Forest Heroes Campaign Organizer-Boston, MA

The Forest Heroes campaign is a global effort to protect the world’s rainforests. The campaign has achieved major global successes in the effort to end deforestation by ensuring that the world’s biggest commodity traders and end-users source raw materials like palm oil, paper, and soybeans from truly sustainable sources free from links to tropical deforestation. Among our successes in the past year: a global campaign to convince Asia’s largest agribusiness company, Wilmar International, which controls 45 percent of global palm oil trade, to adopt an industry-leading “No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation” policy through communications, grassroots organizing, and direct engagement at the CEO level. And we won similar commitments from Kellogg’s and other companies. Now, we want to build on that success to transform the rest of the palm oil industry – the leading driver of deforestation, climate change and species extinction in Southeast Asia.

To do so, we need super-talented organizers with a passion for forests, wildlife and people who can make this vision for living forests a reality. You’ll get to work with some of the most talented organizers, communications pros, advocates and experts in the world. It will require strategic thinking, nimbleness, ability to recruit coalition partners, and volunteers, a flair for visibility, and a deep love for the work. But with that, it’s an opportunity to achieve truly world-transforming success – and build a stronger forest movement for the long term.

SCOPE OF WORK

The Forest Heroes Campaign seeks a team of experienced, driven, and talented contract field organizers to help build a robust grassroots movement demanding that major companies stop using agricultural commodities that are fueling rainforest destruction, species extinction, climate change, land conflicts, and human rights violations. The organizers will be responsible for rapidly building visible support for a campaign to convince Dunkin Donuts and its suppliers (like agri-business companies Cargill, IOI, and Bunge) to stop destroying the rainforest in order to grow palm oil to fry doughnuts, and to pass a deforestation-free commodity sourcing policy. Core responsibilities will include grassroots organizing, coalition-building, media, birddogging, and generating campaign visibility. (For more background on Forest Heroes, visit www.ForestHeroes.org)

QUALIFICATIONS AND QUALITIES

• 3+ years of organizing experience with a proven track record of success with volunteer recruitment, leadership development, and coalition-building with diverse and elite constituencies.
• Experience generating media coverage and coordinating media events
• Strategic and creative thinker
• Able to adapt to a changing political environment
• Thick-skinned, able to handle confrontation
• Goal oriented and eager to win
• Fast learner
• Passionate and persuasive
• Able to work remotely and independently; self-driven
• Skilled at time-management
• Preference will be given to people who are familiar with the local political landscape

TIMEFRAME

Four months, with possibility of extension, beginning ASAP.

LOCATIONS

Boston, MA; Minneapolis, MN; Chicago, IL (or surrounding areas); White Plains, NY; San Francisco Bay Area, CA

COMPENSATION

Highly competitive, based on experience.

Send a cover letter and resume to Deborah Lapidus, Forest Heroes Campaign Director at[email protected].