After providing ESD and sustainability advice to a diverse client base for 15 years, Melbourne-based Sustainable Development Consultants is hiring a new staff member as part of its organic growth.
The boutique consulting firm is currently recruiting an ESD consultant, and is looking for someone to “work on a wide range of projects and lead project teams to develop sustainability initiatives that improve a project’s ESD outcomes, meet government requirements and the client’s needs”, according to the job advertisement.
Successful candidates generally have a background in engineering or architecture, according to company director Ben de Waard.
Sustainable Development Consultants is one of the only independent consulting outfits that “only does ESD”, de Waard says. The firm applies this specialist expertise broadly, and provides consultancy services to a range of clients for offices, residential, the public sector, and even to major supermarkets, such as Coles.
Unless restricted by confidentiality agreements, the firm “doesn’t hold on too tightly” to intellectual property and regularly looks for opportunities to transfer its learnings and ideas from one sector to the next, de Waard says.
The boutique firm currently employs a team of 15 who work with architects, designers and developers to deliver sustainable outcomes as part of a build – and positions itself as “the sustainability arm of your project team”, according to the company website.
Independence from particular products or processes is another reason clients favour the firm, with de Waard keen to maintain this neutrality.
Since Sustainable Development Consultants was established, de Waard has seen sustainability progress from something that “wasn’t considered at all” to a key component of the planning process.
“This shift towards sustainability has been a gradual process.”