# Will environmental economists be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Environmental economists score 60 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 95% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do the other 5%. - **5%** AI can do it - **95%** AI helps High exposure Higher than 91% of the 923 jobs we scored. ## Task by task We graded 20 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 1 of them, helps with 19 and leaves 0 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Monitor or analyze market and environmental trends. AI can monitor feeds and summarize trends; analyst reviews signals. | 60% AI can do it | | Write technical documents or academic articles to communicate study results or economic forecasts. LLMs draft papers well; economist is responsible for findings and claims. | 55% AI helps | | Collect and analyze data to compare the environmental implications of economic policy or practice alternatives. AI runs comparisons and code; analyst frames and checks results. | 55% AI helps | | Write social, legal, or economic impact statements to inform decision makers for natural resource policies, standards, or programs. AI drafts impact statements; legal and policy accountability stays human. | 55% AI helps | | Write research proposals and grant applications to obtain private or public funding for environmental and economic studies. AI drafts proposals quickly; funder fit and vision stay human. | 55% AI helps | ## How environmental economists compare All jobs (923) Life, physical and social science (60) The dark line is **environmental economists, at 60**. Each dot is a score, and darker dots mean more jobs share it. The short marks are the averages, 37 for all jobs and 47 for life, physical and social science. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $124,720 a year, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +4.7% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Run cost-benefit comparisons of policy options in Python or SAS - Map pollution and land-use data in ESRI ArcGIS - Verify AI-summarized sources against original studies before citing them in Word - Build impact models in Microsoft Excel with documented assumptions - Write policy recommendations that weigh stakeholder values and tradeoffs - Present study findings and defend them in live PowerPoint sessions ## Safer roles nearby 5 related jobs with lower scores. - [Economists58 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/economists/) - [Climate change policy analysts58 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/climate-change-policy-analysts/) - [Industrial ecologists52 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industrial-ecologists/) - [Economics professors45 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/economics-professors/) - [Chief sustainability officers51 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/chief-sustainability-officers/) ## Questions about environmental economists and AI Will AI replace environmental economists? Partly. About 5 in 10 of an environmental economist's working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly monitoring market and environmental trends and drafting technical documents. Findings, verified claims, and the judgment on what the numbers mean stay with the economist. Which tasks is AI taking over for environmental economists? Trend monitoring is the most exposed task, with an exposure score of 60, because AI can watch data feeds and summarize signals for the analyst to review. Drafting technical papers and running data comparisons across policy options, each with an exposure score of 55, follow close behind, with the economist checking the results. Which tasks stay human for environmental economists? Demonstrating the economic benefits of sound regulations, exposure 30, stays with people because advocacy depends on credibility. Developing sustainability policy recommendations, also exposure 30, needs stakeholder engagement and value judgments. Teaching courses, exposure 35, stays human because live instruction needs a person in the room. How can environmental economists stay valuable as AI takes on more analysis? Build cost-benefit and impact models in Python or SAS yourself so you can check every AI-run comparison. Verify each AI-summarized source against the original study before it reaches a report. Then present findings in person, where answering questions live builds trust in your conclusions. ## Related jobs - [Data scientists67 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/data-scientists/) - [Environmental scientists51 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/environmental-scientists/) - [Geoscientists46 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/geoscientists/) - [Statisticians63 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/statisticians/) ## Next steps for environmental economists - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV to see which tasks AI can do. [Check your job](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-exposure-checker/) [Check your CV](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/cv-checker/) - ### Estimate team savings The score is per person. Add headcount and salary to see the hours AI can take on in a team of environmental economists, and what they cost. [Estimate what AI saves a team of environmental economists](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/team-ai-audit/?role=environmental-economists) [Work out the return on automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-savings-calculator/) ### Check which roles in your team AI can take on We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) ## Related topics - [**Jobs AI can't replace**Roustabouts score lowest, at 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-cant-replace/) - [**Jobs most at risk from AI**Proofreaders score highest, at 76.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-most-exposed-to-ai/) - [**High-paying jobs with low AI exposure**Pediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Roustabouts need little prior training and score 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**AI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-speeds-up/) - [**AI and jobs in Malta**15 iGaming roles graded task by task.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/malta/) - [**Skills that keep work human**The skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/skills/) - [**Jobs A to Z**Every job we score, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 job groups.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industries/) - [**Write a CV screening software can read**How applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cv-screening-guide/) - [**AI for businesses**The tasks to automate first in each team and industry.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/) - [**How we score AI exposure**The grading, the weights and every source.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/) Sources and licences Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.