High Meadows Fellow, Economic Analysis Hub

Environmental Defense Fund; United States; Remote; USD 36,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Environmental Defense Fund seeks a High Meadows Fellow in Economics to conduct rapid climate-economics analyses guiding policy priorities. This role supports the design of carbon pricing, clean energy transitions, and broader climate policies through rigorous data analysis and collaborative work with EDF teams.

The fellowship operates across EDF offices in the United States, with the supervisor based in Washington, DC, and opportunities for remote work.

Qualifications

• Recent degree in a quantitative field with strong analytical training.
• Interest in climate policy and policy-relevant quantitative analysis.
• Experience with data processing, cleaning, and visualization.

Responsibilities

• Conduct research on climate economics topics, including carbon pricing and energy transitions.
• Collaborate with EDF program teams to provide economic analysis support.
• Translate technical results into policy briefs for non-technical audiences.
• Co-author peer-reviewed papers or policy reports and present findings.

Skills

Quantitative analysis

Programming (Python / R)

Communication skills

Climate policy interest

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Economics, Public Policy, Statistics, Data Science, or related quantitative field

Tools

GAMS

STATA

Job description

EDF fellowships provide high-quality experiences, including relevant projects and opportunities for networking, that form the foundation serious candidates need to pursue an environmental career.

Program/Department Overview

The EDF Economics team examines every environmental problem through an economic lens, working with communities, policymakers and other partners to use economic forces for good. The team strengthens the development of climate solutions that create jobs, build resilient communities and cut pollution in an effective, equitable way by working with cross functional teams at EDF in more than 10 countries.

Overall Function

The Economic Analysis Hub is a new unit that conducts rapid analysis of climate economics questions to guide organizational priorities, inform decisionmakers, and address pressing policy needs. The High Meadows Fellow will serve as a core member of the Hub team, supporting analyses that shape the design of carbon pricing, clean energy transitions, and broader climate and environmental policies. The Hub also establishes partnerships with communities and businesses across the US, Europe, China, India, and Latin America.

Key Responsibilities

Tasks will include, but are not limited to:

• Conduct research on climate economics topics, including carbon pricing mechanisms, clean energy transitions, risk and resilience, and the economic impacts of environmental policies in response to requests from EDF program teams.
• Collaborate with EDF program teams across climate, oceans, health, and ecosystems to provide economic analysis support.
• Perform literature reviews on economic modeling methodologies, climate policy evaluations, and emerging topics in environmental economics to support Hub responses to internal and external inquiries.
• Process and validate large-scale economic datasets (i.e. national accounts, energy systems, emissions inventories, etc.).
• Conduct quality assurance on model inputs and create reproducible data pipelines to enable rapid policy response.
• Support model validation and sensitivity analysis for 15-20 major policy projects annually.
• Assess model performance and document methodological choices, and translate technical results into policy briefs for non-technical audiences.
• Co-author at least one peer-reviewed papers or policy reports, and contribute substantive analysis to Hub publications.
• Present findings at internal seminars and external conferences.
• Participate in advancing EDF’s organizational effectiveness and culture goals, so people from all backgrounds and experiences feel connected, included and empowered to address environmental and organizational challenges in ways that align with EDF values.

Qualifications

• A recent Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Public Policy, Statistics, Data Science, or a related quantitative field.
• Demonstrated interest in climate policy, environmental economics, and policy-relevant quantitative analysis.
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills with coursework or experience in statistics, econometrics, or data analysis.
• Demonstrated experience with data processing, cleaning, and visualization.
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, R, GAMS, STATA, or similar) or demonstrated ability to learn quickly.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Must be well organized, motivated, and detail-oriented.
• Ability to multi-task, prioritize, and meet deadlines.
• Ability to work in a team setting and have the ability to work independently when projects are due.
• Demonstrate self-awareness, cultural competency and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across all cultures and backgrounds.
• Demonstrate initiative and problem-solving skills.

Location

Any EDF U.S. office location (Austin, TX; Boulder, CO; Boston, MA; New York, NY; Raleigh, NC; San Francisco, CA; Washington D.C.) or U.S. Remote. Fellow supervisor is in Washington, DC, and many team members are in San Francisco, CA. Eligibility to work in the U.S. is required for the duration of the fellowship.

Term

2 years (starting between July-September, 2026)

Compensation

We offer a strong total rewards package encompassing competitive salary, robust benefits, and professional development opportunities consistent with a modern global organization. The annual salary for this role is $60,000.

Learn more about fellowships at EDF - http://www.edf.org/environmental-careers/fellowships

60,000 - 60,000 USD