Restoration Ecologist

When it comes to the planet, humans are too often the bull in the china shop: It’s tragically commonplace to execute large projects (landfills, industrial waste disposal, etc.) without proper environmental considerations. When this happens, these projects wreak havoc on the planet and its delicate ecosystems. Restoration Ecologists try to undo some of this damage by enacting environmental rehabilitation projects, and helping educate the public.

Your every day as a Restoration Ecologist is a battle, literally, to fix the world. Whether in the field or in a laboratory, you work directly towards solving the many environmental problems that face the planet. The specific area that you focus on (soil, water, air quality, etc.) determines which kind of projects you’re involved in, but whatever your area of concentration, you engage in various different activities to accomplish your goals. One day, you could be formulating a plan to reintroduce indigenous species to a devastated piece of used-up industrial land, then next week, you could be lecturing school children about the importance of preventing soil erosion and pollution.

Your work helps the earth heal itself from human impact by restoring damaged ecosystems. In order to do this job properly, you need a passion for the environment, an eye for science, practical applications skills, and problem-solving abilities. With your help, we can prevent the looming crisis of climate change, environment destruction, and human involvement. Our best hope to prevent this crisis is to couple real-world solutions with social initiatives—areas in which Restoration Ecologists are leading the way.