Joining a professional association is a great way to advance your EHS career. An association provides you with resources for training and development, as well as networking opportunities to connect with other people in your industry.

Some associations even provide certifications or credentials to help you do your job better, stay in compliance, and potentially earn a promotion and pay raise.

Here are some of the best professional associations for EHS professionals to consider joining:

• Air & Waste Management Association (A&WMA): The A&WMA has more than 5,000 members, 34 Sections, and 65 Chapters worldwide. The association provides technical information, continuing education, career resources and networking opportunities.

• Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals (AHMP): This professional association is devoted to the advancement of the hazardous materials management field. AHMP is made up of local chapters and led by a national board of directors. AHMP holds an annual conference in a different city each year designed exclusively and specifically for hazardous materials professionals. The association also publishes the Hazardous Materials Management Desk Reference (3rd Edition), a reference text that provides an in-depth review of hazardous materials laws and regulations, science and technology, and management principles.

• American Academy of Environmental Engineers (AAEES): This not-for-profit association offers seminars and workshops and participates in accrediting universities. AAEES also offers Board Certification to professionals who qualify through testing and experience.

• American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA): This is one of the largest international associations for professionals in the industrial hygiene industry with 8,500 members. AIHA offers several online and in-person training and development opportunities annually.

• American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP): ASSP is a global association with approximately 150 chapters and more than 70 student sections. In addition to training resources, members receive access to the association’s peer-reviewed publication Professional Safety. ASSP holds two public conferences focused on education for occupational safety and health.

• National Association for Environmental Management (NAEM): This nonprofit association is a resource for those who are looking for advanced environmental management, health and safety, and sustainability within their companies. NAEM’s members include environmental management leaders from more than 800 national and multinational organizations. Consultants and service providers can only join at the enterprise-wide level; individual consultants are not permitted to join on their own.

• National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP): Dedicated to the advancement of environmental professionals, this association includes discounted registration for its conferences, courses and websites, as well as a subscription to the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Practice. NAEP offers chapter-level events throughout the U.S.

• National Environmental Health Association (NEHA): This association’s mission is to advance the EHS industry for the purpose of providing a healthy environment for all people. NEHA offers training and resources via online courses and its annual conference. The association also provides a Registered Environmental Health Specialist/Registered Sanitarian credential for those who qualify through testing and experience.

• National Registry of Environmental Professionals (NREP): NREP is a a not-for-profit organization with more than 15,000 members worldwide. The association provides professional certification and certification programs to those who have the required education, training and experience to be qualified as environmental and safety professionals.

• National Safety Council (NSC): With a global network of more than 50,000 members, NSC works to eliminate preventable deaths at work, and in homes and communities through advocacy, education, research and leadership.

• World Safety Organization (WSO): WSO is an international professional association focused on safety, with chapters throughout the U.S. and overseas. WSO certification board offers 11 certifications, most of them exam-based. WSO, a not-for-profit corporation, also holds an annual symposium that provides a forum for information exchange, networking, sessions, panels and workshops.

Click on the links to these associations to learn more about what each has to offer to find one that best meets your needs as an EHS professional.

Adapted from: The Best EHS Associations & Professional Organizations to Join, Christine Lellis, Perillon.com.