Environmental Defense Fund Reviews

Pros

Work with the most brilliant people in their respective fields.

Cons

Top heavy, terrible HR department

Pros

Incredibly caring and passionate employees Very good benefits

Cons

Overall work/life is not balanced- everyone cares so much that work above and beyond normal business hours Limited pathways for professional growth

Advice to Management

Human Resources team struggles to enact the corporate values and the leadership team is unaware of how employees feel, even though we are relatively small.

Pros

Staffers are mostly well-intentioned; work largely focuses on macro-scale policy issues; the work environment was easy, despite the fact many staffers believe it to be a high-pressure workplace.

Cons

EDF is mostly play-acting at doing real environmental work. They view themselves as rainmakers, when, in reality, they're mostly just standing outside the halls of power shouting inanely. I worked on several efforts to challenge permits issued by USACE and state agencies with delegated EPA authority. Staff scurried around busily for weeks in prep for trial, thinking they were on the cusp of victory over the evil... agencies. After our counsel got crushed in court by the agency SMEs, they consoled themselves by reassuring us all that we were fighting nobly against evil polluters, even though the agency folks were at least as committed to environmental quality as anyone on our staff. EDF staff often loses in fights against government entities because they're blinded by their own arrogance. They think because they have a law degree or a bachelor's from Brown that the state is going to forfeit their position out of fear. In reality, we usually went to trial against SMEs who were at least as educated as our staff, and certainly more steeped in policy, given that they wrote it. And there was scant little effort to engage agency staff in discussion as people. I pushed for this, knowing that having some friendly contacts in government would have helped us immensely to understand policy and the soft spots in it. Moreover, I knew we needed to recruit some agency folks to come work on our side and bring their insider's knowledge with them. Nothing would have helped us more. As it was, management seemed content to lose case after case in the district and administrative law courts. What EDF amounted to, then, was a convoluted means of spending the donations of their wealthy benefactors with nothing substantive to show for it, a farce of environmental advocacy.

Advice to Management

Adopt a more pragmatic outlook; recruit agency staffers; work harder at influencing policy at the local level; stop leaning so heavily on the power of litigation; realize that EDF staff are not special just because they had a high undergrad GPA; get some real knowledge of the inner workings of critical agencies.

Pros

- Great mission and a CEO who is well respected everywhere - Great for work life balance with generous vacation and sick leave and 35 hr work weeks. - Really, really smart colleagues all over the country and world and an invigorating work atmosphere - a lot of conference and meeting opportunities for those who like to travel and network - Benefits are much better than anywhere else I have worked

Cons

- EDF is top heavy with more at leadership position than other places - Seems like people in higher positions get promoted more than those in lower and middle positions - Pay is ok for an NGO but big disparity from top to bottom

Pros

Integrity and commitment to science and realistic policies that work. Great culture with passionate and devoted staff.

Cons

Sometimes a little too serious and rational.

Pros

good facilities, culture, and after-work opportunities

Cons

some disorganization, similar ideology among employees

Pros

Great central location, newly renovated office space. Some genuine colleagues that care about the environment. Great work/life balance.

Cons

Very high turnover from the Executive team on down. Prominent nepotism, cliquish & uninviting work environment, lack opportunities for professional development within the org.

Pros

Inspiring mission and dedicated colleagues

Cons

With organizational growth comes some growing pains