Environmental Planners

Environmental planners often work 40 hours per week or more. Their schedules vary based on the intensity and complexity of the projects they are working on and the deadlines. Flexibility to work evenings and weekends is often required to accomplish job goals. Planners travel to meetings with clients and citizens' groups, to public hearings, and to project sites. Environmental planning work can be stressful due to a combination of deadline pressures and tight schedules, along with special interest groups that often exert political pressure regarding opinions on urban development and land-use proposals. The ability to juggle work tasks while maintaining diplomacy, tact, and professionalism is essential to success as an environmental planner.