Week of 11/6 - The Dark Side of Climate Lawyering...
There is a dark side to growing a career focused on climate law.
It can be hard, in a myriad of different ways, and that can create moments of personal darkness.
You may be learning new skills or practice areas.
You may be taking on new responsibilities or roles.
You may be hustling to get a new job or new clients.
And at times, even if you’re doing everything right, you will face challenges, rejections, late nights, long days, low energy, stress, anxiety. . .
In short, it will be hard.
And often, success brings its own challenges.
You got a great new client! Now you need to do the work to keep that client.
You got proficient at a new skill! Now you need to keep using that skill, likely in increasingly difficult situations.
You got a new job! Now you need to navigate a fresh set of responsibilities and interpersonal dynamics.
Yay!
As I’ve grown my career and climate-friendly practice, I have faced many challenges as I work to grow and learn.
In the last year, which has been my most successful ever, I have seen plenty of new clients, skills, and responsibilities, not to mention a whole new job, it has been hard!
There was one moment in the last year, that I remember vividly, where I was sitting at my desk at 9AM, having already been working on a project for a new and exciting climate-focused client for several hours, and I looked over at the 3 page list of work that I was balancing, and the deluge of emails pinging in my inbox, and thought, why did I decide to do this? Why did I think I could do this? When am I going to get to take a nap?
So what do you do when the going gets tough?
Remember why you are doing this. Climate-friendly work is very rewarding, so ground in the reasons why you have committed to this work. If you’re like me, you are incredibly passionate about the subject matter you are working on, and passion is a great antidote for stress and fear. Tap into that passion!
Step away from your desk. You do not need to be on the hamster wheel 24/7 to grow and learn and have the climate-focused career of your dreams. Plus, in your dark moments, you’re probably better off getting some space and then coming back to whatever is challenging you. Go for a walk, exercise, meditate, read a book. The real pros do these things every day to stay balanced.
Reframe your challenges. You may feel burdened by whatever difficulty you are facing, but you actually don’t have to feel that way. As my team grows, we reach a critical mass where we NEED to add a new team member to cope with the work that we’re doing. Until we hit that point, we couldn’t really bring on a new team member, but I want to grow my team and help more people do this work, so I need to accept that at times I will be overworked and stressed, in service of my larger goal. That reframe shows me that the stress is actually something that I want and is a signal that I’m ready for a new team member, not that I’m going to be buried under a pile of emails and tasks.
Tap into your power. You are really good at what you do. You are freaking awesome, actually. Think about all the times that you succeeded. Think about how good it will feel when you make it over the current challenge. You will get there, because you’re personal talents will take you there, but you might need some time or help, and that is okay.
Connect with people. Broaden your horizon. Just like stepping away from your desk, you need to change your perspective and one of the best ways to do that is to talk with another human, preferably one that shares your values and understands what you’re doing. I am lucky to have a few people that I can always talk with. But I know that not everyone does, so we’re going to be starting a monthly virtual meet-up for climate lawyers or would be climate lawyers or climate-curious lawyers. Come join us and share your challenges and successes and whatever else is on your mind. We’ll be hosting our first session in December, so stay tuned and reply to this email if you want me to make sure you get an invite.
Let’s take a look at this week’s job postings, shall we? And if you’re up for a new challenge, maybe apply to one or two?
Hi! I’m Matthew Karmel, chair of the Environmental and Sustainability Law Group at Offit Kurman, P.A., a full-service AMLaw 200 law firm, and founder of the planetary lawyer project. I took my practice from a single pro bono climate client to a thriving climate-related practice. You can too, no matter your current role, experience level, or practice area.
Please feel free to reach out by email or LinkedIn if you’re interested in any of the following:
Sponsoring this newsletter
Mentoring/coaching
Referring a legal matter
Any views expressed are my own. Nothing here is legal advice.
Corporate Counsel. Sphera. Remote (UK/US). https://sphera.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/careers/job/GB-Remote/Corporate-Counsel_R103222?source=GoInhouse.com. £69,000.00 - £106,000. 2+ years of relevant experience. Sphera is a portfolio company of Blackstone and the leading provider of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance and risk management software.
Principal Land Use/Environmental Attorney. NextEra Energy. Juno Beach, FL. https://jobs.nexteraenergy.com/job/Juno-Beach-Principal-Land-UseEnvironmental-Attorney-FL-33408/1092623500/. No salary listed. Looking for attorneys with 2+ years of experience. NextEra Energy Resources is the world's largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and sun and a world leader in battery storage. This company is hiring right now for other positions, as well!
General Counsel. Lower Carbon Capital. Los Angeles or San Francisco. https://lowercarboncapital.com/gigs/gc/ Possess significant experience working in venture capital, startups, and related areas.Lower Carbon Capital backs kickass companies that make real money slashing CO2 emissions, sucking carbon out of the sky, and buying us time to unf**k the planet.
Associate Commercial Counsel. Samsara. Remote. https://boards.greenhouse.io/samsara/jobs/5366195?gh_jid=5366195. 2+ years of contracts management and/or contracts experience; salary: $100,708—$133,290 USD. At Samsara, we are helping improve the safety, efficiency and sustainability of the physical operations that power our global economy.
Legal Operations Specialist. Samsara. Remote. https://boards.greenhouse.io/samsara/jobs/5445797?gh_jid=5445797. 2+ years of related experience in legal operations, showcasing strong project management capabilities; salary:$69,292—$101,900 USD. At Samsara, we are helping improve the safety, efficiency and sustainability of the physical operations that power our global economy.
Senior Legal Counsel - Finance and Capital Markets. The Chancery Lane Project. Remote (UK). https://thechancerylaneproject.bamboohr.com/careers/34. GBP 60,000 - 80,000. Looking for an attorney with 6+ years of experience who is able to work in the UK for 2+ years. The Chancery Lane Project (TCLP) is the largest global network of lawyers and business leaders using the power of climate contracting to deliver fast and fair decarbonization – they are also hiring for other positions similar to this one!
Deputy Legal Director. Futurewise. Remote. https://greenjobs.greenjobsearch.org/jobs/deputy-legal-director/. $80,000 – $100,000. J.D. is required, as well as certification to practice in Washington State. Futurewise is Washington State’s premier statewide public interest organization focused on land use and planning policy.
Assistant Attorney General - Water and Natural Resources Division. Wyoming Attorney General's Office. Cheyenne, WY. https://www.governmentjobs.com/jobs/4250933-0/atty99-2023-02123-assistant-attorney-general-water-natural-resources-cheyenne?source=GoInhouse.com. $5,054.39 - $9,580.11 (monthly). No minimum experience is listed, salary will be DOE. The attorney will prepare and present contested cases on behalf of the Department of Environmental Quality before the Environmental Quality Council and will represent the State of Wyoming in state and federal court with primary responsibility for the Department's implementation of the Wyoming Environmental Quality Act and related enforcement.
Legal Counsel. Altana AI. Brooklyn, NY | Washington, D.C.. https://boards.greenhouse.io/altanaai/jobs/5694697003?gh_src=GoInhouse.com. No salary listed, looking for 5+ years of relevant experience. Altana AI enables trusted commerce and global sustainability by providing a single source of truth on the global supply chain.
Senior Contracts Manager. Samsara. Remote. https://boards.greenhouse.io/samsara/jobs/5280215?gh_jid=5280215. 5+ years of contracts management experience, including implementation and management of SaaS contract lifecycle management tools; salary: $99,280—$146,000 USD. At Samsara, we are helping improve the safety, efficiency and sustainability of the physical operations that power our global economy.
Agriculture and Forestry Policy Lead. Charm Industrial. https://jobs.lever.co/charmindustrial/373a803b-f1da-4b84-9f39-f3668f6db3a3. 7+ years of experience in agriculture or forestry policy or advocacy, salary: $130,000 - $160,000 a year. Charm is a leader in the carbon removal field, and as we scale, ensuring that the best available science on biomass utilization is incorporated into our practices, and disseminated across the rest of the bio-economy, is paramount to achieving our ultimate climate ambitions.
Deputy General Counsel. Aspen Power. New York, NY, US- Washington, DC, US. https://workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/default/mdf/recruitment/recruitment.html?cid=36e18e19-db63-4327-8fcb-42ec6795d96e&ccId=19000101_000001&lang=en_US&jobId=497666. At least 8 years of law firm, in-house, or other equivalent legal experience;The salary range for this position is: $225k - $250k. Aspen Power is a distributed energy generation platform with the dual mission of accelerating and democratizing decarbonization.
Senior Commercial Counsel. Electric Hydrogen. San Carlos, CA. https://eh2.com/careers/?gh_jid=4332105005. $220,000—$242,000. 10+ years of experience, especially with commercial transactions. Electric Hydrogen was founded to make green hydrogen cost-competitive. *This firm is also hiring for a similar position that can be found here: https://eh2.com/careers/?gh_jid=4332101005
Deputy General Counsel. Seed. Remote. https://seed.com/join-us/#deputy-general-counsel. 10+ years of relevant law firm and in-house experience; The annual pay range for this full-time position is $235k - $275k with equity + benefits across all US locations (this position is 100% remote-US).Seed is a life science and consumer health company focused on the microbiome and its undeniable potential in shaping the future of human and planetary health.
General Counsel. American Battery Solutions. Hudson, MA, Hudson, MA, US. https://workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/default/mdf/recruitment/recruitment.html?cid=b850b09a-85f3-45a3-9072-51b8e5da9e81&ccId=9200602902739_2&lang=en_US&jobId=468571. Minimum of ten (10) years corporate in-house or law firm experience in research and development or energy industry.At ABS we are developing the next generation of battery energy storage systems that will power the vehicles of today and tomorrow.
Managing Attorney, Clean Energy Program. Earthjustice. Chicago, IL | Los Angeles, CA | New York, NY | Philadelphia, PA | San Francisco, CA | Washington, D.C.. https://earthjustice.org/job/managing-attorney-clean-energy-program. Salary range(s): San Francisco or New York City: $225,900 - $251,000, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, CA or Chicago, IL: $214,700 - $238,500, Philadelphia, PA: $203,300 - $225,900. Looking for a skilled attorney with 10+ years of experience. The Managing Attorney leads and oversees the work of the Clean Energy Program, providing leadership for a team comprised of roughly 40 attorneys and professional staff based in several locations across the country.
Chief Legal Officer. Phoenix Tailings. Burlington, MA. https://jobs.lever.co/PhoenixTailings/bd3728d2-327e-4a5e-a7be-79e5a69d5f25?lever-source=GoInhouse.com. No salary listed, looking for 15+ years of experience with a substantial portion in mining-specific law. Phoenix Tailings is changing how metals are produced by extracting valuable metals and rare earth elements from mining waste with a process that uses clean energy sources and produces zero waste, creating a cleaner supply chain.