Collaboration Specialist

PeopleAdmin, Inc.; Las Vegas (NM); On-site; USD 55,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

The New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute (FWRI) seeks a full-time Collaboration Specialist to engage with community-based conservation groups across New Mexico. This role focuses on organization, administration, and capacity building within the FWRI Collaboration Program.

Qualifications include a bachelor’s degree in a related field and at least six months of experience with conservation collaboratives. Willingness to travel is required.

Qualifications

• Experience facilitating collaboration among diverse groups.
• Understanding of forest restoration and conservation networks.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a specialist in collaborative practice for FWRI’s Collaboration Program.
• Attend meetings (in-person/virtual) of groups; travel around New Mexico.
• Help groups build capacity; track needs of groups and resources.
• Work with federal, state, tribal, and local land managers and stakeholders.
• Produce materials to support collaborative groups.
• Organize sub-regional networks for peer learning and information sharing.
• Attend network meetings and contribute to activities.
• Connect community groups to regional and multi-state networks.
• Raise public awareness of collaborative forest management.
• Coordinate with SWERI institutes and partners in FORT.
• Represent FWRI at events; acquire funding from various sources.
• Maintain regular attendance and punctuality; perform additional duties.

Skills

Facilitation

Network-building

Stakeholder engagement

Public outreach

Grant writing basics

Event coordination

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Forestry, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Education, or related field

Job description

Please see Special Instructions for more details.

Position Information

Position

Full Time/Part Time

Full Time/Part Time Full Time

Job Type

Job Type Regular

Position Summary

The New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute ( FWRI ) seeks a full-time Collaboration Specialist to work with community-based conservation collaborative groups and networks around the state of New Mexico on organization, administration and capacity building, and to contribute to building the FWRI’s Collaboration Program. The position requires a bachelor’s degree in Forestry, Environmental Sciences, or Environmental Education, or a closely related field, with coursework in human dimensions, or an equivalent amount of work experience. The Collaboration Specialist will work closely with the Collaboration Program Manager and other FWRI staff to promote and support collaborative groups and networks in New Mexico and neighboring states. The Specialist will organize and administer sub-regional networks, on the Connecting for Conservation (C4C) model, and will link place-based collaboratives and sub-regional networks with multi-state networks, such as the Southwest Collaborative Support Network and the Western Collaborative Conservation Network. The job requires working with colleagues in public agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service and the New Mexico State Forestry Division; with staff at non-profit organizations such as The Nature Conservancy and the Forest Stewards Guild; with farmers, ranchers and soil and water conservation districts; with businesses; and with landowners and community members in rural, suburban and urban areas. The Collaboration Specialist also will coordinate with partners at other SWERI institutes in Arizona and Colorado, and with partners in the Forest Restoration Triangle ( FORT ) from New Mexico Highlands University and New Mexico State University. The mission of the FWRI is to promote practices that advance adaptive management, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire and improve ecosystem function. The Collaboration Program complements FWRI expertise in monitoring, geospatial information systems, outreach, economics, and ecological restoration. The FWRI is one of three Southwest Ecological Restoration Institutes ( SWERI ), with partner institutes in Arizona and Colorado. The FWRI is located on the campus of Highlands University in historic Las Vegas, NM. Highlands University, a Hispanic Serving Institution, offers a comprehensive education to a diverse student body, and Highlands faculty are actively involved in research, service and outreach. Las Vegas is located at the foot of the picturesque Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and offers small-town charm, a healthy environment and abundant year-round outdoor recreational opportunities in nearby national forests, state parks, and wildlife refuges. Santa Fe, New Mexico’s capital, is an easy 60-minute drive to the west, and Taos and Albuquerque can be reached in less than two hours.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serve as a specialist in collaborative practice in the FWRI’s Collaboration Program;
• Attend face-to-face and virtual meetings of collaborative groups, and maintain a register of activities each group is involved in. This will require travel around New Mexico;
• Assist collaborative groups in building collaborative capacity, keep track of the needs of each group, and of organizations and projects that provide resources to collaborative groups;
• Work productively with federal, state, tribal, and local land managers, private landowners, representatives from environmental and conservation organizations, farmers and ranchers, business people, and others who participate in conservation collaboratives;
• Produce materials that can benefit collaborative groups;
• Organize and promote sub-regional collaborative networks that link together collaborative organizations for peer-to-peer learning, coordination and information sharing;
• Attend meetings of collaborative networks, and contribute to the activities of these organizations;
• Connect community-based collaborative groups to sub-regional, regional and multi-state networks, and assist in communications between these entities;
• Develop public awareness of the purposes and accomplishments of collaborative forest management;
• Coordinate with personnel from the other SWERI institutes, the Ecological Restoration Institute in Flagstaff, AZ, and the Colorado Forest Restoration Institute in Fort Collins, CO, and with partners in the Forest Restoration Triangle ( FORT ), as necessary;
• Represent the FWRI at local, regional, or statewide events;
• Acquire funding for FWRI activities from federal, state, and private sources;
• Maintain regular attendance and punctuality;
• Perform additional duties as assigned by the FWRI Director.
• Education: A bachelor’s degree specializing in human dimensions of natural resources, forest management, environmental science, environmental education, or a closely related field, is required.
• Experience: A proven record of at least six (6) months’ experience working with conservation collaborative groups, which includes participating in meetings, planning group activities, and coordinating collaborative networks.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated understanding of collaboration and collaborative forest management and restoration;
• Experience working with forest collaboratives and networks in New Mexico and the Southwest;
• Experience in creating and maintaining web-based resources, including websites, social media sites, and maps;
• Experience working with New Mexican landowners and managers, and understanding of restoration priorities;

Special Conditions for Eligibility

• Must possess and maintain a valid NM driver’s license. Selection of a candidate holding an out-of-state driver’s license will require possession of a valid New Mexico driver’s license within sixty (60) days of employment.
• Must be willing to travel.
• Must pass required defensive driving training.
• Must be willing to work weekends, evenings and odd hours as required.
• Must be able to pass a criminal background check.
• Continued employment is contingent upon grant funding.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge in and skill at facilitation of collaborative land management;
• Knowledge, familiarity, and experience in New Mexico and the diverse communities in the state;
• Knowledge of federal and state grants and skill at writing grant proposals;
• Skill at working collaboratively with people of diverse backgrounds on natural resources issues;
• Ability to communicate effectively to diverse professional and public audiences;
• Ability to write technical reports for internal and external publication;
• Ability to work productively, professionally and collegially with colleagues and diverse external stakeholders, as attested to by professional references;

The FWRI has offices and lab space at Highlands University. The Institute staff work collegially and collaborate frequently with partners throughout New Mexico and beyond. Field work is performed in rural and peri-urban environments with community groups that are often resource-limited.

Pay Rate

Work Location/Campus Center

Work Location/Campus Center Las Vegas, NM Campus

New Mexico Highlands University is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. We are committed to the University values of diversity, accessibility, excellence, and responsiveness. For disabled access or services call 505-454-3242 or email [e-mail] Visit the link below for more information regarding affirmative action and equal opportunity: Equal Employment Opportunity is THE LAW

Posting Number AS469P

Open Date 04/06/2021

Open Until Filled Yes

Documents Needed to Apply

• Required Documents
• Resume
• Cover Letter/ Letter of Interest
• Unofficial Transcripts Conferring Required Degree

• Optional Documents
• Letter(s) of Recommendation