{"id":2821,"date":"2026-05-01T16:53:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T16:53:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/?page_id=2821"},"modified":"2026-06-16T14:23:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T14:23:11","slug":"career-central","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/program\/career-central\/","title":{"rendered":"Career Central"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"jump\">Students, new grads, postdocs, early career scientists, <em>anyone<\/em> looking to make a career transition in ecology &#8212; this one is for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Career Central, held annually in the exhibit hall, serves as a less formal complement to other sessions focused on ecology careers and skill-building. Hear from professionals how they navigated their way into different industries and institutions &#8212; and how they succeeded &#8212; while getting important direct guidance on everything from resume-building to the tenure track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 id=\"fair\" class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Monday_July_27_Career_Fair\"><\/span>Monday, July 27: Career Fair<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Monday is dedicated to career navigation and job search support; this is the &#8220;how-to&#8221; day of Career Central. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Career Search 101<\/strong>: Step-by-step Guidance on How to Master Your Environmental Job Search by Laura Thorne (<a href=\"#ecc\">bio below<\/a>)<br>This three-hour workshop will take over Career Central! The Environmental Career Coach, Laura Thorne, will coach you through starting a career pathway and optimizing your job search, with an emphasis on networking, resumes and applications, and interviewing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Other sessions will cover:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Transitioning from academia to industry<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Managing career transitions<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Resilience &amp; success<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And join us for live resume and CV reviews<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tuesday_July_28_Career_Exploration\"><\/span>Tuesday, July 28: Career Exploration<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ecology is a highly diverse field, so it stands to reason that ecologists are employed in a highly diverse range of sectors!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A day in the life of a NEON scientist<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Skills and training needs for field ecologists (live town hall)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Working in science policy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Careers in environmental consulting; natural resources management; ecological restoration<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Navigating pathways to and through leadership<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Live resume reviews and mock job interviews<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Drop-in career coaching with Laura Thorne<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Wednesday_July_29_Careers_in_Research_Academia\"><\/span>Wednesday, July 29: Careers in Research &amp; Academia<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ll never stop doing what we can to support the careers of ecological researchers! This set will give you perspective and advice straight from the mouths of those who\u2019ve done it before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Speed networking with the ESA journals&#8217; editors-in-chief<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Diverse pathways in higher education<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Faculty jobs boot camp<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mentorship to navigate research careers<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Earning tenure<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Engaging storytelling to communicate ecological information<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Navigating the hidden curriculum<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Faculty and research careers outside of R1s<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Live CV reviews and mock interviews<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"ecc\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Environmental Career Coach, Laura Thorne<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"221\" height=\"331\" src=\"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/laura-thorne-edited.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3035\" style=\"aspect-ratio:0.6676895477292041;width:221px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/laura-thorne-edited.jpg 221w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/laura-thorne-edited-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/laura-thorne-edited-100x150.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 221px) 100vw, 221px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Laura Thorne is a certified career coach, business consultant, and environmental professional with over a decade of experience across public and private sectors. She helps students, recent grads, and career changers confidently break into environmental fields by creating practical, customized career navigation strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With a Bachelor&#8217;s in Biology from the University of South Florida and a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, Laura brings both scientific insight and real-world planning skills to her work. She began her career in habitat restoration and environmental project management before launching her coaching business in 2015. Since then she&#8217;s coached hundreds of career seekers one-on-one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3038\" style=\"width:265px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/environmental-career-coach_logo.png 2025w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Laura is the co-host of Environmental Professionals Radio (EPR), a leading podcast for the environmental industry. She\u2019s also a former President of the Tampa Bay Association of Environmental Professionals and actively involved with the National Association of Environmental Professionals, giving her strong national connections in the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She\u2019s been in your shoes, as a student, a career changer, and now a business owner. Her mission is to help the next generation of professionals get hired, stay motivated, and make a real impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Students, new grads, postdocs, early career scientists, anyone looking to make a career transition in ecology &#8212; this one is for you. Career Central, held annually in the exhibit hall, serves as a less formal complement to other sessions focused on ecology careers and skill-building. Hear from professionals how they navigated their way into different [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"parent":300,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2821","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2821"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3041,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2821\/revisions\/3041"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/saltlake2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}