Restoration Ecologist

Endemic Environmental Services, Inc; Fullerton (CA); Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, vision

401(k) with 4% match

Paid time off & sick leave

11 observed holidays

Employee Assistance Program

Job summary

Endemic Environmental Services, Inc. seeks an experienced Restoration Ecologist to lead projects across Southern California. You will translate ecological objectives into scopes, schedules, staffing plans, field directions, and client deliverables.

Responsibilities include managing projects end-to-end, supervising staff, coordinating field operations, and ensuring work is completed safely, on time, and within budget, in collaboration with leadership.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Ecology, Biology, Environmental Science, Botany, or related field is required; master’s preferred.
• 5+ years in applied restoration ecology, habitat restoration, or environmental consulting.
• 2+ years independently managing project scope, schedules, budgets, and client communication.

Responsibilities

• Lead habitat restoration projects from planning to closeout; manage scope, schedule, staffing, and budgets.
• Supervise staff, assign work, coach performance, and ensure safety and quality.
• Coordinate field operations with crews, subcontractors, and regulatory agencies.
• Review data and reports for accuracy, compliance, and defensibility.
• Serve as day-to-day client contact for projects and support proposals and change orders.

Skills

CEQA/NEPA

Ecological monitoring

Project management

Staff supervision

Client communication

Local plant communities

Education

Bachelor’s in Ecology/Environmental Science

Master’s degree preferred

Tools

None

Job description

Full-Time | Southern California (Orange County Focus) | $70,000-$95,000 DOE

Restore more than Landscapes

Every day across California, wetlands disappear, wildlife habitat becomes fragmented, and ecosystems face increasing pressure from growth and climate change. At Endemic Environmental Services, we believe environmental consulting should do more than satisfy regulations:

We believe it should leave ecosystems healthier than we found them.

Since 2009, our scientists, ecologists, restoration specialists, GIS professionals, and environmental planners have partnered with public agencies, utilities, developers, and conservation organizations to restore habitats, protect species, improve water resources, and solve complex environmental challenges.

Our long-term mission is simple:

Conservation at Scale

We're building an organization that protects California today while creating the systems, knowledge, and partnerships needed to restore ecosystems for generations to come. If that mission excites you, we'd love to meet you

Our Work

Every year our teams help:

• Restore wetlands and native habitats
• Protect threatened and endangered species
• Improve water quality
• Support public agencies throughout California
• Advance conservation through research, education, and restoration

Who Thrives Here

You'll probably enjoy Endemic if you...

• Love solving difficult environmental problems.
• Care about science and field work.
• Take ownership.
• Want responsibility instead of bureaucracy.
• Believe conservation and development can coexist.
• Want your work to matter.

Why this Role Matters

We are looking for an experienced Restoration Ecologist who can lead projects and people. This is a hands‑on role for someone who can translate ecological objectives into clear scopes, schedules, staffing plans, field direction, and client deliverables.

You will manage assigned restoration projects from kickoff through closeout, directly supervise staff, coordinate field operations, and help ensure work is completed safely, professionally, on time, and within budget. You will work closely with our Director of Habitat Restoration and leadership team to strengthen restoration delivery across Southern California.

What You'll Own

• Lead habitat restoration and mitigation projects from planning and kickoff through implementation, monitoring, reporting, and closeout.
• Develop and maintain project scopes, schedules, staffing plans, milestones, budgets, and deliverable calendars.
• Directly supervise assigned employees, including work assignment, scheduling, coaching, performance feedback, development, and accountability.
• Review timecards and time-off requests and participate in hiring, onboarding, training, and performance-management processes.
• Coordinate field crews, technical staff, subcontractors, vendors, clients, and regulatory agencies.
• Track labor, budgets, deadlines, and project risks; communicate issues early and drive practical solutions.
• Develop or review restoration plans, plant palettes, invasive species strategies, monitoring methods, success criteria, and adaptive‑management recommendations.
• Review ecological data and technical reports for accuracy, completeness, compliance, and defensibility.
• Serve as the day‑to‑day client contact for assigned projects and support proposals, scopes, fee estimates, and change orders.
• Promote safe field practices, professional communication, and consistent adherence to company and project requirements.

What We're Looking For

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Ecology, Biology, Environmental Science, Botany, or a related field required; master's degree preferred.
• Experience: 5 or more years of applied restoration ecology, habitat restoration, environmental consulting, or related experience.
• Project Management: At least two years independently managing project scope, schedules, staffing, budgets, deliverables, and client communication.
• People Management: Demonstrated experience directly supervising employees, assigning work, managing schedules, coaching performance, and developing staff.
• Technical Skills: Strong knowledge of CEQA/NEPA, ecological monitoring, Southern California plant communities, restoration practices, and technical reporting.
• Leadership Style: Organized, accountable, solutions‑oriented, and able to communicate clearly with employees, crews, clients, agencies, and leadership.
• Preferred: SER certification, QAL/QAC, CNPS familiarity, and experience with proposals, fee estimates, project forecasting, subcontractors, or multidisciplinary teams.
• Full‑time, salary‑exempt position with a combination of office, field, and active project‑site work.
• Regular travel to project sites throughout Southern California; occasional overnight travel may be required.
• Schedules may vary with project needs and may occasionally include early mornings, evenings, weekends, or overtime.
• Fieldwork may include walking over uneven terrain and working in varied weather and outdoor conditions.
• $ $70,000-$95,000, DOE, with higher consideration for strong project‑management, CEQA/NEPA, supervisory, and client‑facing experience.
• Scaling accrued PTO and 40 hours of paid sick leave annually.
• Health, dental, vision, and life insurance.
• Ten observed holidays.
• 401(k) retirement plan with 4% company match.
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Why Endemic is Different

• small bureaucracy
• conservation
• research
• long‑term vision

Where are we going?

We're building more than an environmental consulting company. We're building an organization dedicated to conservation, restoration, education, and research. If you're looking for a career where your work contributes to something larger than yourself, we'd love to talk.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Endemic Environmental Services is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.