Salary: $58,704.00 – $78,900.00 Annually
Location: Thurston County – Olympia, WA
Job Type: Full Time – Permanent
Remote Employment: Flexible/Hybrid
Job Number: 2023-5-7190-06087
Department: Dept. of Natural Resources
Opening Date: 05/04/2023
Closing Date: 6/4/2023 11:59 PM Pacific

Review of applications is ongoing. The hiring authority reserves the right to make a hiring decision or close this recruitment at anytime after May 18, 2023. It is in the applicant’s best interest to submit material as soon as possible.

Want to join something GREAT and make a difference?
Bring your unique skills and creativity to work every single day, in a flexible and mutually supportive work environment among others who share your passions for urban forestry and community engagement. You will teach, inspire, and motivate others to be better stewards of urban forests across a range of different projects in communities throughout the state. If you love working with people as much as you do working with trees, if you are committed to principles of equity and environmental justice, and if you enjoy working independently as part of a small team, this could be one of your most fulfilling jobs.

DNR’s Forest Resilience Division is seeking a motivated individual to join the Urban & Community Forestry Program, a small but impactful team of passionate professionals committed to the restoration, enhancement, and management of urban forests across Washington State. As part of this Division and Program, you will work alongside a talented group of planners, scientists, foresters, and outreach professionals providing services to state, private, and federal partners to increase the health and resiliency of Washington’s forested landscapes.

The Urban Forestry Outreach Specialist educates residents and decision-makers about the economic, environmental, psychological and aesthetic benefits of trees in support of the mission and goals of the Washington State Urban and Community Forestry Program. The Urban Forestry Outreach Specialist serves as the designated technical expert and statewide lead for urban and community forestry outreach, education, and special project development statewide and oversees the growing outreach and special projects team within the UCF Program. Specifically, the Incumbent is tasked with providing consultation, program guidance, and expertise to other staff within the UCF Program and Forest Resilience Division as well as providing critical programmatic information and technical assistant to stakeholders, cities and counties, tribes, and members of the public.

Urban forestry program information is delivered to statewide stakeholders through online tools and site-based presentations, targeting urban forestry professionals employed by local governments, public and private utility organizations, community leaders, non-governmental organizations, educational institutions, and others engaged in urban forestry planning and management. The position works to build strong relationships with DNR Regions, Conservation Districts, Tribes, and allied organizations to further program goals. Outreach will incorporate the diverse perspectives of stakeholders, including those of racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse communities.

Duties
Responsibilities:
Manage and deliver urban and community forestry education and community engagement through tasks such as:

  • Serving as the designated technical expert for urban and community forestry outreach, education, and partnership.
  • Developing and implementing a statewide strategy for UCF outreach, education, and training activities for delivery to internal and external stakeholders.
  • Creating, delivering, and facilitating statewide education and training events.
  • Supporting the creation and management of the Evergreen Communities program which includes direct supervision of staff, budget, and technical resources.
  • Attend community recognition events, as requested, in support of the Tree City USA program, the Evergreen Communities program, and others.

Manage and deliver urban and community forestry outreach and communication through tasks such as:

  • Developing and implementing a communication strategy to engage diverse audiences and provide low-barrier education and literacy to stakeholders.
  • Serving as the Tree Link Newsletter managing editor responsible for coordination, development, and editorial management to inform stakeholders.
  • Developing, planning, organizing, and facilitating delivery of special events, projects, and activities to engage a broad audience to raise UCF Program visibility and engagement, including leading the planning and delivery of annual statewide Arbor Day events.
  • Seeking opportunities to promote urban forestry as a tool to address tree equity and other environmental justice issues, as well as develop new partnerships with organizations to help the UCF program better serve the needs of stakeholders in highly impacted communities.

Provide management and supervision to a professional natural resources staff to achieve program priorities and objectives; support workplan development; assign and inspect work; and promote professional development.

Qualifications
Required Qualifications: 

  • Bachelor’s degree in forestry, natural resources, urban forestry, horticulture, landscape architecture, urban planning, or environmental science from an accredited institution AND 3 years professional experience in a natural resource program area.
    OR An associate’s degree in forestry, natural resources, urban forestry, horticulture, landscape architecture, urban planning, or environmental science from an accredited institution, AND 5 years professional experience in a natural resource program area.
  • Demonstrated experience of effective oral and written communications and can convey messages clearly and persuasively. Excellent public speaking skills.
  • Demonstrated experience responding to and interacting in a positive, responsive, cooperative, collaborative manner with the public and other professionals (both inter-organizational and interdisciplinary).
  • Demonstrated experience managing events, projects, customer relations, and external communications.
  • Proficient with computers and Microsoft Office applications including SharePoint.
  • Works well independently and effectively manages multiple tasks at different stages.
  • Organizational management – has a strong understanding and ability to organize efficiently and the ability to develop or use systems for tracking implementation and accomplishments of several complex projects.
  • DNR Core Competencies: 
    • Personal Accountability 
    • Value Others 
    • Compassionate Communication 
    • Inspire Others 
    • Commitment to Excellence 

Special Requirements and Conditions of Employment:

  • Assigned duty station is the Natural Resources Building in Olympia. May be approved for other. Most work is performed indoors in office environments but includes regular onsite, outdoor settings.
  • Travel is required and may include site visits statewide, may be multiple days in length, and will require overnight stays. Additional travel may be required nationally for meetings, conferences, and other activities.
  • A valid driver’s license and have two years of driving experience. This position requires driving as an essential function. Finalists and/or interview candidates will be asked to provide a driving record from all states in which they have held a license during the past three years.
  • Employees of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) are required to complete their primary series of COVID-19 vaccines (be fully vaccinated against COVID-19) or be approved for a medical or religious accommodation as a condition of employment. Please note, any offer of employment is contingent and no start date will be approved until you have either verified your vaccine status or have an approved accommodation. “Fully vaccinated” means the following: An employee is fully vaccinated against COVID-19 two weeks after they have received the second dose in a two-dose series of a COVID-19 vaccine (e.g., Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Novavax) or a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine (e.g., Johnson & Johnson (J&J)/Janssen) authorized for emergency use, licensed, or otherwise approved by the FDA or listed for emergency use, or otherwise approved by the World Health Organization. 

Desired Qualifications: 

  • Valid International Society of Arboricultural Arborist certification or ability to obtain within 6 months of employment. 
  • Professional experience working with or for a municipal urban forestry program.
  • Experience working directly with people from diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds, including tribal relations.
  • Skills and experience managing websites and web content including use of HTML coding and subscription software such as WordPress and Mailchimp.
  • Skills and experience with general forest health issues such as insects, diseases, invasive species, drought, wildland fire, etc.
  • Grant writing and development experience.
  • Experience creating forestry training programs.
  • Experience with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), including ArcMap, Survey123, and Collector, and other mapping tools to document work and convey information to non-technical audiences.

Questions?
Please contact Ben Thompson at 360-485-8651, ben.thompson@dnr.wa.gov or e-mail us at DNRrecruiting@dnr.wa.gov

Application Requirements

  • To be considered you must apply online at www.careers.wa.gov. You must complete the entire online application to be considered for the position.
  • Attach a letter of interest describing how your experience and qualifications relate to the position profile and the position required, desired and special requirements.
  • Attach a resume describing your experience and qualifications.
  • Provide three to five professional references – you may attach a document, use the References text field in the online application, or include with resume.
  • Important: Do not attach any documents that include photos or private information (social security number, year of birth, etc.).
  • Complete all supplemental questions.

For more information and to apply: https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/washington/jobs/4028211/urban-forestry-outreach-specialist-natural-resource-specialist-4

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