Trends in the environment profession in Australia: a twenty-first century report

Abstract

Over many decades the environment profession in Australia has evolved into a substantial and diverse workforce. There are many indications that environment professionals provide valued services to Australian society, and their involvement will be increasingly sought. To gain an understanding of characteristics of these professionals and their roles leading into the mid-twenty-first century, a survey was undertaken in 2022. This is built on earlier surveys of the environment profession, so that collectively the results provide some longitudinal information and an indication of trends. This article reports these results, covering participants’ general and educational background, current position and overall career situation, generic and specific skills used and thoughts about the environment/sustainability sector. Broadly, the analysis indicates an increasing breadth of the profession, the skills needed and the challenges, with related opportunities, foreseen. Overall, participants continued to express positivity about their profession and potential to build on community and governmental support for issues associated with environment/sustainability.