Eco-careers: Expressing green values in working lives

Abstract

Eco-careers are careers in which an individual’s values for a sustainable world are a primary consideration in career decisions. Interest in eco-careers is enhanced by the recent growth of green issues and values in society, and by employee involvement in green business initiatives. Recent forces in contemporary careers enhancing interest in eco-careers are the importance of values in careers, increases in individual agency, a trend to boundaryless careers, a contemporary focus on identity, broadened definitions of career, and. the long-term nature of careers. The paper concludes with reflections on the practice and measurement of eco-careers, potential research areas, and implications for career practitioners and managers. The eco-career may be an idea whose time has come.