Position Description

Reporting to the Senior Director of Community Conservation, the Tomorrow’s Trees Program Manager is responsible for the management and expansion of Tomorrow’s Trees, Potomac Conservancy’s innovative community seed collection program and providing organizational support for our practitioner coalition. The seed collection program uses our successful volunteer leader model to identify and train neighborhood champions to organize seed collection events in their communities. The seeds are then donated to state nurseries to be grown into locally sourced trees that will be planted in critical areas in our region.

The Manager will shape and lead program expansion, including developing new relationships with nursery partners to accept the seed donations and seed drop off sites, training volunteers, and running events across the watershed. You will develop new partnerships and program infrastructure throughout the year, and oversee multiple tree seed collections through community action in the fall. Our coalition, supported by the Manager, focuses on convening governmental, non-profit, private and community organizations that are leading currently disparate tree plantings and seed collections efforts across the watershed for greater effectiveness, partnership, attention, and funding opportunities.

Organization Description

Founded in 1993, Potomac Conservancy believes the foundation of healthy, vibrant, and resilient communities starts with clean water. As the region’s leading clean water advocate, we shape the broader effort to ensure the Potomac River boasts clean drinking water, healthy lands, and connected communities. You will be joining a small but growing team who work every day to fight for clean water through building a local inclusive movement of impassioned river advocates.

Specific Duties

Program Management (70%)

  • Recruit, train, and retain neighborhood champions who can lead seed collections in their own neighborhoods.
  • Cultivate new and diverse voices for our local clean water movement, with a particular focus on vulnerable populations and historically excluded communities.
  • Support community seed collection events with volunteer signup and follow up
  • In the first year, recruit 5 new seed drop off sites in target geographies
  • Identify and recruit new nursery partners to help propagate native seeds
  • Manage Tomorrow’s Trees website content to ensure seasonally relevant content to connect communities to tree planting opportunities throughout the watershed, including:
  1. seed collection events
  2. seed drop off locations
  3. volunteer tree planting opportunities
  4. up to date program information and event maps
  5. resources for communities and homeowners
  6. photo content
  • Maintain active public event calendar promoting events cross posted with Potomac.org
  • Manage public inquiries relevant to Tomorrow’s Trees Program
  • Maintain or create relevant program related materials
  • Help inform programmatic strategy and new opportunities based on interactions with communities and coalition.
  • Attend events as needed

Coalition Support (10%)

  • Assist Senior Director’s efforts to recruit government, non-profit, private, and community partners to join a coalition that the Manager leads that will connect currently disparate tree planting efforts, especially those that engage communities and volunteers.
  • Support the administrative management of Coalition meetings
  • Help identify key leaders in targeted geographies for participation in the Tomorrow’s Tree Coalition

Program and Organization Administration (20%)

  • Track volunteer activities and engagement in our CRM system, EveryAction.
  • Maintain and improve data about programs and constituents to aid in data-driven decision making.
  • In coordination with Communication’s team, draft and schedule targeted emails directed to our volunteer, program and partner audiences.
  • Assist Sr. Director of Community Conservation with developing funding proposals for tree and seed program projects and personnel costs, tracking project deliverables and expenditures, and writing grant reports.
  • Assist the Sr. Director of Community Conservation with:
  1. Developing an annual work plan and budget for the tree and seed program,
  2. Preparing Tree and Seed related program-supporting materials for board and donors.
  • Participate in Committee meetings, occasional Conservancy outreach events, and Board cultivation events relevant to the Tree and Seeds program.
  • Contribute to the organization wide Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice work
  • Contribute to program and organization-wide planning, as needed.
  • Participate in staff meetings, trainings, and activities.

Experience and Qualifications*

  • 2-3 years program implementation or management experience, with aspects of community organizing or volunteer engagement, preferred.
  • Proven track record of volunteer management or grassroots organizing, either professionally or on a volunteer basis.
  • Friendly and diplomatic personality with the ability to establish rapport and develop trust-based relationships with people from diverse backgrounds and world views.
  • Strong belief in the power of collective action and collective liberation to effect change.
  • Interest in taking action to ensure Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice in community endeavors a must; experience is preferred.
  • Ability to manage multiple deadlines and requests simultaneously; strong project management skills
  • Ability to make independent decisions
  • Experience making data-driven decisions and understanding the importance of data management to achieve campaign success.
  • Experience with communities and organizations in the Potomac Watershed preferred.
  • Forestry background a plus
  • Physical Requirements:
  • Ability to traverse or navigate uneven terrain for field-based work
  • Ability to lift or coordinate transport of multiple 30-40lb seed bags
  • • Logistical Requirements:
  • Ability to work some evenings and weekends and travel across the watershed as
  • needed.
  • Access to a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation, with mileage compensation provided.

*This position uses a wide variety of skills. We encourage you to apply if you meet 70% of the requirements, and feel that you would be a good fit for this role.*

Compensation

  • Salary range is $45,000-50,000 depending on experience;
  • Benefits include medical and dental coverage, with 80% of premiums covered by the Conservancy;
  • 18 days paid time off, 11 holidays, and 3 floating personal holidays per year;
  • Half-day Fridays in July and August and one week ‘end-of-year’ break;
  • Flexible work schedule after onboarding period;
  • 403 (b) matching and flex spending accounts;
  • Working with bright, fun coworkers; and interacting with a supportive board of directors.
  • The Conservancy offers a hybrid remote- in-person work environment. The ideal candidate will be able to attend occasional meetings at our Silver Spring, MD office, and support field work throughout the DC Metro area. Quarterly in-person gatherings are required
  • This position will require some evening and weekend work but will offer flexibility to maintain a healthy work life balance. Significant day time travel around the Potomac watershed is required.

How to Apply

Please send a resume and cover letter to Alexis Dickerson at dickerson@potomac.org with Tomorrow’s Trees Manager in the subject line. We are looking to hire the best fit for this position as soon as possible. Interviews and hiring will be conducted on a rolling basis, but we will stop accepting resumes on May 30th. Any follow-up on your application may be conducted via email. No phone calls please.

Target Start Date: June 1, 2023

We recognize the environmental movement has not been an inclusive one and has a history of excluding historically discriminated communities — including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), people from working class backgrounds, women, and LGBTQ+ people. We believe that these communities must be centered in the work we do. Because of this, we strongly encourage applications from people with these identities or who are members of other communities that have been historically less included in the environmental movement.

For the health and safety of our employees, their families, and our community, all Potomac Conservancy staff are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19. This mandatory vaccine requirement applies to all staff working remotely, in a hybrid work arrangement, and on-site. Effective June 2, 2022, new hires will be required to provide proof of full vaccination with a government-approved vaccine as a condition for employment. Requests for reasonable accommodation or exceptions related to medical or religious reasons will be considered. Candidates are NOT required to state their COVID-19 vaccine status in their application