About the opportunity:

This is a 2-year, full-time fellowship. The C.O.R.E. Fellow will serve as a liaison with the community, community partners, and Trust for Public Land (TPL) to advance the implementation of the Chattahoochee RiverLands – a bold vision for a 100-mile series of parks, trail, and restored landscapes along the Chattahoochee River between Buford Dam (Lake Lanier) and Chattahoochee Bend State Park in Coweta County. See the Chattahoochee RiverLands Study at www.RiverLands.org. Trust for Public Land sees itself as the ‘keeper of the vision.’ Toward that end, TPL convenes region-wide conversations, advocates through elected officials and partners, hosts RiverLands online and social media, acquires land needed to build the trails and parks, leads RiverLands Ramble tours, offers volunteer work days, especially related to removing invasive plant species, writes grants to raise funds for ecological restoration, develops and describes future capital/built projects needed, and actively designs, raises funds for, and builds community parks.

While the Chattahoochee RiverLands vision encompasses 100 miles along the Chattahoochee through 19 metro Atlanta cities and 7 counties, TPL has focused its implementation efforts on a 19-mile stretch of the River between Atlanta’s Peachtree Creek and Douglas County’s Boundary Waters Park. Specific efforts to construct projects and restore woodlands include west Atlanta, Smyrna, Mableton, southern Cobb County, South Fulton, Fulton County, Douglasville, and Douglas County. RiverLands Ramble tours, public engagement leading to design preferences, and hands-on volunteer efforts are most commonly focused in Atlanta’s Riverside community, Riverview Landing in Smyrna, Discovery Park at the River Line in Cobb County, and RiverLands Gateway Park in Mableton.

In partnership with our community partner, Birds Georgia, the TPL C.O.R.E Fellow will engage residents of all ages in all phases of project implementation efforts and will deepen the connection of residents to these ongoing projects. The successful C.O.R.E. Fellow will co-lead volunteer days with Birds Georgia and other corporate partners. The C.O.R.E. Fellow will also support the TPL’s Chattahoochee Program team to develop and expand our work in all the 19 cities and 7 counties that comprise the Chattahoochee RiverLands and help to strengthen relationships between residents, TPL, and our partners. Our preferred candidates is:

Connected to the community:
•   Someone who grew up, lives in, is a part of the community where this project is located.
•   Someone who is passionate about their community.
•   Someone who has a desire to improve quality of life (health, climate, and equity outcomes) in their community through improving access to close-to-home parks and trails.
•   Someone who cares deeply about the health of the environment and ecological communities.
•   Someone who knows or is connected to our community partners such as Birds Georgia, Trees Atlanta, Groundwork Atlanta, Mableton Improvement Coalition, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper.

Passionate about the mission of TPL and our Community Partners:
•   Has knowledge of or a strong interest in learning about environmental justice, outdoor recreation and/or conservation.
•   Has an interest in pursuing a career in conservation, outdoor recreation, park design and development or in work related to advancing environmental justice issues through outcomes related to health, climate, and equity.
•   Is eager to develop a long-term career in the fields of ecological restoration, grant writing, public engagement, park or trail design, and/or community building.

More About TPL:
At The Trust for Public Land (TPL), community is at the heart of everything we do. Our commitment to improving community equity, health, and climate outcomes is the cornerstone of our strategic plan. In fifty years of work, our organization has yielded the greatest results through broad and sustained community engagement. Our engagement process (Community Outreach with Resident Experts -C.O.R.E.) centers on community voice, whereby we co-design outdoor spaces with communities to ensure every park, trail, and ecological restoration project we create reflects community priorities and aspirations.

More About this Position:
Trust for Public Land is hiring three C.O.R.E. Fellows across the country to help us achieve our program and project priorities in Greeley, Colorado; Atlanta, Georgia; and Chicago, Illinois. Each C.O.R.E. Fellow will serve as a liaison with an “anchor” organization to advance park, trail, and green infrastructure priorities within their neighborhoods and cities. In partnership with each anchor organization, C.O.R.E. Fellow will be a part of TPL’s local field team and will work closely with TPL project managers and community partners to implement a project/s in their community.

Fellows will also have an opportunity to learn from each other and gain knowledge and skills needed to build a career in conservation after the 2-year fellowship is completed. Fellows will be expected to contribute to all aspects of project work (community engagement, design, and construction) by assisting project managers in their project tasks and helping the team center community in everything we do. CORE Fellows will have opportunities to learn about and engage with all aspects of TPL’s work and will be given the opportunity to engage with TPL national staff and leadership. This is a 2-year, full time fellowship. You will be an employee of The Trust for Public Land and your annual salary will be $50,000 plus benefits. Fellows are expected to commit to the position for the full 2-year time period. The successful candidate will be expected to work both remotely and from TPL’s Georgia Office at: 600 West Peachtree Street, Suite 1840, Atlanta, GA, 30308. This position will sometimes work from the Birds Georgia offices at: 825 Warner St. SW, Suite B, Atlanta, GA 30310

Responsibilities or Lists of Tasks:

60%     Working in community. Possible job duties include:
•   Engage with and co-lead with other TPL staff and community partners project implementation
•   Work with TPL and community partners to develop outreach and communication strategies
•   Develop outreach and educational materials (flyers, newsletters)
•   Organize and co-lead RiverLands Ramble tours
•   Secure tools, sign-in sheets, materials, etc. for volunteer work days
•   Organize and participate in outreach events (workshops, barbecues, art projects, tabling at events, etc.)
•   Generate and maintain community contact lists
•   Work with project staff to compile and summarize community feedback
•   Assist project staff to document meetings and events
•   Assist project staff with any other documentation related to outreach activities
•   Provide general administration and program support.
•   Represent TPL in the community at meetings, events, etc. (ie. show up/be visible/engage)
•   Contribute to social media platforms
•   Manage online RiverLands events calendar

20%    Professional Development
•   1:1 Meetings with supervisor
•   Time spent with mentor and other fellows
•   Skill based trainings or research related to career aspirations
•   Networking among TPL colleagues and community partners

10%    Internal-focused work
•   Weekly meetings with supervisor, team and/staff meetings, monthly TPL all staff meetings, project coordination meetings, HR trainings, etc.
•   Help us develop and improve the fellowship experience by participating in the C.O.R.E. Fellowship Program development by providing feedback and insights at key milestones.

10%    Relationship Building
•   Networking and learning opportunities such as conferences and staff retreats.
•   Marketing and story-telling including sharing your work and experience with others through communication efforts such as blogs, interviews, and other internal and external communication opportunities.

This position requires working ‘off-hours’ including some weekend and evening meetings and events. Due to the community-based nature of this work, it is anticipated that fellows will often work on site within the community they serve. Fellows will be provided with a laptop and TPL will work with each C.O.R.E. Fellow to understand other remote work needs to ensure they have what they need to be productive. C.O.R.E. Fellows will be expected to be in the office approximately 3 days per week for staff meetings and professional development opportunities at their manager’s discretion. Ability and willingness to travel to other communities that may be several hours away from your home is requested. These trips will be planned in advance and scheduled with your input.

What are we looking for?

We hope to find people who will become the community champions, professional experts, environmental justice leaders, conservation heroes, and park and trail advocates that their community deserves and our country needs. We are looking for someone who is interested in a two-year position where their community expertise and passion to improve their neighborhood is an asset and their lived experiences are valued. We want to meet people who are interested not only in investing their knowledge and expertise in our work at TPL so that we can do our work better, but also interested in investing in their community and in themselves.

Since this is a two-year position, we hope to find candidates that see this experience as a step in their career development and are willing to invest their time, passion, and energy in making the most out of their time with TPL. In return, TPL will support each fellow and work with them to advance their career aspirations. We hope that the C.O.R.E. Fellows will support each other, future fellows, and communities across the country by sharing their expertise and knowledge with the world when the fellowship is completed. Are you…

•   Interested and comfortable leading and working with community?
•   Able to work independently? A self-starter?
•   Able to work flexibly and without constant oversight?
•   Curious to learn?
•   A strong collaborator? Able to work within a team at TPL and with community partners?

Trust for Public Land is committed to cultivating a diverse staff that is representative of the communities we serve. Applications from individuals having diverse backgrounds and life experiences are strongly encouraged. We are open to the possibility that a great candidate for this job may not precisely meet all of the above criteria; if you believe you’re the right person for this job and can persuasively make that case, we encourage you to apply.

Research shows that women and other underrepresented and historically marginalized groups tend to apply only when they check every box in the posting. If you are reading this and hesitating to click “apply” for that reason, we encourage you to go for it! A true passion and excitement for making an impact is just as important as work experience.

How to Apply:
Submit your resume (required) and either a cover letter or short 2-minute video explaining why you are the right person for this position to https://www.tpl.org/careers

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