Jobs at Environment America

We've received a letter from Lina Blount, BMC '13, who is now working as the Field Associate with PennEnvironment on their anti-fracking campaign. She found her job through the Environment America Fellowship Program, which is recruiting now for next year's Fellow class--and asks that we share the posting w/ y'all.

Lina also extends an invitation for anyone interested in the Fellowship, curious about what Environment America is and is not, and what role it plays within the broader environmental and social justice movements to get in touch with her--she'd love to be helpful as students consider their steps after the Mawr.

To learn more and apply visit http://jobs.environmentamerica.org/

What Environment America fellows do

As an Environment America fellow, you’ll get a two-year crash course in the nuts and bolts of environmental activism, organizing, advocacy and the kinds of institution-building that can sustain long-term battles.

You’ll work for one of our 29 state affiliates or our national group, and run one of our campaigns. You’ll work alongside a staff person with 5 to 20 years of experience and participate in classroom trainings a few times a year to complement what you learn in the field.

As a fellow, you won’t just learn how to make an impact; you’ll make one. Here are a few examples:

- You’ll plan and run grassroots campaigns. You’ll identify a policy or power-building goal, develop a strategy, then devise and carry out the tactics.

- You’ll organize town hall meetings. You’ll create events where constituents have an opportunity to make their voices heard and hold politicians accountable – just as first-year Environment Rhode Island fellow Channing Jones did when he organized a “Get Off Oil” forum at Brown University - a standing-room only event with more than 140 attendees. The forum laid the groundwork for passage of legislation setting a statewide goal of cutting oil use in half by 2050.

– You’ll build powerful coalitions. You’ll recruit like-minded groups to join your campaign - just as first-year Environment Ohio fellow Christian Adams did while running his solar cities campaign. He built a coalition of unions, solar businesses, local green groups and representatives from universities and other big institutions that ultimately helped convince the city of Cincinnati to adopt a bold solar goal and implement the policies that it’ll take to get there.

- You’ll set up and speak at news conferences. You’ll create news events to get the word out about your campaign through the media – just as second-year Environment California fellow Mac Farrell did when he organized a series of news conferences at state parks threatened by budget cuts. He organized local businesses dependent on the parks and citizens who recreate in them to join him at each event. Mac’s work helped convince the governor not to close the parks. You’ll also meet with editorial boards, and get op-eds published.

- You’ll run citizen outreach campaigns. You’ll help build your organization, learning to fundraise, manage staff, and educate the public – just as first-year Environment Maine fellow Ally Fields did when she ran a 20-person team working to protect Acadia National Park from development, raising more than $100,000 and signing up more than 1,800 new members in the process.

- You’ll also lobby lawmakers directly, learning to make a convincing case for our policy goals.

You’ll also have the opportunity to educate and mobilize voters to support pro-environment candidates. We’ve endorsed pro-environment candidates in tight national and state races since 2008, organizing in key districts in critical states to help them win. And we plan to do so again in the fall of 2014.

Beyond the first two years

After two years as a fellow, you’ll have learned the ropes, gained invaluable hands-on experience and you’ll have made a real difference for the environment. Best of all, you’ll be ready to become a lead advocate, a lead organizer or a state director with Environment America or one of our state affiliates.

That’s the path taken by many of the people who are now leading Environment America's top state and federal campaigns. For example, after Environment America’s Courtney Abrams completed her Fellowship, she accepted a position as Environment America’s Clean Energy Advocate in Washington, D.C. In the fall of 2012, Courtney’s outreach skills were critical to her running a successful effort to help elect Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut. And in December she led a successful effort to ensure that critical wind tax credits were extended before they expired. To win she worked with our staff in the states to build a strong and diverse base of support for wind power and to engage our members and activists in the campaign – including generating 40,000 emails to members of Congress urging them to support the extension; she wrote and coordinated the national release of a report documenting that wind generation was already helping the U.S. avoid as much global warming pollution as taking 13 million cars off the road; and she used the relationships she’d built during her fellowship to help coordinate the national environmental community’s work on this and to solidify support from the White House. 

Qualifications

We’re seeking candidates committed to fighting for a green future. Being a fellow is not for everybody. It’s tough work, and the challenges never stop. We look for smarts, leadership experience, top-notch written and verbal skills, and an eagerness to learn. We value experience organizing, including building campus groups.

Locations

We’re accepting applications with our state affiliates across the country, and in Washington, D.C. You'll find a list of our current openings on our website. We accept applications on a rolling basis. Most fellowships begin in August, though a limited number are available throughout the year. You can apply through Environment America or directly with one of our state affiliates. If you’re flexible, you can apply for multiple positions in multiple locations.

Salary and benefits

Fellows starting in August will earn $24,500 in your first year and $26,000 in your second year. You’ll be eligible to join our group health plan at no cost to you. You’ll receive two weeks of paid vacation at the completion of your first year, and accrue three weeks over the course your second year. You’ll be eligible to apply for college loan assistance after your third month, and to participate in our 401(k) plan at the end of your first year. Salary and benefits vary in California, Connecticut and New York.

To learn more and apply

Visit jobs.environmentamerica.org or contact our Recruitment Department at jobs@environmentamerica.org.

Internships

Looking for an internship instead? Apply to be an Environment America intern. You’ll learn how to make an impact on critical environmental issues, and there’s no better way to get the experience to launch your career with us.

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