Botany Support Specialist Intern

Title: Botany Support Specialist Intern (1 Opening)

Start/End Date: April 1, 2024 – March 7, 2025 (anticipated); open to May start for graduating seniors.

Living Stipend: $580/week

Term: Full-Time, 40 hours/week – 49 weeks

Location: Bureau of Land Management- Farmington Field Office (FFO) 6251 College Blvd Suite A Farmington, NM 87402

Status: 1700-hour AmeriCorps Service Term (approximately 60% field work and 40% office work)

Benefits: Housing allowance $325/week; $500 travel/training funds; AmeriCorps Education Award up to $6,895 and Public Lands Corps Certificate* that allows for competitive hiring for USA jobs/government jobs – both with successful completion of the internship; health insurance eligible.

 AmeriCorps is the federal agency for national service and volunteerism. AmeriCorps provides opportunities for Americans of all backgrounds to serve their country, address the nation’s most pressing challenges, and improve lives and communities. Environmental stewardship programs help conserve natural habitats, improve energy efficiency, protect clean air and water, and help to mitigate the effects of climate change among other environmental efforts.

Conservation Corps New Mexico (CCNM)

Conservation Corps New Mexico, a program of Conservation Legacy, aims to continue the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930’s. CCNM is focused on connecting youth, young adults, and recent era military veterans with conservation service work projects on public lands. CCNM operates programs across southern New Mexico and western Texas that engage individuals and strengthen communities through service and conservation. The CCNM Individual Placement Program is managed from the CCNM office in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Mentorship

These Individual Placement Positions are unique development opportunities. Interns are paired with a local supervisor and gain technical, hands-on experience in the work of these organizations or agencies. Site supervisors commit to facilitate career development; provide an introduction to numerous pathways within the conservation field; and create accessible, meaningful, learning opportunities and experiences for interns.

Position Summary:

The Farmington Field Office encompasses 1.4 million acres and manages 9 Special Status Plant Species (SSPS), including 3 species federally listed as Threated or Endangered, and 2 that are proposed for listing. The Botany Intern position’s purpose is to assist the Bureau of Land Management’s Botanist with SSPS monitoring and surveying, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, data and file management (including ArcGIS), and any additional field or project work, as needed.

 Essential Responsibilities and Functions:

•  During the field season (April-September): assist the BLM Botanist with rare plant monitoring on established plots and transplant areas, conduct surveys following established protocols, assist rare plant and seed collection crews that periodically conduct work in the field office.
• Utilize Collector, Survey123, Field Maps, and QuickCapture for data collection.
• Assist in NEPA language for environmental assessments and permit review processes, attend on-sites for proposed projects.
• Analyze the effects of management activities on natural resources for environmental assessments.
• Assist with Rangeland Health Assessments, utilizing data collected by the Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) crew.
• Assist with management and storage of data provided by 3rd parties, including Biological Survey Reports and ArcGIS files with survey data.
• Opportunities may arise to assist the BLM Wildlife Biologist and USFWS Biologist with their field work/projects.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Per federal grant requirements, this internship is for young adults between the ages of 18-30 (35 for veterans), inclusive, at the time the individual begins term of service.
• Applicants must have a background in plant identification and be able to use a dichotomous key.
• Bachelor’s degree in a related field (botany, conservation management, environmental science, biology, etc.).
• Ability to hike long distances off-trail for multiple days a week, in strenuous conditions.
• Applicants must have strong project management, written and oral skills and be proficient in the use of Microsoft Office Suite and ArcGIS online, Survey 123, Quick Capture.
•  Applicants should demonstrate strong organizational skills, have experience working as part of a team, be able to work well with others in a professional setting, be self-motivated, and able to work independently (including field work) with limited supervision after the initial training period.
•  Applicants must have great attention to detail and be capable of problem solving.
• Applicants should have a general understanding of federal land resource management policies (e.g., multiple use management).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience driving a 4×4 vehicle in backcountry conditions.
• Experience with ArcGIS.
• Proficiency in scientific writing.
• Knowledge or familiarity of Southwest native plants.

Working Conditions: Applicant must be comfortable with both field and office work. Field work may consist of 10-hour days, hiking off trail, bending and crouching, and various weather conditions including extreme heat. Applicant will be expected to drive a BLM truck on dirt roads, in 4×4 conditions, and successfully navigate using a GPS. The intern will have office space to utilize within the BLM field office, and work on a BLM provided computer.