More than 100 employers will be recruiting the next generation of environmental leaders at the Unity College Environmental Jobs Fair next week.

New England’s largest environmental career fair is open to Unity College students and the general job-seeking public, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 9, at the Tozier Gymnasium inside the Student Activities Center.

“In the environmental century, every employer – from GE and IBM to the smallest land trust or conservation nonprofit – needs people to integrate sustainability in their organizations,” Unity College President Dr. Melik Peter Khoury said. “That’s what Unity College delivers: graduates with real-world field work that augments lab and classroom learning in sustainability science.”

Director of Career Services Nicole Collins, a 2000 Unity alumna, said the school received record interest in the event from employers this year. This year’s more than 100 exhibitors exceeds last year’s participation by more than 25 percent.

“Our annual environmental career fair connects students and job seekers with meaningful career opportunities in sustainability, natural resource management and outdoor industries,” Collins said. “It is a wonderful way to network, explore environmental fields, and secure jobs or internships. A growing number of organizations are finding people at the Green Jobs fair who can do the work the environmental century demands.”

Given the growing popularity of the “green” job marketplace, Collins said she anticipates many non-student career changers to attend.

A 2011 Brookings Institute report found that the green economy employs some 2.7 million workers and encompasses a significant number of jobs in establishments spread across a diverse group of industries.

“Though modest in size, the clean economy employs more workers than the fossil fuel industry and bulks larger than bioscience,” the report said. “Most clean economy jobs reside in mature segments that cover a wide swath of activities including manufacturing and the provision of public services such as wastewater and mass transit. A smaller portion of the clean economy encompasses newer segments that respond to energy-related challenges. These include the solar photovoltaic (PV), wind, fuel cell, smart grid, biofuel, and battery industries.”

The report also found the green economy’s “clean tech” segments produced explosive job gains and the clean economy outperformed the nation during the recession.

Overall, today’s clean economy establishments added half a million jobs between 2003 and 2010, expanding at an annual rate of 3.4 percent. At the same time, newer clean economy establishments— especially those in young energy-related segments such as wind energy, solar PV, and smart grid—added jobs at a torrid pace, albeit from small bases, the report said.

The Brookings report also found the clean economy offers more opportunities and better pay for low- and middle-skilled workers than the national economy as a whole. Median wages in the clean economy are 13 percent higher than median U.S. wages, the report said.

At the #greenjobs fair, employers will offer a variety of presentations and career-related materials, including equipment, applications, videos, and personal testimonials from Unity College alumni. Beginning at 11 a.m., some – such as LL Bean, ReVision Energy, DEW Animal Kingdom and Sun Dog Solar – will offer live demonstrations of their environmental work.

The career fair helps students and others connect with internship and employment opportunities essential for young professionals seeking to enter the workforce.

“Understanding employer needs and ensuring Unity students are prepared for the marketplace is an underlying value proposition for Unity,” Chief Marketing Officer Diane Ray said.

Of the exhibitors at last year’s event, Caitlyn Connolly ’18, told the Morning Sentinel: “There’s more variety than I thought.”

Unity College Environmental Job Fair employers currently attending

A.C. Parsons Landscaping & Garden Center, Inc. www.acparsons.com
Appalachian Mountain Club www.outdoors.org
Army National Guard www.me.ngb.army.mil/
Avian Haven www.avianhaven.org/
Backyard Farms, L.L.C. www.backyardfarms.com
Bard Center for Environmental Policy and the Bard MBA in Sustainabilitywww.bard.edu/gps
Bartlett Tree Experts www.bartlett.com/
Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance www.belgradelakes.org/
Bicycle Coalition of Maine www.BikeMaine.org
Biodiversity Research Institute www.briloon.org/
Bonney Staffing Center www.bonneystaffing.com
Brookfield Renewable Energy Group www.brookfieldrenewable.com/
Camp Arcadia, Inc. www.camparcadia.com
Camp Hazen YMCA www.camphazenymca.org
Camp Nashoba North www.CampNashoba.com
Camp Staff Connection www.campstaffconnection.com
Castine Kayak Adventures www.castinekayak.com
CELL (Center for Ecological Living and Learning) www.cellonline.org
Chewonki Foundation www.chewonki.org
Coastal Mountains Land Trust www.coastalmountains.org/
Craig Brook National Fish Hatchery www.fws.gov/northeast/craigbrook/
Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office www.cumberlandcounty.org
Delaware Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Control – Division of Parks & Recreation
www.destateparks.com
DEW Haven www.dewhaven.com
Evergreen Home Performance, LLC www.evergreenyourhome.com
FoodCorps Maine foodcorps.org/where-we-work/maine
Friends Camp friendscamp.org/girlscoutsofmaine.org
Girl Scouts of Maine, Camp Natarswi and Camp Pondicherrygirlscoutsofmaine.org/camp-facilities/natarswi/
Great Pond Outdoor Adventure Center get.dodlodging.net/prop…/Great-Pond-Outdoor-Adventure-Center
Hurricane Island Outward Bound School www.hiobs.org
Incarnation Camp www.incarnationcamp.org
Innovate for Maine Fellows Program foster.target.maine.edu/
Island Institute Fellows Program www.islandinstitute.org
Johnny’s Selected Seeds www.johnnyseeds.com/
Katahdin Area Council Boy Scouts of America Camp Rooseveltwww.katahdinareabsa.org
Katahdin Woods and Waters Recreation Area Elliottsville Plantation Incwww.katahdinwoods.org
Kieve-Wavus Education, Inc. www.kieve.org/
L.L. Bean Outdoor Discovery School www.llbean.com/adventure
Lake George Regional Park www.lakegeorgepark.org
Level Solar www.levelsolar.com/
Lucas Tree Expert Co, Inc www.lucastree.com
Maine Audubon www.maineaudubon.org
Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, Southern Regionwww.paksandlands.com
Maine Conservation Corpswww.maine.gov/dacf/parks/get_involved/conservation_corps/
Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry
Bureau of Parks and Lands Northern Region www.maine.gov/dacf/
Maine Department of Environmental Protection www.maine.gov/dep/
Maine Department of Transportation www.maine.gov/mdot/
Maine Game Wardens www.mainegamewarden.com
Maine Green Power program and 3 Degrees Inchttps://megreenpower.com/
Maine High Adventure www.mainehighadventure.org
Maine Kayak www.mainekayak.com/
Maine Marine Patrol www.maine.gov/dmr/bmp
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association www.mofga.org
Maine Sport Outfitters Outdoor Programs & Rental Departmentwww.mainesport.com
Maine State Police maine.gov/dps/msp/jobs/trooper_recruitment.html
Maine-ly Elder Care www.maine-lyeldercare.com
Marine & Environmental Research Institute www.meriresearch.org
Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreationwww.Mass.gov/dcr
MRAG Americas www.mragamericas.com/
Natural Resource Council of Maine: National Park and National Recreational Area in Maine’s Great North Woods www.nrcm.org
Natural Resource Council of Maine: National Park and National Recreational Area in Maine’s Great North Woods www.nrcm.org
New Hampshire Department of Resources & Economic Development Division of Parks & Recreation www.nhstateparks.org
NH Fish and Game Department www.huntnh.com
NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement National Marine Fisheries Service www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ole
North Forest Canoe Trail www.northernforestcanoetrail.org/
Northeast Whitewater www.northeastwhitewater.com/
NorthWoods Stewardship Center www.northwoodscenter.org/wordpress
Old Orchard Police Departmentwww.oobmaine.com/pages/OldOrchardBeachME_Police/index
Pathways www.pathwaysofmaine.com
Peace Corps www.peacecorps.gov/
Penobscot Bay YMCA http://penbayymca.net/
Penobscot Job Corps Center www.jobcorps.gov
ReVision Energy, LLC www.revisionenergy.com
SavATree www.savatree.com/careers.html
SEA Semester www.sea.edu/
Sebasticook Regional Land Trust www.sebasticookrlt.org/
Senator Angus King’s Office www.king.senate.gov/
Stantec Consulting www.stantec.com
State of Maine
Natural Resources Service Center www.maine.gov
Sundog Solar LLC www.sundog.solar/
The Summer Camp www.thesummercamp.org
Thomas College www.Thomas.edu
Town of Danvers, MA Endicott Park www.endicottpark.com
Tripp Lake Camp www.tripplakecamp.com/
U.S Fish & Wildlife Service Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refugewww.fws.gov/northeast/mainecoastal/
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service www.fws.gov
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refugewww.fws.gov/refuge/rachel_carson
UMaine 4-H Camp and Learning Centers at Tanglewood and Blueberry Cove www.umaine.edu/tanglewood
Umaine Orono umaine.edu/
United States Army www.goarmy.com/
United States Border Patrol www.cbp.gov/careers
Unity College Graduate Program ucentstaging.wpengine.com
University of Maine 4-H Camp and Learning Center at Bryant Pondumaine.edu/bryantpond/
URBAN TREE SERVICE www.urbantreeservice.com
US Airforce www.airforce.com/
US Department of Agriculturewww.aphis.usda.gov/wps/portal/aphis/ourfocus/wildlifedamage
US Geological Survey
Maine Office, New England Water Science Center www.me.water.usgs.gov
US Marines www.marines.com/
US Navy www.navy.com/navy.html
USDA Natural Resource Servicewww.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/national/home/
Vermont Game Wardenswww.vtfishandwildlife.com/about_us/contact_a_warden
Vermont Law School www.vermontlaw.edu/
Wells Police Department www.wellstown.org
White Mountain National Forest www.fs.usda.gov/whitemountain
Wildwood- Mass Audubon www.massaudubon.org/wildwood
Wyonegonic Camps
YMCA Camp of Maine

Wednesday, February 03, 2016