Associate Director, Cooling Program

Carboncontainmentlab; New Haven, Northern (CT, KY); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

In-office Mondays–Thursdays

Most Fridays remote

Retirement plan match

Professional development

Generous paid time off

Job summary

The Carbon Containment Lab seeks an Associate Director for the Cooling Program in New Haven, CT. You will lead partnerships, manage a growing portfolio of cooling initiatives, and coach staff and interns to deliver high-impact climate projects.

You will translate program vision into action across multiple workstreams, drive fundraising, and represent CC Lab in external forums. The role demands strategic leadership and hands-on execution in a mission-driven environment.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) in economics, engineering, sustainability, industrial environmental management, or finance.
• At least 8 years of professional experience in relevant consulting, sustainability, climate solutions, circular economy, or related field.
• Strong project and program management experience with multi-stakeholder initiatives.
• Strong quantitative analytical skills including techno-economic analysis, lifecycle assessment, and financial modeling.
• Experience leading and mentoring teams with cross-functional coordination.
• Experience writing reports and presenting to diverse audiences.
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with execution in a mission-driven setting.
• Positive problem solving and proactive attitude.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to expansion and execution of CC Lab’s cooling program with goals, workplans, budgets, and tracking.
• Identify and shape new initiatives to build the field and engage stakeholders.
• Manage strategic partnerships with corporate, nonprofit, policy, and technical actors.
• Oversee a portfolio of projects from design to implementation, including timelines and budgets.
• Recruit, supervise, and develop program staff, consultants, and interns.
• Support fundraising by drafting proposals and donor relations.
• Represent CC Lab in external meetings and communicate results to senior stakeholders.
• Improve internal systems for program management, reporting, and learning.

Skills

Program management

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Techno-economic analysis

Life cycle assessment

Report writing

Mentoring teams

Strategic planning

Problem solving

Education

Master's or PhD in economics, engineering, sustainability, industrial environmental management, or finance

Job description

Associate Director, Cooling Program

The CC Lab is hiring an Associate Director for the Cooling Program!

PositionDescription

Cooling is one of the most consequential and least understood levers in climate. The refrigerants in our AC units, chillers, and supermarket cases are hundreds to thousands of times more potent than CO2 — and most still leak or get vented at end of life. The CC Lab’s work over the last three years on cooling has already made a difference. We helped put lifecycle refrigerant management on the Montreal Protocol agenda, authored an influential methodology for HFC destruction credits, and convened the end-users, standard setters, investors, and buyers who can actually move this market.

If you want your work to matter at scale, this is a rare seat. The cooling program has more momentum than we currently have capacity to meet. We need an experienced leader to run the portfolio: partnerships, projects, team, and strategy, including the annual Yale Cooling Conference. The new Associate Director will execute on a growing portfolio of initiatives focused on emissions reductions from cooling systems, refrigerant management, circular cooling solutions, and the transition to alternative cooling technologies. This senior role will build and manage partnerships, lead and mentor teams (staff and consultants), and translate our program vision into high-quality execution across multiple workstreams.

About the Carbon ContainmentLab

The Carbon Containment Lab (“CC Lab”) is a forward-thinking climate nonprofit based in New Haven, dedicated to scaling climate solutions by applying scientific, entrepreneurial, and investment expertise. Our current focus is on advancing the understanding and adoption of high-potential climate interventions, including the recovery and destruction of potent greenhouse gases used by the cooling sector, methane measurement and mitigation, biologic and geologic systems for carbon dioxide removal and storage.

Founded at the Yale School of the Environment in 2020, the CC Lab spun out as an independent nonprofit in early 2024. The CC Lab has fifteen dedicated members supported by a broad network of external collaborators, advisors, consultants, and interns. We are fortunate to work in a bright, modern, and vibrant office space in downtown New Haven, close to Yale University, where about a dozen students contribute as part-time interns during the school year and over the summer.

We value teamwork, collaboration, teaching and learning, diversity, creativity, and flexibility. We strive for excellence and impact, and deeply value team members who are passionate about the CC Lab’s mission.

Key Responsibilities of the Cooling ProgramAssociateDirector

• Contribute to the expansion and execution of CC Lab’s cooling program, including developing multi-year program goals, setting quarterly priorities, workplans, budgets, and performance tracking.
• Identify and shape new initiatives that help to build the field, prioritize action, lend credibility and enroll stakeholders to take action.
• Manage, and deepen strategic partnerships with corporate, nonprofit, philanthropic, policy, and technical stakeholders to advance program goals and expand impact.
• Oversee a portfolio of projects from design through implementation, including scopes, timelines, deliverables, budgets, risk management, and stakeholder coordination including building the program for the annual Yale Cooling Conference.
• Support in recruiting, supervising, mentoring, and developing program staff, consultants, and interns, fostering a strong team culture, clear accountability, and effective collaboration.
• Support fundraising by writing proposals, and in donor relations.
• Represent CC Lab in external meetings, convenings, and working groups, and communicate program strategy and results clearly to senior stakeholders.
• Guide strong internal systems for program management, reporting, learning, and continuous improvement.

Desired QualificationsandExperience

• Advanced degree (Master's or PhD) in a relevant discipline such as economics, engineering, sustainability, industrial environmental management, and/or finance.
• Minimum 8 years of professional experience in relevant consulting, sustainability, climate solutions, circular economy, or a related field, with progressively senior responsibility.
• Strong project and program management experience, including management of complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives with clear timelines, budgets, and deliverables.
• Strong quantitative analytical skills, with demonstrated ability to quickly understand and evaluate new technologies and business models and assess their potential to scale. This includes techno-economic analysis, unit economics and financial modeling, engineering or process-level assessment, life cycle assessment, and market sizing; and the judgment to know which method is appropriate.
• Experience leading, supervising, and mentoring teams, with a track record of people management and cross-functional coordination.
• Experience writing and producing reports and making presentations to a wide range of audiences.
• Strong leadership and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with operational execution in an entrepreneurial and mission-driven environment.
• Positive problem solving and proactive attitude.

PreferredBackground

• Direct experience in the cooling sector, including refrigeration, air conditioning, refrigerants, or related technologies.
• Subject matter expertise and/or familiarity with superpollutant mitigation, climate policy or market mechanisms such as carbon finance/ carbon credits, extended producer responsibility, green building, energy efficiency, environmental attribute certificates, circular economy, industrial ecology, life cycle analysis.
• Experience working with corporate sustainability teams, implementation partners, or climate finance and carbon market actors.
• Consulting and/or investing experience.

Salary andBenefits

This position reports to the Senior Managing Director of the CC Lab, Dr. AnastasiaO’Rourke.

The CC Lab offers a competitive salary and benefitspackage, including:

• Salary of $140,000-$180,000/year commensurate with experience
• Location: New Haven, Connecticut preferred (in-office Mondays-Thursdays, most Fridays remote). Additional days of remote work possible.
• Retirement savings plan with employer match
• Professional development and learning opportunities
• Generous paid time off, parental, and sick leave
• Team outings and retreats
• A team that genuinely likes working together

Recruiting, hiring, and retaining a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we work with is critical to the Carbon Containment Lab’s success.

The Carbon Containment Lab is an equal opportunity employer and encourages candidates from all backgrounds to apply. We celebrate diversity and strive to create an inclusive environment for every member of our team. The CC Lab does not discriminate against any individual on account of that individual’s sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, disability, status as a special disabled veteran, veteran of the Vietnam era or other covered veteran.

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