Sweco Carbon Consultant Elle Bartleet selected for Environmental Analyst Early Careers Advisory Board

“The ECAB was set up to help develop awareness of the careers in the consultancy industry, specifically in the areas of environment and sustainability. It’s aimed at individuals who have recently completed their postgraduate studies and those who are already in the early stages of their careers. Their main aim is to, through a range of initiatives, promote the value of working in environmental and sustainability consultancy industry and help individuals develop the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in this field.

I was informed about the role by colleagues here at Sweco, as it was specifically targeted at people in the early stage of their careers. I’m currently only two and a half years into my career, 18 months of that has been with Sweco, so I felt more than qualified to apply for this position.

To be selected was a huge honour and a real thrill. I have a real passion for providing young up-and-coming STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) professionals with a better understanding of the opportunities available in the sustainability and consultancy realm, so this is a chance to share my experiences and pass on my advice to others who are where I once was.

When I was an undergraduate myself, I didn’t know what a climate consultant was. I’d heard about environmental consultancy previously and associated that with EIA (Environmental Impact Assessments) related work. When I’d developed a better understanding, I knew that that was the path I wanted to follow, and I started looking at opportunities in that field. My masters was in climatology, and I’d developed a keen interest in the carbon footprint and net zero strategies and was wondering how I could do this as a career.

I’ve always had a passion for a career that will alleviate or mitigate the impacts of climate change. I touched on it as an undergraduate and then did a masters in climatology and meteorology, which is the study of weather and climate. However, the climatology aspect included many modules on climate change science, climate change impacts, mitigation to climate change, and assessment of carbon footprints. That was my first insight.

I think that’s why I wanted to be involved with the advisory board…because I can now bring that carbon-specific knowledge to the table.

My role on the board is to represent Sweco and get feedback from both my own colleagues and external sources, which I can then take back to the board. This will include involvement with the university outreach as an ambassador for the ECAB. I will also be able to share my experiences working as a carbon consultant at Sweco. This will help increase the outreach of companies involved in environmental consultancy.

The board will also provide resources to help young STEM professionals develop an awareness of the opportunities available. For example, they’ve designed a survey for people already working in the consultancy industry. The aim is to gain a better understanding of what led them to their current roles and what they knew about consultancy and sustainability when they were younger.

I’m sure the results of the survey will provide valuable information to help benchmark the existing understanding of consultancy in sustainability – and I’m going to be involved with developing some video content and potential webinar pieces that will help people understand more about the industry based on surveys like this.”