So You Want to Work in Sustainable Finance? RMI Provides Insight

This guide from the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) outlines the growing opportunities for professionals in the field of sustainable finance across the public sector, private sector, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). It highlights the diverse backgrounds of practitioners and provides advice for those seeking to transition into the field.

• Interest in sustainable finance is evidenced by an increase in academic programs and several specific initiatives launched between 2015 and 2016: the DOE's Clean Energy Impact Investment Center (June 2015), the White House's Breakthrough Energy Coalition (November 2015), the Catalytic Finance Initiative's $8 billion partnership (April 2016), and the New York Green Bank's transactions totaling up to $220 million (May 2016).
• Employment opportunities in sustainable finance exist across three primary sectors: the public sector (including multilateral development banks, over 30 U.S. federal programs, state green banks, and municipal governments), the private sector (including consulting, renewable energy developers, 'clean tech' businesses, and financial institutions like pension funds and insurance companies), and NGOs (including foundations and organizations like the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board and Coalition for Green Capital).
• While a background in finance is advantageous, the sustainable finance field is characterized by a diverse range of professional backgrounds, including law, policy, management, consulting, and entrepreneurship.

APA

RMI (2016). So You Want to Work in Sustainable Finance? RMI Provides Insight. https://rmi.org/resources/want-work-sustainable-finance-rmi-provides-insight/

Chicago

RMI. So You Want to Work in Sustainable Finance? RMI Provides Insight. 2016. https://rmi.org/resources/want-work-sustainable-finance-rmi-provides-insight/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=So You Want to Work in Sustainable Finance? RMI Provides Insight |date=17 June 2016 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/want-work-sustainable-finance-rmi-provides-insight/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2016you, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{So You Want to Work in Sustainable Finance? RMI Provides Insight}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2016}, month = jun, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/want-work-sustainable-finance-rmi-provides-insight/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }