Environment and sustainability

How to become a climate change policy analyst

Official title: Climate change policy analyst

Also called: Policy analyst, Environmental policy analyst

Climate change policy analysts research and develop policies and make recommendations for environmental action like legislation, awareness campaigns and fundraising programmes.

Main tasks

Assess projects and policies for environmental impact
Develop environmental sustainability plans and projects
Do climatalogical research and prepare environmental reports
Analyse research and operational data
Collect environmental and climatological data
Research climatological regulations and policies
Advise on climatological public policy
Share research results

How to become one

You usually need a qualification to become a climate change policy analyst and experience may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 or University Entrance to do the study or training for this job. Other requirements: a relevant tertiary qualification in environmental studies, law studies, political science and policy studies or similar area; a Master of Climate Change Science and Policy or similar; experience in similar work.

See the full Tahatū profile

Ways in

University: Agriculture & Environment degrees, Offered by 4 universities in New Zealand
University: Law & Justice degrees, Offered by 5 universities in New Zealand
University: Arts & Humanities degrees, Offered by 6 universities in New Zealand

Pay · Past change · AI and this job

Most common pay: $80,000 to $110,666 a year (median $101,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
Lower: $55,000 a year · Upper: $115,000 a year
TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
People employed in the group Intelligence and Policy Analysts: 7,890 at the 2018 Census and 12,234 at the 2023 Census (+55.1%). Past change, not a forecast.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

In the group Intelligence and Policy Analysts, 59% of workers are female (sex at birth, 2023 Census).
Where people in the group Intelligence and Policy Analysts work (2023 Census): Wellington 45.4%, Auckland 23.3%, and Canterbury 8%.

Questions people ask

How do I become a climate change policy analyst?

How much does a climate change policy analyst earn in New Zealand?

The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $101,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $80,000 to $110,666 a year.

Will AI change the work of a climate change policy analyst?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census totals by topic for individuals 2013, 2018, 2023 (CEN23_TBT_004): employed by occupation, ANZSCO V1.3, summed to unit group (2023 Census (CEN23_TBT_004)), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census 2023: employed by regional council, occupation (ANZSCO V1.3 unit group) and sex at birth (2023 Census), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.

Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.

This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.

Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.

These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Updated 4 October 2026