Research Assistant

Assist a Harvard faculty member with course and curriculum development efforts, scholarly research and data collection efforts. Contribute to the faculty member's research in ways that typically include writing and editing, data and information gathering, designing qualitative and quantitative research. Gain understanding of the research subject matter. Plan and conduct interviews, surveys, and literature reviews. Synthesize findings, analyze and interpret results.

Assisting with the creation of presentations, summaries and articles on research topics.

The Corporate Net-Zero Emission Targets Project, with support from the Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability, is seeking Research Assistants (RAs). In this project, faculty and researchers at the Harvard Business School, Harvard Kennedy School, and Harvard Law School are evaluating voluntary corporate goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For these Research Assistant (RA) positions, the tasks will focus on collecting data from firms’ sustainability reports, which will include tracking and reviewing reports, analyzing their carbon commitment statements, and converting this information into structured data.

The primary responsibility of Research Assistants is to review and analyze firms’ sustainability reports, focusing on their carbon commitment statements, and transform this information into structured, high-quality data. This role involves:

• Tracking and reading sustainability reports from various firms.
• Analyzing qualitative content, including carbon commitment statements and other environmental goals.
• Codifying qualitative data into structured datasets in Excel.
• Ensuring accuracy, consistency, and reliability of the collected data to support the project’s empirical research.

The position requires close attention to detail, an ability to follow instructions precisely, and the discretion to exercise sound judgment when interpreting ambiguous or nuanced statements. Ideal candidates will excel in a role that demands both meticulousness and independent thinking.

Sustainability Research/Sustainability Reports (The main skillset needed)

• Climate Policy
• Cabron
• Data Coding