A year ago, I embarked on a new adventure as an associate product manager. However, I quickly realized something was missing. All my life, I've complemented my study or work routine with abundant after-school or after-work activities, ranging from sports and music to activism. But where does one find such engagements as an adult? I sought ways to intertwine my budding fintech career with my interest in addressing climate change, two seemingly disparate fields.

My quest led me to Eventbrite, a platform where I sought meetups with like-minded tech professionals in service areas. While my initial search for climate-oriented meetups bore no fruit, I chanced upon two groups that resonated with me. The first was SDNNYC, an organization advocating for service design in the tech landscape. The other was a meetup for Product Tank, a networking hub for product management enthusiasts. From the SDNNYC event, I had the chance to attend other events, connect with inspiring individuals, and even pen a recap article on this website, documenting service design initiatives during the Ukraine conflict.

Simultaneously, I connected with a VP of Product in the climate tech industry. Until that point, my understanding of climate tech was limited to hard tech—renewable energy, sustainable buildings, and the like. The possibility of software tech playing a role in climate solutions intrigued me. Our conversations led me to a newsletter focusing on climate tech events, https://nyclimatetech.substack.com/.

The newsletter hosted monthly meetups for tech professionals interested in or already immersed in the climate tech field—precisely the kind of platform I was seeking. Eager to make a meaningful contribution, I interviewed the organization's leader over Zoom and subsequently published an article detailing our discussion. I then continued attending these meetups, exploring where I could make a difference.

By December, I had discovered two volunteer opportunities. The first was with the Open Air collective, where I contributed to tasks such as drafting advocacy materials, writing grant applications, building webhook infrastructure, and developing tools to connect constituents with their representatives. I even had the privilege of posing questions to a panel of five carbon removal startup founders.

The second opportunity emerged when the climate tech newsletter sought volunteers. After a successful application and interview process, I joined as an automations volunteer.

Since then, I've relished the experience of working alongside other dedicated volunteers, hosting events, and developing a tool here https://github.com/Raiidahmed/Event-Extractor-With-GUI. The tool automates event collection and curation for the group. It's still a work in progress, much like everything else in life!

In summary, I wanted to share my journey to affirm that it's possible to intertwine your career with your passion. In a city teeming with over 10 million people, there's bound to be a group that aligns with your interests. And if you're proactive in seeking out these opportunities, they may very well seek you out too!