This short-term, full-time summer position provides hands-on exposure to all aspects of the Adirondack Chapter’s work, both in the field and in our office in Keene Valley, NY, in the heart of the Adirondack Park. We seek a motivated self-starter with a strong interest in environmental conservation.
Areas of Responsibility:
The Adirondack Conservation Associate will work on projects as assigned in the areas of conservation science, threat abatement, communications and marketing, land protection and stewardship, and fundraising.
- Lead Project – Developing a Methodology to Map Adirondack Native Brook Trout Streams: For the Lead Project, the Associate will develop an assessment tool to map native brook trout streams and rivers across the Adirondacks, to guide the Conservancy’s conservation work aimed at protecting freshwater habitats and their native fish species. The Adirondacks represents some of the best remaining brook trout habitat in the eastern United States. While native (heritage) brook trout ponds and lakes have been identified in the Adirondacks, the status of those fish populations within tributaries is largely unknown. The Associate will help the Conservancy develop a stratified approach to mapping brook trout streams across the Adirondacks in order to guide the locations of future field assessments to confirm the presence of native fish populations. The Lead Project will involve assessing existing datasets to identify locations where native brook trout populations are unlikely to persist; assessing the potential for using e-DNA sampling to further eliminate sub-watersheds; and estimating the costs for assessing potential waters where native fish populations are likely to exist. (~3-5 weeks)
- Conservation Science: Assist science staff with research in the Adirondacks, which may include: ongoing terrestrial and aquatic connectivity research; ecological assessment field work; literature reviews, or other science projects both in the office and in the field. (~1-2 weeks)
- Threat Abatement: Assist the Terrestrial and Aquatic Invasive Species Project Coordinators with invasive species prevention, control, monitoring, and data processing as well as public education and outreach throughout the Adirondack region. (~1-2 weeks)
- Communications and Marketing: Assist the Director of Communications with preparing outreach, educational, marketing and other materials for various audiences, including donors, partners and the media. Research and compile academic papers relating to land conservation projects, including nature preserves. (~1-3 weeks)
- Stewardship: Assist stewardship staff with various aspects of preserve and conservation easement stewardship activities. Tasks might include: boundary and trail maintenance work; recordkeeping; and assisting with GPS/GIS road and trail data collection. (~2 weeks)
- Fundraising: Assist Philanthropy staff with all aspects of trips and special events, including logistics, donor relations, and producing informational materials. (~1 week)
- Land Protection: Assist Land Protection Manger with land protection recordkeeping. Work might also include public records research and assisting with select projects, including field evaluation of candidate sites. (~2 weeks)
- General: In addition to the listed duties, there might be clerical and other work as needed to support priorities or special projects that can benefit from the Associate’s skills and interests. Work will be both in the office and in the field. The Associate will work closely with many members of the staff, and will report to the Director of Communications. The successful candidate is expected to work independently as well as with colleagues, members and donors, volunteers, partners and the public. Field work will be in all sorts of weather, sometimes in remote locations with rugged terrain.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND SCOPE
- Supervises no staff; may interact with members of the public, contractors, partners and donors.
- Works under close or infrequent supervision.
- Opportunity to act independently on assigned tasks.
- May work in variable weather conditions, at remote locations for long periods of time in isolated settings, on difficult and hazardous terrain and under physically demanding circumstances.
- Requires considerable physical exertion and/or muscular strain.
Educational Background:
Minimum level of education completed by the beginning of summer, 2018: college freshman, or equivalent.
Skills/Experience:
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- One semester of introductory GIS, or equivalent.
- Valid Driver’s License.
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Multi-lingual skills appreciated
- Multi-cultural or cross-cultural experience
- Candidate for or earned a B.S. in ecology or natural resource management, or a similar field; coursework in ecology, conservation biology and/or fisheries science preferred
- Two semesters of GIS, with one course in GIS analysis, or equivalent
- Excellent written and oral communication skills
- Demonstrated interest in conservation issues
- Enthusiastic can-do attitude, well-organized, strong analytical skills
- Motivated self-starter, able to work independently with minimal direction
- Enjoys working outdoors, sometimes in adverse weather conditions
- Experience using common software applications such as Word, Excel, web browsers, etc.
Additional Information:
- May-September, 2018, 10-14 weeks total. Preference given to applicants who can work for a longer period.
- $15.50/hr, 35-hour work week, generally Mondays through Fridays. Some days, particularly those in remote field locations, will be longer than 7 hours.
- Cover letter and resume required for application to be considered. Cover letter serves as writing sample, and should include a description of how the applicant meets the Minimum Qualifications.
- Housing is not provided, but we are happy to assist the successful applicant in finding local housing.
- No phone calls or emails please.
Job Function:
Organization Info
Listing Stats
Post Date:
Jan 5 2018
Active Until:
Feb 5 2018
Hiring Organization:
Nature Conservancy
industry:
Nonprofit