Lauren Fairfax
What employment sector do you work in?
Industry Sector
How long have you had a green job for nature?
4 months
Salary Range
£20,000 – £25,000
Please describe the work that you do.
Report writing and carrying out ecological surveys. Working closely with land owners and clients to establish presence or absence of protected species and advising them best practice to comply with legislation.
What do you most like about your job? Any dislikes?
Working with like-minded people! And being in our outdoors working with nature. The long hours in the bat survey season aren’t easy but are rewarding.
What inspired you into this career?
My degree made me aware of ecology as a practice and career option. Before that I had always had a love of British wildlife and nature but wasn’t sure what career I wanted.
Have you faced any challenges in progressing your career so far?
The biggest challenge is always imposter syndrome. The feeling of having to do everything straight away especially being fairly new into the industry and wanting to make a good impression.
What education/training did you have?
I studied a BSc Zoology degree as well as carrying out lots of volunteering and online courses on species ID to support my learning.
What advice would you give to someone coming into the profession?
Volunteer if you can! It’s not always what you know, sometimes it’s who you know. Volunteering gives you the opportunity to meet people and make connections. It is also a great chance to brush up on ID skills and even more so with UKHAB becoming so prevalent, the opportunity to learn plant ID cannot be missed. If you can get involved with local societies and groups definitely do! As a member of a youth council, it is a great space to learn from others as well as practice transferable skills.
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Tags: England, Industry sector, Ecologist, Ecological surveyor
Date profile submitted: 13/10/2024
