The Communications Associate acts as the team coordinator for a Communications Committee in place working towards the Restore the Mississippi River Delta Coalition. They will play a key role in building awareness and support in both Louisiana and nationwide for restoration of the Mississippi River Delta on behalf of National Audubon Society, Environmental Defense Fund, and National Wildlife Federation, as well as in collaboration with regional partner coalitions to restore coastal Louisiana and Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation. They will support a variety of communications projects through regular reporting on team deliverables, monitoring coverage in the media and other channels, as well as facilitating effective team workflow and operations. The Communications Associate should also possess a strength for multiplatform storytelling and will help develop a wide range of campaign materials across web and print, as well as manage and maintain the coalition-branded blog as well as various other programs.
- Contribute to the development and implementation of communications work plans supporting Mississippi River Delta restoration goals;
- Manage communications committee functions including project tracking, weekly meeting agendas, follow-ups, and team reporting;
- Create a wide range of communications materials for distribution across a variety of platforms and for diverse audiences, with the goal of building support for coalition priorities; leveraging graphic design expertise where necessary;
- Manage content on campaign website, blog and social media properties; working with campaign staff to design, create, edit, and regularly update multimedia pages on the site;
- Distribute strategic communications to key media contacts as well as coalition email subscribers;
- Monitor the media, web news sources, and social media for news stories and features relating to the campaign, compiling news clips to inform campaign staff, building reports of campaign coverage, and identifying opportunities for media outreach and communications strategies;
- Oversee media tracking and measurement aspects of communications plans;
- Prepare materials for the press and assist communications staff with pitching to reporters, editors, and producers;
- Assist senior communications staff with coordination, execution and documentation of media events;
- Facilitate the timely coordination of communications among key collaborative partners and help track progress towards key deliverables under the work plan, including tracking and coordinating budget expenditures with senior communications staff;
- Support senior communications staff as needed in achieving strategic team and coalition goals;
- Perform other duties as assigned.
- 3+ years’ experience in public relations, journalism or other communications or marketing-related field, with a demonstrated record of success;
- Experience in project management and coordination required;
- Demonstrated time-management skills, attention to detail and ability to juggle multiple projects to consistently meet deadlines;
- Experience in developing engaging print and online communications materials for a wide range of audiences;
- Exceptional writing and editing skills. Must write quickly and well under pressure;
- Ability to communicate complex and technical information clearly to various audiences;
- Proactive, self-starter able to get things accomplished with minimal direct supervision;
- Strong proficiency in a wide range of digital platforms and programs, including Microsoft Office, Adobe InDesign and Photoshop, WordPress, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Engaging Networks or similar email management system;
- Photography, sound and video recording and editing capabilities; experience in the nonprofit sector on issues related to conservation; knowledge of Louisiana and its people/geography/history/environment is a nice to have;
- Must be willing to travel, as well as commit to some evening and weekend work as needed;
- Valid driver’s license required.