Wilderness Fellow

Job Overview

Title: Wilderness Fellow

Reports To: SWS National Program Director

Classification: Hourly

Location: Fellow positions are based in multiple states including Alaska, California, and Idaho.

Start Date: May 2022 (6 month Fellowship)

Time: Full Time (40 hours), Seasonal

Salary: $15/hour

Benefits: 1 earned personal day per month and federal holidays.

Closing Date: March 30th, 2022

Program Overview

The Wilderness Fellows Program was created to complete Wilderness Character Baseline Assessments, thereby continuing important assessment work that has been underway since 2001, and fulfilling the USFS Wilderness Stewardship Performance (WSP) element “Wilderness Character Baseline”. The central mandate of the 1964 Wilderness act – to preserve wilderness character.” The Wilderness Character Baseline requires that steps be made to determine a baseline and provide the foundation for evaluating trends in wilderness character. These trends indicate the outcome of management actions and success at ‘preserving wilderness character’ as directed by the Wilderness Act.

Partners

The Society for Wilderness Stewardship (SWS) is a non-profit organization seeking to promote excellence in the professional practice of wilderness stewardship, science, and education to ensure the life-sustaining benefits of wilderness. In other words, we are a professional society working to set the standard for wilderness management.

The US Forest Service was founded by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1905, and today oversees 445 wilderness areas, or 33% of the National Wilderness Preservation System.   Inaugural Chief of the USFS, Gifford Pinchot, stated that the USFS existed to “provide the greatest amount of good for the greatest amount of people in the long run.”

The Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute (Leopold) is dedicated to the development and dissemination of knowledge needed to improve the management of wilderness, parks, and similarly protected areas.

Position Overview

The Wilderness Fellow Program is seeking qualified candidates to fill Wilderness Fellow positions. Fellows are based in locations around the country, with a significant amount of travel within their base region. Work is roughly 90% office based and 10% field based, and is performed at USFS offices to directly support the goals of a collaborative wilderness character monitoring initiative currently underway in the USFS.

Primary Wilderness Fellow Responsibilities

• Attend a one-week training.
• Work out of remote USFS locations, residing in USFS housing.
• Coordinate meetings with USFS personnel to gather information regarding wilderness character.
• Research, compile, and analyze legislative and administrative data per wilderness area.
• Travel to and into wilderness areas.
• Select indicators relevant for each wilderness area to monitor wilderness character over time.
• Compile and analyze data and complete a baseline report for wilderness character monitoring.
• Implement inventory and monitoring strategies for tracking wilderness character.
• Write a wilderness character baseline assessment for each wilderness area worked in.
• Participate in weekly conference calls.
• Set and meet goals and deadlines for data collection, meetings, and draft and final reports.

Key Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field, Master’s degree preferred.
• Educational background in Wilderness Management, Protected Area/Natural Resource Management, Recreation Resource Management, Conservation, Social Science, Environmental Policy, Natural, Biological and/or Physical Science.
• Deep interest in wilderness/resource management and the U.S. Forest Service.
• Outstanding written and oral communication skills.
• Research skill and attention to detail and organization.
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively on projects, a high degree of initiative.
• Understanding and the ability to use GIS is a plus.
• Results-oriented with the ability to set and follow realistic goals and objectives.
• Flexibility to adapt when faced with changing needs and priorities.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, comfort with technology.
• Ability to visit remote field locales (travel paid) and relocate if necessary (travel not paid).
• Must have valid driver’s license and clean driving record (proof required upon request).
• A personal vehicle is highly suggested for travel to the location and off-day travel.

To Apply: E-mail a resume, cover letter, a one-to-two page writing sample, and three professional or academic references to Todd Loubsky at: [email protected]

Essential Functions: Employee may be required to sit, stand, and lift objects up to 50 lbs. Employee may be required to travel and camp in the backcountry, and to drive or fly to remote project locations.

The Society for Wilderness Stewardship is an equal opportunity employer.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, marital status, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other protected status.