Job Title: Backyard Habitat Certification Program Community Coordinator
Department: Conservation
Reports to: Backyard Habitat Certification Program Managers
Supervises: Volunteers
Classification: 40 hrs/1.0 FTE (open to negotiation), non-exempt
Salary range: Coordinator, $19-20/hr

Location: Primarily Portland Audubon's office in NW Portland; periodic visits to Columbia Land Trust offices in SE Portland and Vancouver

Application Deadline: January 16, 2022

Benefits Include:

• Medical insurance: 100% payment of premiums for medical and dental insurance, for employees only
• Competitive leave benefits including vacation, sick, and family leave
• 401(k) 3% match plus a discretionary annual fixed amount contribution
• Ability to attend free or subsidized courses at Portland Audubon
• Substantial discount at our Nature Store, including optics
• Opportunity to work in a setting surrounded by Portland Audubon’s 172-acre Wildlife Sanctuary

About the Backyard Habitat Certification Program

The Backyard Habitat Certification Program (BHCP) is a collaborative effort co-managed by Portland Audubon and Columbia Land Trust that has been operating since 2009. The program provides technical assistance, incentives, resources, and recognition for community members about how to naturescape with native plants, control noxious weeds, reduce pesticide use, manage storm water, and be excellent wildlife stewards. We work with residential yards smaller than one acre and community sites of any size. Partnering with diverse communities and reducing barriers to this work is a core program focus. Through our collective efforts to revitalize urban landscapes we make our region a healthier place, for ourselves and for wildlife. Our community of Backyard Habitats is over 8,400 strong and growing every day. For more information, see: https://backyardhabitats.org/.

About Portland Audubon:

Portland Audubon has been a leading voice
in conservation for over a century. Through collaboration with a vast network of advocates, nature enthusiasts, and partners, we inspire and connect people to nature through a variety of programs that are grounded in science and learning. We are located in a 172-acre wildlife sanctuary in Forest Park, just minutes from downtown Portland.

Portland Audubon is committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment, reflecting the diversity of our community in its board, staff, volunteers, and members; ensuring its internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and advance its diversity goals; and empowering staff to make positive changes in their environment and in Portland Audubon’s culture. All Portland Audubon employees are expected to serve diverse audiences and help advance our diversity strategies. More background on our diversity efforts can be found at http:// audubonportland.org/about.

About Columbia Land Trust: 

Columbia Land Trust is dedicated to conserving and caring for the lands, waters, and wildlife of the Columbia River region through sound science and strong relationships. Columbia Land Trust has permanently conserved more than 43,000 acres, an area equivalent to eight of Portland’s Forest Parks, and has restored thousands of acres for the benefit of both wildlife and local communities. Columbia Land Trust recently embarked on a 25-year plan to conserve the lower Columbia’s most important places by blending rigorous science and community partnerships. Core to the conservation agenda is a commitment to supporting a more inclusive and equitable conservation movement, arriving at common ground conservation solutions. Together, we are ensuring a future that is thriving, prosperous, and nature-rich. For more information, visit our website at columbialandtrust.org.

Position Summary

The Community Coordinator will support the Backyard Habitat Certification Program by providing support on projects with existing and new community partners. In particular, they’ll work with organizations that center the lived experience and needs of people who are Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color (BIPOC), people with low incomes, people who immigrated to the U.S., and disabled community members. The Community Coordinator will also support and lead programmatic outreach and education efforts throughout the 4-County area (Washington, Multnomah, Clackamas, and Clark counties). As such, we seek a Community Coordinator who has a deep commitment to collaborative, community-and-culturally-responsive engagement; who views advancing equity and racial justice as central to their practice; who has a strong, demonstrated connection to communities of color; and whose work draws from their lived experience.

This is a position for someone interested in being an essential part of an innovative program to transform urban landscapes, engage diverse communities in land stewardship, and become a part of two of the most effective conservation organizations in the region. The position will be employed by Portland Audubon but will support the needs of, and represent, both Portland Audubon and Columbia Land Trust in implementing the program. They will spend time working out of both organizations’ offices (NW Portland, SE Portland, Vancouver), with the majority of in-office time at the NW Portland office. Due to Covid, for the foreseeable future, this position would be working remotely. Both organizations hold diversity, equity, and inclusion as core organizational values (Columbia Land Trust’s Equity Commitments, Portland Audubon’s Diversity Statement). Applicants must be able to demonstrate this commitment as well.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS (50%):

Develop or deepen genuine, mutually-supportive relationships with community partners and the community members they work with.
Work with current community partners to plan, coordinate, and carry out multi-year partner projects. Current partners include Centro Cultural, Verde, Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO), and the Community Engagement Liaison Services (CELS), among others. A primary focus of the position will be working with Latino/a/x-led community organizations that serve Latino/a/x community members.
Engage new and existing community sites located in neighborhoods adjacent to the Willamette River and its tributaries to provide enhanced, on-the-ground restoration support
Explore new community partnerships with organizations that center people who are BIPOC, people with low-incomes, people who immigrated to the U.S., and people with disabilities/disabled community members.

OUTREACH & EDUCATION (30%):

Support with in-person and virtual outreach efforts, including providing presentations, attending or tabling at outreach events, etc.
Support with on-line, print, and social media communications, including helping write and tell stories (for the blog, social media posts, newsletter, etc).
Help identify gaps in our current outreach efforts and materials. Work with program staff to update or develop new community-and-culturally-responsive outreach strategies and materials, as needed.
Coordinate with Columbia Land Trust and Portland Audubon communications and conservation staff to integrate program messaging and coordinate on partnerships.

PROGRAM SUPPORT (20%):

Work with the Backyard Habitat team to apply an Equity Lens to all aspects of the program; help support future and on-going updates to the program.
Work with the Backyard Habitat team to assess how climate change is currently, and can be, incorporated in the program; help support future updates to the program.
Support Backyard Habitat team in providing administrative support for program, as needed, including scheduling, website edits, overall logistics, assembling resources, supporting events, responding to questions, etc.
Attend program, department, and all-staff meetings as well as other meetings as needed.

Preferred Skills and Experience

Studies have shown that women and people of color often don’t apply for positions where they don’t meet all of the preferred skills and experience. We recognize that there are many different paths, experiences, and less traditional backgrounds that add value to one’s work, and encourage applicants to apply even if they do not have all of the preferred skills. Portland Audubon is prepared to support the training necessary to ensure the qualified candidates have the skills to safely and effectively accomplish the work. Accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Interest and enthusiasm in plants (locally native plants in particular), sustainable gardening, creating wildlife habitat, biodiversity, climate change, or related environmental topics.
Experience working with community partners and community organizations to co-create and co-coordinate community projects, or related experience.
Experience successfully engaging fellow community members from racially and culturally diverse backgrounds through dynamic and creative community-centered outreach.
Demonstrated cultural competency and experience working with diverse populations, including communities of color, communities with low incomes, immigrant communities, the disability community, and underserved communities.
Strong organizational skills.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google suite.
Ability to work with dual managers and maintain a high level of flexibility.
Spanish fluency is strongly preferred due to existing community partner projects with Latino/a/x community members. Willingness to use your language skills to engage community members.

Working Conditions

Must possess a current driver’s license.
This job will periodically involve outdoor work including participating in community partner planting events, field trips, or other outdoor activities.

Application

Portland Audubon does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, sex, sexual orientation, age, religion, marital status, national origin, political affiliation or mental or physical handicap. Candidates of color are strongly encouraged to apply. Portland Audubon is committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment, reflecting the diversity of our community in its board, staff, volunteers, and members; ensuring its internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and advance its diversity goals; and empowering people to make positive changes in their community and environment. All Portland Audubon employees are expected to serve diverse audiences and help advance our diversity strategies. More background on our diversity efforts can be found at http://audubonportland.org/about.

More information can be found at http://audubonportland.org.