Public Health Research Fellow – San Francisco, CA or Washington DC
Organization: Natural Resources Defense Council
Position Title: Public Health Research Fellow
Location: San Francisco, CA
Hours & Compensation: Full-time.
Application Deadline: September 15, 2013
Organization Overview:
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is a non-profit national environmental advocacy organization with more than 1.2 million members and online activists. We have offices in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Beijing. Our staff of over 400 includes attorneys, scientists, policy analysts and educators working to protect the environment and public health through advocacy and education.
Description:
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is now accepting applications for a one-year, full-time Public Health Research Fellow. The Fellow will work with NRDC’s Health and Environment Program as part of a multi-disciplinary team of lawyers, policy specialists and scientists, to secure protections and safeguards from public health threats resulting from oil and gas development using hydraulic fracturing. The Fellow will be located in either NRDC’s San Francisco or Washington, D.C. office.
Oil and gas development using hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has expanded dramatically in recent years, putting facilities in close proximity to communities and raising concerns about pollutant exposures and health impacts. Fracking is an industrial process that uses many toxic chemicals, many of which are known to be harmful to human health and which can be released or spilled into the environment as air or water pollution. Growing numbers of people have reported health problems that they attribute to pollutant exposures from nearby fracking activities. At the same time, loopholes and exemptions in federal environmental laws coupled with weak state laws and regulations have resulted in a lack of monitoring and control of pollutants.
NRDC is working on multiple fronts at the state and federal level to protect communities and the environment from the impacts of hydraulic fracturing. We now seek a Research Fellow to join NRDC’s team and expand our efforts to identify and reduce the public health threats from fracking.
Responsibilities:
Together with other NRDC advocates, scientists and lawyers, the Fellow will:
- Track, review, evaluate, and summarize academic and agency studies on environmental contamination and health impacts from oil and gas development using hydraulic fracturing;
- Develop materials to communicate the scientific literature and studies for lay audiences and policy makers;
- Advocate for improved studies, evaluations, and regulations of hydraulic fracturing by federal and state agencies, including submitting written comments or providing oral testimony at hearings, as opportunities arise; and
- Connect with public health experts around the country to improve health assessments and protections in communities facing oil and gas development activities.
Qualifications:
NRDC seeks a candidate with master’s level or higher training in a related science, including public health, environmental health, or environmental science. In addition, the candidate must have at least two years of professional work experience, excellent written and verbal communications skills, superb analytical and data management capacity, and an inclination for advocacy. Experience with GIS and Health Impact Assessment is a plus.
This position is a challenging, entrepreneurial, and exciting opportunity for the right person. NRDC offers competitive salaries (based on a nonprofit scale and commensurate with experience), a dynamic work environment, and we are committed to workplace diversity.
How to Apply:
Applicants should submit a cover letter, resume and writing sample to: www.nrdc.org/jobs
NRDC is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Contact Information:
