Position description
1Day Sooner advances trials, technologies, and policies that maximize the value of human subject research to fight infectious disease. We are looking for an Advocacy Lead to manage our in-house advocacy for our US campaigns. The Advocacy Lead project manages our primarily federal advocacy strategy (including stakeholder and legislative recruitment, grassroots outreach, events, and press), meets with legislative teams and other decision-makers in DC, and coordinates the creation of advocacy documents and the answering of decision-maker questions and objections. The Advocacy Lead serves as a conduit between 1Day’s policy and research teams and our external lobbyist while also working with our volunteer organizing team and developing campaign strategy with our organization’s President.
Representative campaigns that our Advocacy Lead would support include:
- Warp Speed 2.0 for Next-Gen COVID Vaccines: This 2022 campaign involved hosting conferences, publishing pieces like our City Journal and STAT News op-eds, and drafting a letter from leading senators. It culminated in the announcement of the Biden Administration’s $5 billion Project NextGen program to develop better coronavirus countermeasures.
- FDA Emerging Pathogens Preparedness Program: 1Day proposed and publicly advocated for a program for the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research which was included in the 2024 President’s budget and accepted into the Senate’s Pandemic All Hazards Preparedness Act legislation. The idea was further developed in a regulatory science workshop that included officials from the FDA, NIH, and the Department of Defense.
- CA Air Cleaning Legislation: Provided public comment, drafted an open letter, and organized experts and industry to advocate to revise a bill related to air cleaning devices and ozone.
- Expanding Distribution of Malaria Vaccines: Drafted congressional letter and white paper, published opinion pieces in the Hill, Foreign Policy, and DevEx, and briefed reporters at the New York Times, Financial Times, Vox, and the Economist on campaign to increase malaria vaccination in Africa.
Key Information
- Apply by filling our airtable form. The review of applications is underway and will continue until the position is filled.
- Details about the role:
- Full-time, remote position (1Day has no office). The ideal candidate will reside in / near Washington, D.C., for in-person networking. (If you are not in the area, please confirm when you apply that you are open to relocation).
- Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the US. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.
- The position will report to 1Day’s President.
- Trial Period: Per our standard practice for external hiring, we expect the position will include an initial trial period with 1.25x the normal salary. Formal check-ins with our President after 4 and 8 weeks will help guide you on expectations regarding the trial period and what is needed to transition to permanent employment. The 8 week check-in will likely be the point where 1Day Sooner will be in the position to make a long-term commitment. In some cases, we may need additional time beyond the 8 weeks, leading to another formal check-in at 12 and then 16 weeks. If at the 8 week check-in 1Day Sooner decides against extending an offer of permanent employment, you would still receive another two months pay at the trial level. Historically, 67% of people who started a trial period received a full-time position.
Position Responsibilities
- Help set up and attend meetings with relevant legislative teams, identify / anticipate research needed and conduct the research or request it from our experts, route queries and requests from legislative staff and others to our experts and policy teams, and coordinate appropriate attendees for meetings
- Manage relationships with legislators, other government officials, and stakeholders.
- Identify required materials and campaign documents (e.g. letter of support, talking points), coordinate on developing drafts, and write and edit them as needed.
- Suggest strategies we should undertake and maintain awareness of required timing to fit our policy proposals into relevant legislative processes (e.g. PAHPA reauthorization/NDAA) (with help from lobbyists)
- Support events held in DC to advance campaigns.
- Organize grassroots efforts and recruit stakeholders to join our coalition in support of these policies.
What We’re Looking For
The ideal candidate will have the following traits and abilities:
- Mission-driven: You are excited about 1Day’s mission and principles. You do not have to be well versed in things like human challenge studies, but we expect someone who is passionate about saving lives by fighting infectious diseases worldwide.
- 2 years minimum relevant full-time work experience in congressional advocacy
- Operational focus and ability to envision and manage multiple projects simultaneously: You can manage projects fluidly, fiercely prioritize, and track timelines, data, and information in an organized and systematic fashion.
- Self-directed: You can develop campaigns and execute on them on your own, based on given objectives.
- Reliability and Rapid Response: You enjoy the fast pace of legislative work, respond quickly to emails, and reliably perform all the tasks you’re assigned.
- Highly organized and detail-oriented: You pay close attention to detail, in an organized fashion.
If this sounds like you, please apply now!
Please note that the Advocacy Lead may need to register as a lobbyist with federal and/or state governments, depending on the specifics of our campaigns.
Consistent with federal, state, and local law, we are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, Veteran status, or other protected category.
Application instructions
Please be sure to indicate you saw this position on tendersglobal.net