Local Green Resources
Use the following list to broaden your exploration of local individuals, books, and organizations dedicated to sustainability. Once you have a clear niche, you might use several of these resources to stay current in your part of the green world.
- City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (www.portlandonline.com). The bureau’s mission is to provide leadership and to contribute practical solutions to ensure a prosperous community where people and nature thrive, now and in the future. This website provides lots of resources to keep the green job seeker informed.
- Green Posting (www.greenposting.org) is a local green directory. People are able to learn about what makes a business green-leaning and to write reviews based on personal experience regarding each company’s sustainable attributes. Green Posting provides weekly local green business articles, local event information, farmers market locations, tips, job postings, a glossary of sustainable terms and a blog space, making this website a one-stop site for Portland residents to be a part of its sustainable community.
- Northwest Green Directory (www.nwgreendirectory.com) is a web-based directory designed to connect the region’s most innovative green building products and service providers with the growing number of consumers and professionals in the Pacific Northwest who want to employ green building practices and use environmentally sensitive technologies.
- Portland Business Journal (portland.bizjournals.com/portland/). This weekly business journal covers news from the four-county region, and now prints a quarterly insert called "Sustainable Oregon."
- ReDirect Guide: Guide to Healthful & Sustainable Businesses (www.redirectguide.com). This is a progressive yellow pages that lists and advertises hundreds of mostly small, approachable businesses and self-employed professionals. The sustainable-minded job seeker can find many desirable workplaces and potential employers in this guide. The ReDirect Guide is free and may be found in many locations throughout Portland. Refer to the website for a list of locations and information on ordering a copy.
- Sustainable Industries (www.sustainableindustries.com/jobs). Sustainable Industries magazine lists green employment options for the Northwest, and generally includes a handful of job postings for Portland. While this is a trade publication aimed at serving readers already on the inside of sustainability-oriented businesses, job seekers can also learn a great deal by reading it. It contains names of local businesses committed to sustainability, focusing on four core industry sectors: Agriculture & Natural Resources, Energy, Green Building and Recycled Markets.
- "Sustainable Life" section of Portland Tribune (www.portlandtribune.com/sustainable/index.php). This is a weekly installment of the Portland Tribune, published every Tuesday, with stories about individuals, groups and companies who are working towards creating a sustainable quality of life in the Portland region.
- Sustainable Oregon (http://sustainableoregon.net) communicates developments in Oregon state government and connects you with local agencies, organizations and businesses taking leadership roles in sustainable development.
Books
- Green Careers: Choosing Work for a Sustainable Future
By Jim Cassio and Alice Rush (2009)
This well-researched paperback book offers clear and concise information about the rapidly evolving field of green and environmental jobs, including where the green jobs are, comprehensive info on 90 different occupations in 12 different career groups, more than 60 case studies/interviews with “real people” working in green jobs, and profiles of green entrepreneurs. - Green Careers Resource Guide
By Jim Cassio
Cassio provides this informative, free e-book that can be downloaded from www.cassio.com. It includes a comprehensive list of professional associations and resources to assist people in hundreds of different industries and occupational areas within sustainability.