Field Associate, Environment America Fellowship Program – Ann Arbor, MI
Organization: Environment America
Position Title: Field Associate
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Hours & Compensation: Full-time. As a fellow with Environment America or one of our state affiliates, you’ll earn $23,750-$24,000 in your first year and $24,500 -$25,500 in your second year.
Position Dates: Two-year fellowship, to start in August 2013.
Application Deadline: None posted.
Posted On: March 15, 2013.
Organization Overview:
Environment Michigan works to advance the environmental vision and values we share. Drawing on a strong track record of success, and the support of thousands of citizen members, we organize the support it takes to stand up to polluting industries and ultimately sweep past them.
The results of our work including a state plan for coal-fired power plants to reduce mercury emissions by 90%, a major step in addressing contamination in Michigan’s waterways and fish, and a BP back down in the face of what the Chicago Tribune called a “firestorm” of criticism we helped create when they announced their plans to dump toxic chemicals into Lake Michigan.
But let’s not kid ourselves: There’s so much more to do. Our environment faces multiple challenges and opportunities, nowhere more so than in Michigan.
Description:
Environment Michigan’s field associate will build the public and political support we need to protect Michigan’s environment. We face powerful opposition, and to overcome that opposition we need media attention, the support of broad-based coalitions, an informed public and grassroots action to win the day for our environment. Our field associate will organize news events, bring community leaders and other constituencies together around our issues and organize grassroots actions to show support for our campaigns, including:
- More Clean Energy for Michigan: In Michigan, we get 60 percent of our electricity from coal-fired power plants that fuel global warming, pollute our air with soot and smog, and poison our water with mercury. And pollution from coal-fired power isn’t just bad for our environment—it also threatens our health with asthma attacks, heart attacks and other problems. We should be getting more of our energy from clean, renewable sources, but we face opposition from some utilities, like DTE and Consumers Energy, and we expect them to fight clean energy every step of the way.
- Protect the Great Lakes: From Lake Michigan to Lake Superior, Michiganders care deeply about the Great Lakes. We should be able to swim at Sleeping Bear Dunes and bring our children to Sand Point Beach without worrying about beach closings or getting sick from elevated bacteria levels. But in the last decade, polluter-driven Supreme Court decisions put more than half of Michigan’s streams at risk—the same waterways that feed and filter the Great Lakes. We’re working to demonstrate the broad public support that exists for strong clean water protections in Michigan.
- Healthy Farms, Healthy Planet: The food we eat is one of our closest connections to the natural world. Farms should be environmentally friendly and provide food that is safe and healthy. Environment Michigan is working to make sure the rules for conventional farms are strong enough to protect our rivers and bays. At the same time, we are helping to build the market for food from local farms that grow diversified crops using sustainable practices.
Environment America’s Fellowship Program:
Fighting for the environment is the challenge of a lifetime. Yet so many recent college graduates aren’t sure where to start.
Each year, we hire a college graduate who – like you – has the passion, the commitment and the talent it takes to stand up to polluting industries, organize support and fight for our environmental values.
Our Fellowship Program is a two-year immersion in the nuts and bolts of environmental activism, organizing, advocacy and the type of organization-building necessary for the long haul.
Since Environment Michigan is also part of Environment America, a national federation of state-based groups, as a fellow you’ll have the opportunity to work with, and learn from, our national staff and staff from other states; take part in national campaigns and national trainings; and travel to Washington, D.C., for a national lobby day.
Read more about the Fellowship Program, including a week in the life of a fellow, here.
Learn by doing
Working with Environment Michigan’s Virginia Shannon, and other senior staff, you’ll plan and run grassroots campaigns, lobby lawmakers, publish op-eds, set up and speak at news conferences, organize town hall meetings, run citizen outreach campaigns, identify new members, raise money, recruit and manage staff and much more.
Gain the experience you need to lead
After two years, you’ll have undergone a rigorous training, gained invaluable hands-on experience, and taken on more responsibility than you thought possible. And, best of all, you’ll be ready to take on a greater leadership role with Environment Michigan, another state affiliate, or Environment America. You might even start a new state affiliate or launch a new program.
Qualifications:
We’re seeking candidates ready to commit themselves to fighting for the environment. Being a fellow is not for everybody. It’s tough, demanding and the challenges never stop. We look for smarts, leadership experience, top-notch written and verbal skills and an eagerness to learn. We value experience organizing, including building campus groups.
How to Apply: Complete your application online here.
Contact Information:
Environment America, http://www.environmentamerica.org
For questions: [email protected]
