Director, Coastal Resilience

The National Audubon Society is a nonprofit conservation organization that protects birds and the places they need today and tomorrow. We work throughout the Americas towards a future where birds thrive because Audubon is a powerful, diverse, and ever-growing force for conservation. Audubon has more than 700 staff working across the hemisphere and more than 1.5 million active supporters.

North America has lost three billion birds since 1970, and more than 500 bird species are at risk of extinction across Latin America and the Caribbean. Birds act as early warning systems about the health of our environment, and they tell us that birds – and our planet – are in crisis. Together as one Audubon, we are working to alter the course of climate change and habitat loss, leading to healthier bird populations and reversing current trends in biodiversity loss. We do this by implementing on-the-ground conservation, partnering with local communities, influencing public and corporate policy, and building community.

Audubon is committed to a culture of workplace excellence, where our talented and diverse staff are deeply engaged with a strong sense of belonging. The birds Audubon pledges to protect differ in color, size, behavior, geographical preference, and countless other ways. By honoring and celebrating the equally remarkable diversity of the human species, Audubon brings new creativity, effectiveness, and leadership to our work throughout the hemisphere.

Audubon is seeking a motivated, dynamic individual to serve as its Director, Coastal Resilience for Connecticut (CT) and New York (NY). They will lead our efforts to work with chapters, community based-organizations, coastal communities, and elected officials to protect birds and nature and improve the health and resilience of our coastline. The Director, Coastal Resilience is a high-level position that will advance federal and state policies. They will promote coastal resiliency planning and nature-based solutions and deliver public dollars to coastal resiliency projects (e.g., restoration of salt marshes, beaches, dunes, and barrier islands) that provide important habitat for priority birds and provide protection to coastal communities from storm events.

To advance these policies, the Director will help organize, cultivate, and lead a high-level coalition of government agencies, municipalities, conservation organizations, businesses, and other coastal resiliency stakeholders. They will develop and pursue a shared strategy for coastal resiliency and facilitate identification and implementation of on-the-ground projects.

This role will report to the Executive Director and be located at an Audubon office in the coastal region of NY or CT (e.g., the Greenwich Audubon Center in CT or the Theodore Roosevelt Audubon Center in NY).

Compensation:

$115,000-$130,000 / year

• Develop and lead strategies to increase coastal resilience in CT and NY, including policy campaigns and local community engagement, that result in coastal habitat restoration and natural infrastructure projects (e.g., living shorelines).
• Play an active role in existing coastal conservation efforts (e.g., Long Island Sound Study), leading Audubon’s contributions to those collaborative efforts.
• Through existing and new relationships, create and coordinate a high-level coalition of stakeholders and environmental organizations concerned with coastal resilience and manage the coalition’s efforts to drive policy change.
• Coordinate with state and national policy staff, as well as Audubon chapters and members and coalition partners, to develop and promote state and federal policy initiatives critical to ensuring coastal resilience, protecting, and restoring critical coastal habitats such as salt marshes, and driving state or federal funding and legislation to estuaries and communities at risk of flooding.
• Work closely with Audubon’s communications staff, environmental education centers, chapters, and others to build a constituency that supports making our coastlines more resilient while improving habitat for priority birds.
• In collaboration with Audubon’s national policy office and policy leaders in CT and NY, strengthen Audubon’s relationships with NY and CT Members of Congress and garner their support for priority federal policies.
• Work with the policy leaders in CT and NY to develop relationships with policy makers who will champion coastal resilience legislation and funding, e.g., the CT Coastal Caucus.
• Promote coastal marsh restoration as a natural climate change solution.
• Develop and lead strategies, including coastal retreat, to help coastal communities and wildlife adapt to rising sea levels.
• Help deliver resources to and collaborate with conservation staff involved in on-the-ground coastal resiliency projects, such as salt marsh restoration projects.
• Collaborate with coastal and community conservation staff to engage diverse coastal communities to help their voices be heard and to help them plan for and implement projects that allow them to adapt to sea level rise and increasingly strong and frequent storms.
• Coordinate planning and implementation of a coastal resilience conference attended by hundreds of stakeholders.
• In collaboration with the National Development staff, support the development and execution of sustained fundraising to fully support Connecticut/New York coastal resilience work and growth.
• Collaborate with conservation staff and grant writers on grant proposals and reports.
• Partner with Audubon staff to ensure equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging principles are incorporated into our Coastal Resilience program.
• Promote an organizational culture and structure that fosters cooperation, communication, collaboration, respect, teamwork, and trust.
• Other job-related duties as assigned.

• Bachelor’s Degree in natural resources management, public policy, or a related field. M.S. in one of these fields is preferred. Experience will be considered in place of education. An equivalent combination of education and experience will also be considered.
• 10+ years of experience working in coastal management/resilience issues and at least 3 years of management experience, specifically leading professional teams is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience overseeing complex or multiple projects through to success, including meeting financial goals, project deadlines, and coordinating the work of key staff and partners.
• Experience in avian and coastal conservation and conservation planning and/or policy.
• Proven track record of success in initiating and maintaining creative partnerships and coalitions with a diverse suite of members, including local officials, businesses, NGOs, government agencies, municipalities, private landowners, and other non-profit partners.
• Excellent political sense, collaborative approach, and ability to reconcile different viewpoints to achieve conservation outcomes.
• Previous fundraising experience, specifically from public agencies, foundations, corporations, and individual donors.
• Existing relationships with coastal stakeholder groups and/or management agencies and personnel a plus.
• Strong leadership skills, with an entrepreneurial spirit and strong business and management skills; demonstrated ability to inspire and motivate staff, volunteers, donors, and potential partners a must.
• Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills that can be adapted to reach a wide range of individuals and used to build consensus. Ability to synthesize and communicate technical and complex information to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience working with multigenerational audiences and diverse cultural communities and a commitment to increasing equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging as a core component of our work.
• Willingness and ability to travel routinely throughout New York and Connecticut and nationally, as required. Must have driver’s license and reliable vehicle.
• Ability to lift moderately heavy objects, such as equipment, boxes, etc. with or without accommodation.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, working knowledge of GIS technology preferred.
• A strong commitment to the mission, values, and programs of the National Audubon Society.

The National Audubon Society is a federal contractor and an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE). All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. We are committed to a policy of nondiscrimination, inclusion and equal opportunity and actively seek a diverse pool of candidates in this search.

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