Central Valley Program Associate

The Tuolumne River Trust promotes the stewardship of the Tuolumne River and its tributaries to ensure a healthy watershed, from Yosemite National Park to the San Joaquin River in Central California and involving the Bay Area communities that import Tuolumne water.

The Trust has 2,000 members, a half million dollar core budget, 5 full time employees and some part time employees and consultants. The Trust serves a diverse geographic area (the Sierra Nevada and foothill regions, Central Valley, and San Francisco Bay Area) and constituency (rural, urban, and suburban communities).

Job Activities will include:

1. Create, implement, and build partnerships to involve and connect Stanislaus County residents with the Tuolumne River through education, outreach, and volunteer programs with the general public, school groups, community groups, governmental agencies, and other organizations.
2. Work with the Tuolumne River Coalition (a consortium of local governmental agencies and non-profits) to promote improvements to habitat and recreation along the lower Tuolumne River.
3. Advance land conservation, protection and restoration projects by working with landowners, governmental agencies, and funding sources to implement conservation projects, particularly Big Bend, a 240-acre project west of Modesto which involves managing consultants and contractors.
4. Participate in oversight of the implementation of the Tuolumne River Restoration Plan and the 1995 FERC Settlement Agreement through the Tuolumne River Technical Advisory Committee to ensure that the FERC license protects salmon and other wildlife.
5. Represent the Tuolumne River Trust to government officials, the media, the public, and other organizations on matters related to the lower Tuolumne River and its watershed.

Qualifications include:

1. Advanced degree in biology, hydrology, natural resource policy, environmental management or related field
2. 1-2 years experience in the environmental field, preferably including background in California's Central Valley water issues, especially salmon restoration and flood management.
3. Prior experience and ability in building relationships and working with people from different backgrounds and perspectives.
4. Excellent written and oral communication skills, initiative (a self-starter), detail-oriented.
5. Other skills considered a plus: grant proposal writing, contract management skills, environmental education and outreach and ability to speak and comprehend Spanish.

Position Summary:

The full-time position is based in Modesto and will require work in Stanislaus County, plus occasional travel to Sacramento, San Francisco, and other places in the San Joaquin Valley. Salary is competitive and depends on experience. Excellent benefits. This position is currently funded through 2006, while additional funding is likely, the person in this position would be expected to help raise additional funding for the position. The Trust is an equal opportunity employer, committed to a diverse staff. This job offers excellent potential for professional growth.

The position will be open until filled. The first round of interviews will occur the week of February 6.

Please send an email (with cover letter, resume, three references, and 2-page writing sample as attachments) with subject heading "Central Valley Program Associate." No phone calls please.

Background:

This is an opportunity to work with a small, well-established environmental organization on the Tuolumne River watershed in California's Central Valley. Founded in 1981, the Trust is the only organization working on the entire Tuolumne River, linking Sierra and Valley conservation issues and forging strong ties between rural mountain and valley regions and Bay Area urban communities. The Trust has a long record of success. We won Wild and Scenic status for 83 miles of the Tuolumne River in 1984 and defeated a proposed hydroelectric dam on the Clavey River in the mid-1990s. We work through public education, multi-agency cooperative programs, grassroots organizing, and litigation when necessary.

The Trust launched its Central Valley Program in 1993, when it intervened in license proceedings regarding Don Pedro Dam. Today, the Trust's Central Valley Program focuses on building a constituency for the Tuolumne River, implementing and promoting land conservation and restoration in the river floodplain, and advocating for programs and policies that keep the Tuolumne River healthy for people, fish, and wildlife.