Wildfire Resource Protection Planning Fellow

Position Title:  Wildfire Resource Protection Planning Fellow

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements

Site Location: Remote duty station (United States only) or within an NPS unit, reporting to Natural Resources Stewardship and Science/ Fire & Aviation Management Pacific West Region

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants who submit applications by December 1, 2024. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Position will close on January 15, 2025.

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: February 2025
• End Date: January 2025
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 Hours

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards), a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with AmeriCorps service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants serve with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits to expand institutional capacity, develop community relationships, and support ecosystem health. Stewards in partnership with the National Park Service (NPS) will host a Wildfire Resource Protection Planning Fellow.

This position will serve in conjunction with the NPS Natural Resources Stewardship and Science (NRSS) and NPS Fire & Aviation Management (FAM) programs in the NPS Pacific West Region (PWR) which includes more than sixty national park units in Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona, Hawaii, and the Pacific Islands.  The PWR NRSS Program advances the stewardship of natural resources in parks and beyond to leverage landscape-scale conservation. It supports parks in policy direction and guidance, GIS mapping, data management, and technical assistance — engaging the best available science and managing amid continuous change. The PWR FAM Program addresses the risks and benefits related to managing wildfire and facilitates, the use of fire as a tool in national parks relative to safety, science, and stewardship.

This position will serve in a project coordinator/technical specialist role to assist and support PWR National Park Service units in developing Local Unit Resource Advisor (READ) Guides and READ Atlases. A Local Unit Resource Advisor Guide (LURG) is a written document which identifies values at risk associated with natural resources, cultural resources, infrastructure, and specially designated lands. It provides guidance for resource protection measures to avoid, minimize or mitigate impacts to these values during planned and unplanned disturbance events such as wildfires, floods, and large public gatherings. An accompanying geospatial product to the LURG is the READ Atlas which is a collection of geospatial data organized to inform the location and nature of sensitive resources. It is designed for rapid and efficient deployment during emergency response incidents.

The fellow will be supervised and supported by the NPS PWR Regional Wildland Fire staff and guided by the NPS Local Unit READ Guide/ READ Atlas Template.

Candidates for the position must be able to pass a federal background check in order to obtain an official personal identity verification (PIV) credential. The work schedule will be 40 hours per week.  Some travel opportunities will be available to coordinate directly with NPS professionals stationed throughout the Pacific West Region. 

Description of Duties:

Project Coordination (30%)

• Provide remote and in-person assistance to NPS park unit resource specialists in support of the development of Local Unit READ Guide content:
  • Assist in the gathering and vetting of resource and geospatial data
  • Assist in the development of local resource protection measures
  • Support content development through the use of templates, examples, and job aids
• Track project progress and encourage attainment of completion deadlines
  • Facilitate periodic check-in/ support sessions with project participants

GIS Product Development (30%)

• Support of the development of Local Unit READ Atlases:
• Assist, or independently develop, Local Unit READ Atlases
• Assist, or independently develop, standalone local unit resource protection map products
• Assist units in the determination of sensitive data standards
• Apply NPS geospatial standards and conventions to READ Atlas geospatial products

Editing (20%)

• Support the writing, editing, and proofreading of Local Unit READ Guide content
• Apply 508 compliance and NPS formatting standards to documents
• Recommend improvements to the NPS LURG/ READ Atlas Template

Training Facilitation (10%)

• Assist in the development, coordination, and implementation of in-person and remote Local Unit READ Guide/ READ Atlas trainings

Conservation Fellow Development (10%)

• Bolster professional development through wildland fire, resource management, and GIS courses
• Participate in wildland fire READ trainings and wildland fire READ assignments, as desired.
• Engage in opportunities to work directly with NPS professionals in a variety of fields throughout the Pacific West Region

Qualifications:

• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• At least 17 years of age
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of elementary or secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant, and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the education award
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.
• Ability to serve full-time during the duration of the term.
• Eagerness to learn and make a difference
• Interest in working with the National Park Service
• Ability to work well independently
• Strong interpersonal and organizational skills
• Strong written and oral communication skills
• Proficiency with the ESRI ArcGIS Pro application

 Preferred Qualifications:

• Educational (B.A., B.S., M.A., M.S., or PhD) in the biological, physical, social or cultural sciences and/or career experience in resource management and/or Geographic information Systems (GIS)
• Experience working in wildland fire or as a Resource Advisor (READ) is desired but not required

Physical Requirements:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential functions. Some positions may require periodic overnight travel, non-traditional hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. Ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

 Time Requirements:

• Typically, this position is expected to serve [blank-day] to [blank-day], but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service
• Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term.

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00 (pre-tax).
• Living Allowance of $720.00/week (pre-tax)
• Generous work-related travel stipend to visit NPS units $10,730.00
• Customized training opportunities
• Opportunity to work within National Parks throughout the Pacific West Region
• Public Land Corps Hiring Authority Certificate, eligible for 2 years upon completion of term
• Healthcare Coverage
• Childcare Coverage
• Loan forbearance
• Interest Payments 

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service.

Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.

How to Apply
Apply on-line at: https://stewardslegacy.org/open-positions.  In addition to your resume, please submit a one page cover letter highlighting why you are interested in this position and how your background and experience will help you succeed in this position. Applicants of interest will be required to submit a follow-up GIS portfolio demonstrating their proficiency with the ESRI ArcGIS Pro application.

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants who submit applications by December 1, 2024. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Position will close on January 15, 2025.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

Program Contact information: Emma Nehan-Springstead at [email protected]

Service Site Contact information: Cedar Drake at [email protected]

 Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with AmeriCorps requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.