Climate Action Consultant: Adaptation Specialist

Website Sustainability Solutions Group Workers Cooperative

Decarbonized, healthy, equitable communities for everyone

Full Time, Permanent

Location: Remote (US, Canada, or Chile)

OVERVIEW

SSG seeks an Adaptation Specialist to contribute to our climate action projects while leading our adaptation and resilience work for communities, local governments, and organizations across the Americas. The ideal candidate brings expertise in climate vulnerability and risk assessment, along with strong project management and communication skills. The candidate will work with interdisciplinary teams on adaptation-specific and broader climate action planning projects, while helping to shape our adaptation practice and build client capacity. This role combines technical expertise with team leadership in a collaborative, mission-driven worker cooperative.

ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY SOLUTIONS GROUP

SSG is a climate action planning consultancy founded in 2001 to carry out creative, challenging, and values-based work. Over the past 20+ years, SSG has become a recognized leader in climate action planning and implementation.

We aspire to a decarbonized world where thriving people, communities, and ecosystems collaborate through democratic participation to eliminate fossil fuels, regenerate natural systems, and analyze the impacts of choices for lasting change.

SSG works with communities, local governments, and other organizations serving the common good. Our work includes:

  • Climate change adaptation and mitigation planning,
  • Energy and emissions modeling and planning,
  • Equitable community engagement,
  • Community and health planning,
  • Energy systems planning, and
  • Cutting-edge climate action research.

SSG is proud to be a worker-owned cooperative with roughly 50 workers throughout Canada, USA, and Chile.

YOU’LL LOVE WORKING AT SSG IF YOU VALUE:

Our Vision and Purpose: Propelling organizations to create equitable, resilient communities while thriving under a democratic business model.

Our Total Rewards:

  • Flexible work arrangements (location and hours)
  • Four weeks of paid vacation
  • Generous health and family care leave
  • Professional development stipends
  • Profit-sharing upon cooperative membership
  • Transparency: A culture of open decision-making, flat organizational structure, and cooperative governance.

Collaboration: A highly supportive, collaborative team driving innovative, cutting-edge climate action work.

A Fast-Paced Environment: Work that is agile, meaningful, and constantly evolving to address the climate crisis.

OUR COMMITMENT TO EQUITY

SSG celebrates diversity as a pillar for cultivating the world we are cooperatively building. Guided by our Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (IDEA) committee, our recruitment and hiring practices reflect our steadfast commitment to this vision. We encourage applications from BIPOC (1),LGBTQIA2S+ (2), women, gender nonbinary people, people with disabilities, and other groups historically targeted for marginalization.

ABOUT THE POSITION

At SSG, we expect all consultants to work as versatile team members across our full range of climate action projects. Every consultant, regardless of specialization, should be ready to engage in client management, analyze data, write reports, and contribute to various project types.

The Adaptation Specialist will:

  • Lead SSG’s adaptation and resilience projects, focusing on vulnerability assessments, climate risk management, and policy development
  • Provide internal leadership by developing adaptation processes and training team members
  • Collaborate with Business Development to shape service offerings and respond to RFPs
  • Lead project teams, manage client relationships, and oversee final deliverables

For a detailed description of daily responsibilities and typical project tasks, please view the complete job posting on our vacancies page here:

Join Our Team

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

Required Qualifications and Attributes:

  • Passion for, and commitment to, climate action planning and social justice
  • Collaborative, kind, and motivated self-starter with a problem-solving mindset
  • Strong written, verbal, and analytical communication skills
  • Demonstrated ability to work independently and contribute to project teams
  • Comfort in a virtual, distributed work environment
  • Flexibility to adapt to shifting workloads, priorities, and schedules
  • Experience with community-level climate resilience/adaptation planning

Additional Qualifications:

Candidates must have at least one, and ideally multiple, of the following:

  • Experience with Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment (CRVA) frameworks such as ISO 31000 and 14091 standards, PIEVC, ICLEI BARC, Ouranos adaptation planning guide for municipalities, etc.
  • Experience analyzing and integrating climate indicator data (e.g., PAVICS, climatedata.ca, etc.) into risk assessments
  • Municipal government or consulting experience in the US
  • Municipal government or consulting experience in Canada
  • Project management experience with budgets exceeding $50,000
  • Strong data analysis and visualization capabilities
  • Background in financial or economic analysis of climate action scenarios

The following qualifications and attributes are considered assets but are not requirements for successful candidates:

  • Familiarity with and/or enthusiasm for worker cooperatives
  • Experience with city and regional planning
  • Experience with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and GIS software such as QGIS or ArcGIS
  • Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) or American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) designation
  • Professional engineer (P. Eng.) designation
  • Project management professional (PMP) designation
  • Experience with municipal asset management planning
  • Experience with energy utilities data
  • Experience with corporate-scale energy analysis
  • Experience with diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, particularly in small organizations
  • Familiarity with building decarbonization and transportation electrification
  • Excellent negotiation skills
  • Experience working with communities experiencing marginalization and disproportionate climate impacts, particularly lived experience
  • Fluency or proficiency in other languages, particularly French, Spanish, and Indigenous languages of the Americas

SOFTWARE WE USE

SSG’s primary software tools include Google Workspace, Microsoft Office, Adobe (Acrobat DC), Slack, Zoom, Wrike, Zotero, and Airtable. Previous knowledge of these tools is not required and can be taught on the job.

TOTAL REWARDS

SSG workers are paid according to a salary scale that factors in years of professional experience relevant to their position, as well as years worked at SSG and membership status. The salary scale applies equally to all workers, regardless of their role or position in the organization. To set new workers in the salary scale, SSG and the new worker come to an agreement on the number of years of prior experience relevant to the role.

The salary range for 2024:

Canada
Non-Members: CA $68,700 – $102,430
Members (3): CA $71,680 – $110,201

US
Non-Members: US $55,560 – $82,720
Members (3): US $57,970 – $88,990

Chile
Non-Members: CLP 30,911,000 – 53,527,800
Members (3): CLP 34,680,200 – 61,820,600

All salaries are stated in gross annual terms (4).

SSG considers an annual cost-of-living increase to our salary ranges every year. This adjustment has been made in prior years, including 2024 and 2023. The 2025 salary cost-of-living increase will be communicated by the time interviews are offered.

For Canadian workers, SSG offers a benefits package that includes health, dental, and vision. SSG offers US-based workers a health reimbursement arrangement, vision and dental insurance, and access to an accident and disability insurance program. Chile-based workers are entitled to coverage under a group benefits plan (Seguro de Salud Complementario) established for SSG Chile Employees and their dependents and spouses.

For all workers, SSG offers:

  • Flexible holiday pay (12 days per year for Canadian and US workers and standard public holidays for Chilean workers),
  • Generous health and family care leave,
  • Four weeks of paid vacation,
  • Paid volunteer time, and
  • A professional development stipend.

COOPERATIVE MEMBERSHIP AND PROFIT SHARING

This position will be eligible for membership in the cooperative (i.e., co-ownership) within 12 months. SSG distributes a minimum 50% of its annual net income back to its members. Income distribution is in the form of shares and cash, as determined by SSG’s Board of Directors.

WORKING AT SSG

SSG has a flat organizational structure. Climate change and social justice values are embedded throughout our organization and work. SSG is a distributed organization with staff in Canada, the United States, and Chile.

The Consultant will work from home or a shared office (such as a co-working space) with occasional out-of-town travel for work. Applicants from outside of Canada, the US, and Chile are welcome to apply; however, they must be eligible to work in those countries. Our typical work hours fall between 9 AM – 5 PM in the Atlantic through Pacific time zones. All candidates must also be available during these hours in one of these time zones (i.e., Pacific, Mountain, Central, Eastern, Atlantic, Chile, or Newfoundland). Extensive work at a computer is required. A stipend is available to support set up of a home office or at a co-working space. SSG offers flexible work hours. Overtime may be required.

APPLICATION

If interested, please submit your application through the online form linked here:
https://airtable.com/app06CePg6gzWIwsx/paghA3DM7mF5wrryN/form

The application deadline is Sunday, February 2, 2025, at midnight (PT). However, we encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible as we may start the interview process sooner.

If you need application assistance or accommodation due to a disability, please contact ​.

For more information about worker co-ops in Canada, see the following resources:

  • https://www.usworker.coop/what-is-a-worker-cooperative/
  • https://canadianworker.coop/about/co-op-principles/

Depending on the number of applicants, we may be able to contact only those candidates whom we wish to interview.

MULTIPLE APPLICATIONS

SSG is currently hiring for multiple positions, including this role and a less specialized Climate Action Consultant role. We encourage candidates to apply for both positions if their interests and qualifications align with both roles.

If you are applying to both positions, please feel free to use the same CV and adapt your expression of interest as needed—there’s no need to create entirely unique applications.

To apply for this job please visit airtable.com.

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