Position Title:  Natural-Cultural Resources Conservation Fellow – AmeriCorps

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements

Site Location: REMOTE

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants that submit application by January 10, 2025

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: 3/3/2025
• End Date: 1/30/2026
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 Hour

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards), a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with AmeriCorps service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants serve with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits to provide institutional capacity, develop community relationships, and support ecosystem health. Stewards in partnership with the National Park Service – Pacific West Region will host a Conservation Fellow (Natural and Cultural Resources).

This Conservation Fellow (Natural and Cultural Resources) is an AmeriCorps position being offered jointly by Conservation Legacy’s Stewards Individual Placement Program (SIPP) and the National Park Service. SIPP provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants work with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits building institutional capacity, developing community relationships, and supporting ecosystem health.

The National Park Service Natural Resources and Science Program (NR&S) and Cultural Resources and Science Program (CRS) for Interior Regions 8, 9, 10, 12 (legacy Pacific West Region) supports more than 60 national parks in California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, portions of Arizona and Montana and the territories of Guam, American Samoa, as well as the Northern Mariana Islands. NR&S advances the stewardship of natural resources in parks and beyond to leverage landscape-scale conservation, while CRS focuses on stewardship of cultural resources across the region’s parks through preservation, research, and partnership. We support parks in policy direction and guidance, and technical assistance – engaging the best available science to manage amid continuous change. Both NR&S and CRS coordinates with other disciplines at regional and national offices to meet crosscutting challenges to resource conservation and preservation.

Conservation Legacy’s role is largely administrative, and the Fellow will work directly with the National Park Service. Candidates must be able to pass a federal background check to obtain an official personal identity verification (PIV) credential. Work schedule is 40 hours per week. Some travel opportunities will be available to work directly with NPS professionals stationed throughout the Region.

Description of Duties:

• Support natural and cultural resource work in the region with a heavy emphasis on Indigenous Knowledge (IK) and Co-stewardship.
• On a regular basis, interface with partners and national, regional, and park subject matter experts via Microsoft Teams to gather and exchange information and plan/execute projects.
• Work with program leads in the NR&S and CRS group on key issues and projects.
• Be flexible and work efficiently in a remote work scenario.
• Communicate your interests to supervisors and NR&S and CRS program leads so that opportunities for mentorship and career advancement can be maximized.
• Work effectively both on a team(s) and independently to plan and carry out projects.

NR&S-CRS Program Support (70%) 

• Gather examples from within the region and across the NPS on successful integration of IK into park management.
• Support data collection from parks focusing on resource management-based co-stewardship projects.
• Increase information dissemination on IK and co-stewardship resources to park staff.
• Promote public stories on parks engaging in tribal partnerships utilizing our region’s Science Communication Framework.
• Support regional staff as they work with parks to incorporate Indigenous Knowledge into their resource management plans and actions.
• Develop digital content for internal and external communication audiences on various platforms (e.g., StoryMaps, SharePoint pages, NPS websites).
• Help parks research consultation with Tribes and the Native Hawaiian Community.
• Support regional and park NR&S and CRS staff on co-stewardship project development and implementation.
• Assist the Regional Natural and Cultural Resource Advisory Committees in various tasks to aid in service to parks such as preparation of research findings and summaries.

General Program Support (20%)

• Work with regional program leads in the NR&S and CRS group on key issues and projects that are relevant to parks and the regional office.
• Work with regional program leads in the NR&S group with updating their SharePoint pages, gathering and compiling information and data that may be relevant to parks for planning and day-to-day operations.
• Assist in the coordination of various working groups, such as Drought Planning, and Regional Haze.
• Assist with other tasks as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Must be between 18-30 years of age
• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• Applicants must be between ages of 18-30 years old, or up to 35 for veteran, based on Public Land Corps Act of 1993 authorizing this AmeriCorps opportunity.
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the education award.
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Interest in science communication
• Understanding of and interest in natural and cultural resources
• Interest with working with Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, and other local groups
• Strong communication and coordination skills
• Eager to learn and make a difference
• Independent, quick learner
• Able to track and keep deadlines

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00
• Living Allowance of $685.00 per week.
• Additional Benefit of $120.00 per week.
• Healthcare Coverage if Eligible
• Childcare Coverage if Eligible
• Student Loan forbearance if Eligible (administered by MyAmeriCorps, directly)
• Interest Payments if Eligible (administered through MyAmeriCorps, directly)

How to Apply
Apply on-line at: https://stewardslegacy.org/open-positions.  In addition to your resume, please submit a one page cover letter highlighting why you are interested in this position and how your background and experience will help you succeed in this position.

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants who submit applications by January 10, 2025. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Position will close on January 15, 2025.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

• Program Contact information: Emma Nehan-Springstead at enehan@conservationlegacy.org 
• Service Site Contact information: Lena Lee at Lena_Lee@nps.gov

Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with AmeriCorps requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Physical Requirements:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential functions. Some positions may require periodic overnight travel, non-traditional hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. Ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Time Requirements:

• This position is expected to serve 40 hours each week, but exact service schedules may vary.
• Lunch breaks will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service.
• Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term.

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.
• $6,000.00 Professional Development Training Budget

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service.

Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.