Regular Full-Time

Location:Hines or Lakeview, Oregon

Application Deadline: 18 October 2021 

Anticipated Start Date: 29 November 2021 

See full details at https://workforcenow.adp.com/mascsr/default/mdf/recruitment/recruitment.html?cid=e9cf9c51-b70e-4607-b723-b8bf76c3161b&ccId=19000101_000001&jobId=411209&source=CC2&lang=en_US

Overview: This position is part of a collaborative effort among the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), Intermountain West Joint Venture, and Pheasants Forever to promote working land conservation and restore sage-grouse habitat and populations in Lake and Harney County. The incumbent will join a team of LIT Coordinators and will be responsible for overseeing the Lakeview and Burns Sage-grouse Local Implementation Teams. The LIT Coordinator will serve as a liaison between federal, state, and local governments and stakeholders, including landowners and landowner groups, conservation organizations and others in matters regarding conservation of sage-grouse and sagebrush ecosystems at the local scale. This position will be an employee of, and be supervised by Pheasants Forever, Inc. with daily instruction and leadership provided by Pheasants Forever & ODFW.   Funding is provided by BLM, ODFW, IWJV, and PF chapters.  This position will be based in either Hines or Lakeview, OR.

Duties: 

• Streamline coordination efforts across interest groups and ownership boundaries including federal and state natural resource agencies, counties, landowners, conservation organizations, and other partners.
• Coordinate with core partners to identify issues of concern and threats to sage-grouse, rangeland health, and working ranch lands in LIT Planning Areas.
• Regularly attend relevant local partner meetings hosted by groups such as SWCDs, Harney County Wildfire Collaborative, Forest Restoration Collaborative, and others to provide LIT updates and stay informed on what’s happening locally.   
• Lead partners through the development of a Comprehensive Threat Reduction Plan for each LIT to advance on-the-ground project work in connection with these plans.
• As necessary, schedule and facilitate all LIT meetings (virtually and in-person) for each team.
• Arrange sub-group or special issue meetings as determined necessary by the LITs.
• Develop meeting agendas and notes and arrange all meeting logistics.
• Ensure communication among LIT partners before, during, and after meetings.
• Conduct outreach to livestock producers, private landowners, LIT partners, and the public.
• Facilitate frequent and open communication to integrate LITs into broader efforts by partners involved in sage-grouse issues in Oregon, including implementation of the Oregon Sage-grouse Action Plan.
• Working in partnership with local agencies, SWCDs, or other partners, coordinate education workshops and information for private landowners, livestock producers, and public land managers.
• Work with communication teams / partners (e.g., SageCon Communication Subcommittee, ODFW I&E, IWJV) and local media to highlight the work that is being done by the LIT via various media sources.
• Develop maps of threat and conservation opportunity occurrence in each LIT planning area, using GIS applications such as ESRI ArcMap and Rangeland Analysis Platform.
• Develop quarterly progress reports and participate in quarterly progress report meetings with supervisory partners.
• Provide periodic updates to funding partners on accomplishments.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as rangeland management or wildlife biology.
• Two years-experience working in rangeland conservation or comparable experience coordinating partnerships, applying for / managing grants, implementing conservation projects, etc. 
• Highly developed communication skills and strong familiarity with online communication tools such as Zoom to guide engaging virtual discussion.
• Strong understanding of sage-grouse habitat requirements in SE Oregon, local threats to sage-grouse, and conservation actions that integrate concepts of sustainable working rangelands. 
• Understanding and appreciation of landowner / working land operations and rural ranch communities.
• Familiarity with federal policies and procedures such as BLM’s NEPA process and the OR Sage-grouse ARMPA that will allow the incumbent to help communicate those concepts clearly to other interest groups such as landowners and conservation organization. 
• Ability to coordinate and communicate clearly and effectively with diverse interest groups (e.g., landowners; local, state, and federal organizations; Tribes; conservation organizations).  
• Ability to work independently with little supervision and with diverse clientele.
• Ability to maintain eager, ambitious, energetic, patient attitude under all circumstances. 
• Familiarity developing maps and map products using tools such as ArcMap, Rangeland Analysis Platform, and the SageCon Landscape Planning Tool.
• Valid driver’s license.
• Position requires flexible work schedule that varies in the number of hours worked on a daily basis, but not necessarily each day, or a work schedule in which the starting and stopping times vary on a daily basis, but not necessarily each day, and does not exceed forty (40) hours in a workweek. Work exceeding 40 hours per week requires prior approval by the supervisor.
• Physical ability to stand and walk for extended periods of time over rough terrain; lift and move material weighing up to 50 pounds; work in all types of weather conditions.