Back in May, I wrote about a potential job on the horizon. It was far from certain but it was very promising. Over the summer, while I was largely recuperating after two years of graduate school, the job fell into place, and today I began the next phase of this search for a higher and better use of my skills. I am now a Project Manager at Worldwatch Institute, a 40 year old environmental think tank.
How I found this job is a fortuitous story. One of my last classes at SAIS focused on energy challenges in developing countries. The main assignment was writing a forward-looking energy transition plan for a developing country, preferably one with which we had experience. I chose Jamaica. During the semester, my professor had lunch with the head of the Energy & Climate division of Worldwatch. He told her the team was working on a large grant proposal so the institute could develop energy transition plans for Haiti, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic, and that he was in need of a project manager with Caribbean experience.
The next day she suggested I call on him. I did. Shortly thereafter, the semester ended, I delivered my final plan to Dr. Bleviss, and (literally) walked across the street to Worldwatch for my initial interview. Progress was intermittent during the summer, but that gave me time to finish my project management certification and interview with other members of the institute. About a week ago, we finalized the offer and here we are.
At first glance, it seems slightly disappointing that I began this experiment escaping a desk job only to find myself back at, well, a desk. Of course, it was never really about that. It's about the work being done at the desk. And in this job, I get to help fossil fuel-reliant countries transition toward a long-term renewable energy matrix and invest in climate change adaptation measures. As a bonus, I am expected to write regular blog posts related to my work, which I will include in the Remarks blog, so stay tuned for that.
None of this of course has much to do with the main theme of this blog, which is the actions we take in trying to live with more intention and fulfillment. However, given that the arc of a career can be long, with many interesting turns, I may continue chronicling them all here. I'm happy to share it all with you, and am grateful for your continued interest.
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