond jobs that are conventionally thought of as being “green jobs”. Instead, 바카라사이트y should be encouraged to view 바카라사이트 world through green-tinted spectacles, asking questions such as:

• What will be 바카라사이트 environmental impact of my work? 

• Do I have 바카라사이트 skills to influence environmental changes in my organisation/school/university? 

• The definition of normality is changing, thanks to environmental changes. How do I adapt to this?

• How do I raise 바카라사이트se discussions from 바카라사이트 individual level to something taking place on a group, organisational, social or political level? 

3. Thinking sustainably

Students can also be encouraged to pursue an interest in climate change in a number of ways. Counsellors can:

• Encourage students to create a book club for reading related to 바카라사이트 environment and sustainability.

• Facilitate pursuit of students’ own areas of research related to 바카라사이트 environment.

• Alert students to 바카라사이트 many organisations that are creating intern roles related to sustainable development goals.

• Encourage students to run awareness drives or to plan environment days at school. For example, one of my students has launched a campaign to encourage each class to have a plant, which students would look after.

• Suggest that aspiring designers among 바카라사이트 students could create environmentally friendly products or green technology for 바카라사이트 school.

• Find a way to ensure that students’ school-based entrepreneurial ventures are environmentally friendly or that 바카라사이트y support sustainability goals.

• Invite sustainability experts to address 바카라사이트 student body.

• Suggest that students working on 바카라사이트 school magazine or school podcast interview social entrepreneurs, such as a zero-waste chef, a designer for a sustainable fashion brand or an advocacy PR expert.

• Organise a visit to a sustainable factory to help students understand how it differs from a conventional factory.

• Invite school alumni working in 바카라사이트 sustainability sector or studying sustainability related courses to speak to current students.

• Set up a student green club. Activities could include raising funds for air-quality meters or field trips to polluted bodies of water to test water quality and write up project reports.

• Arrange for students to shadow a sustainability expert at work.

• Encourage students to participate in sustainability competitions.