1594676921-19421.jpg)
Current Job Opportunities at Friends
Conservation Organizer
Hours: 40 hours per week Location: Portland
Status: Non - Exempt Supervisor: Conservation Director
Salary: $19.00 - $22.00 Start Date: June- July 2021
BACKGROUND
Friends of the Columbia Gorge was founded in 1980 and has over 6,500 members in Oregon, Washington, and beyond dedicated to preserving, protecting, and stewarding the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area. With offices in Portland and Hood River, Oregon and Washougal, Washington, the organization uses an array of tools (advocacy, litigation, land acquisition, and public education) to ensure the Columbia Gorge remains a wondrous and vibrant place. In 2005, Friends launched the Friends of the Columbia Gorge Land Trust, a 509(a)(3) support organization to acquire and steward spectacular landscapes within the Columbia Gorge.
SUMMARY OF POSITION
The conservation organizer is responsible for recruitment, cultivating, and motivating, activists, interest groups, members, and other entities to actively support Friends of the Columbia Gorge in its efforts to protect and enhance scenic beauty, natural heritage and public recreation opportunities in the Columbia River Gorge. Friends is looking for someone interested in advocacy and conservation, possessing strong interpersonal and communication skills, and sustained enthusiasm for working with the public. The position requires regular interaction with co-workers, local partners, activists, volunteers, donors, and members of the public. The Conservation Organizer does not supervise any staff, but will routinely direct activists and volunteers.
ACTIVITIES
- Build and maintain a list of activists and communicate with them regularly via phone, email, text, and in-person communications
- Manage online advocacy efforts
- Draft action alerts, fact sheets, organizing materials, and newsletter articles
- Create a leadership network to assist in organizing activities
- Conduct outreach to diverse communities, businesses, civic groups and non-profit organizations
- Represent Friends in its coalition efforts, such as Stand Up to Oil
- Recruit and train activists to testify at public hearings, write comment letters, and letters to the editors
- Hold periodic meetings to update activists on conservation efforts
- Work with the Hood River field representative and conservation director to coordinate outreach and organizing efforts
- Build and maintain strong relationships with Friends’ allies
- Serve as media spokesperson as needed
- Assist the conservation director in grassroots and grass tops lobbying efforts
- Organize public events, outreach activities, and tabling opportunities for current and new individuals or groups seeking a broad diversity of supporters
- Participate in organizational training and activities focused on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice
- Participate in workplace groups (DEIJ committee, staff social committee, lunch and learns) and other opportunities to shape organizational culture
- Apply the skills and practices needed to create an inclusive organizational culture including but not limited to: clear and kind communications, giving and receiving feedback, mutual accountability, self-care, and boundaries
- Other duties as assigned
- 2-4 years of experience in effective organizing, grassroots and grass tops advocacy
- Experience working with diverse communities
- Excellent written and oral communication skills
- Experience in working with member/activist databases and alert networks
- Some familiarity with land-use planning, environmental law, state and federal legislative processes and the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area
- Strong organizational and time-management skills
- Ability to lift boxes and equipment weighing up to 30 lbs.
- Ability to work some non-standard hours including nights and weekends
- College degree or equivalent experience
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suites and Google Suite
- Experience with Salesforce, MailChimp, and Phone2Action
Starting pay is $19.00 - $22.00 per hour, commensurate with experience. Excellent benefits include generous vacation time and holidays, generous health benefits for employee and dependents along with an employer matched retirement plan.
EEO POLICY
Friends is an equal opportunity employer and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, age, disability, national origin, sexual orientation, veteran status or any other protected status in accordance with local, state and federal law.
This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoffs, recalls, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
WORKING ENVIRONMENT
Full time within the typical 9:00 – 6:00 office hours. Other hours would include flexing schedule to include earlier morning, evening, or weekend work for events, tabling, or meetings. Work environment includes desk work with a sit/stand option, using a computer extensively, some phone work, outdoor work including occasionally in inclement weather.
APPLICATION
Please send cover letter and resume to careers@gorgefriends.org with Conservation Organizer in the subject line and where you saw the posting. Deadline for submission is June 16, 2021.
About Friends of the Columbia Gorge
Ensuring the Gorge remains a vibrant, living place—wondrous, wild, and open to all—is at the core of what we do. Friends of the Columbia Gorge works to protect, preserve, and steward the Columbia Gorge for future generations.
We are the only conservation organization entirely dedicated to protecting and enhancing the scenic, natural, cultural, and recreational resources of the Columbia Gorge. For over four decades, we have successfully advocated to protect the Gorge from irresponsible development, purchased scenic and sensitive lands for long-term preservation, and worked with community partners to foster a larger culture of Gorge stewardship by connecting thousands of students and volunteers to the Gorge’s wonders.