AmeriCorps Environmental Outreach & Volunteer Coordinator

Durham, NC

This position is with Keep Durham Beautiful (KDB), located in Durham, North Carolina. KDB is a 15-year old nonprofit organization, working with community and in close partnership with the City and County of Durham to engage and inspire individuals to take greater responsibility for their community environment. KDB focuses on litter prevention, waste reduction, and community greening--including tree planting and native gardens. KDB is an affiliate of the national nonprofit Keep America Beautiful, and shares its mission, goals, and strategies for effecting behavior change for enhanced environmental stewardship

This 2023-2024 AmeriCorps position will have a start date (for new full-time 11 month members) of September 5th 2023 and an end date of July 31st 2024.

**Please make sure you upload all of the required documents -  Resume, Cover Letter, State or Federal ID, College Transcripts, Birth Certificate (if US Passport not uploaded).** If required documents are not uploaded at time of application, any offer for employment will be withheld until they are provided. All AmeriCorps Members must submit to having a National Sex Offender, State of Residence (if state is different than NC), State of NC, and Federal FBI Background check conducted. Any applicant denying to submit to these checks will be automatically disqualified as per federal regulations.

For the 2023-2024 service year, Resilience Corps NC offers a living stipend of $25,500 -$30,000 for 11 months, health insurance reimbursement for premiums, childcare assistance, and professional development opportunities (individual trainings, enrollment in NC Environmental Education Certificate Program, and conferences in conjunction with the NC Commission on Volunteerism). Members are also eligible to sign up for SNAP benefits. Participants who complete the program will receive a Segal Education Award of $6,495 from the National Service Trust.

CTNC is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate because of race, creed, color, national origin, gender, age, disability, sexual preference or familial status.

CTNC seeks to engage applicants from underrepresented communities, particularly of Asian, Black, Hispanic, Multi-Racial, and Native American background, in conservation careers. Connecting more diverse applicants to an employment pathway has led to greater equity, diversity and inclusion of all people in conservation.


Purpose of the Position

This AmeriCorps Service Member will help Keep Durham Beautiful engage a broader and more diverse audience to bring the opportunity for environmental stewardship to more people in Durham. Coordinators will develop and manage programs in our focus areas that are accessible and inclusive for diverse audiences. Coordinators will connect withcommunity members, schools, other organizations and businesses as they build strategic partnerships, collaborative networks and signature programs that include litter awareness and prevention, biodiversity, tree planting, greenspace cultivation and equitable engagement with other environmental nonprofit organizations. They will creatively develop new ways to engage the community and youth through environmental stewardship, connecting more Durham residents to the outdoors. Coordinators will refine and expand existing programs and develop new initiatives thatincrease the capacity of Keep Durham Beautiful through the use of technology such as salesforce and digital marketing, community engagement tools including events and campaigns, and robust project planning and management.


Position Responsibilities and Duties

  • Volunteer Management: Recruit, train and manage volunteers and build partnerships for service projects focusing on litter prevention, waste reduction and recycling, and community greening such as tree planting and gardening.
  • Subject Matter Expert: Become a subject matter expert on relevant environmental issues and practices in order to comfortably make presentations and lead groups on service projects that may include tree planting, native and pollinator habitat and biodiversity, community gardening, stream and road-side litter pick-up, litter prevention, waste reduction, recycling and composting, and other environmental stewardship topics.
  • Equitable Engagement: Build new partnerships and cultivate collaboration with existing partners including community leaders, organizations, schools and businesses that represent the diverse population of Durham to maximize environmental stewardship opportunities and reach.
  • Project Management: Assist with and lead the management of projects and programs that increase awareness and best practices for environmental stewardship within the Durham community. Projects and programs may be supported through grants or donations and may be targeted to specific audiences. Examples include bringing resources to schools to teach students how to protect their watersheds through litter prevention, or adding native species biodiversity to school yards, or preventing cigarette litter at Durham bus stops, or helping to plant trees to add equitable tree canopy to neighborhoods that have experienced redlining for decades, or bringing together organizations and partnerships for common goals around placemaking and environmental justice.
  • Collaborate with City and County: Develop and lead environmental stewardship campaigns in partnership with various partner departments within the City and County of Durham and other Triangle-area governments.
  • Conduct Training and Educational Presentations: Train volunteers through video and in person to serve as leaders for environmental and beautification projects such as litter cleanups, tree plantings, and youth education. Provide environmental education and outreach including occasional tabling, speaking and classroom educational activities
  • Report Metrics: Cultivate partner and volunteer retention through salesforce database record-keeping, reporting, follow-up communication, and targeted service opportunities that positively impact the volunteers’ community.
  • Represent Keep Durham Beautiful: Attend events and meetings throughout Durham as a representative of the organization.    
  • Communicate: Document upcoming events and results through social media, blogposts, and newsletter, power point presentations, flyers, infographics, photo management, and report summaries to share stories and engage additional volunteers and partners.

Qualifications 

  • Experience with recruiting and managing volunteers and engaging with community of all ages and diverse backgrounds
  • Project management, strong organization skills and ability to analyze information
  • Interest in working as member of a diverse team across various municipal departments and community partners
  • Ability to work independently with minimal supervision and minimal instruction
  • Excellent computer skills in a Microsoft Windows environment and with various software applications
  • Effective oral and written presentation and interpersonal communication skills
  • Aptitude for database management and record keeping
  • Ability to maintain a flexible work schedule
  • Able to identify and resolve problems in a timely manner, exhibit resourcefulness and initiative
  • Demonstrate interest in environmental stewardship and the ability to learn, understand and teach about technical aspects of sustainability and environmental stewardship concepts
  • Must have a valid driver’s license
  • Must be able to meet background check requirements within a municipality along with requirements for volunteering with students within schools 

Essential Functions / Physical Demands

  • Comfortable speaking in public to small groups indoors and outdoors
  • Ability to work at a computer for up to 8 hours at a time and to speak on the telephone and in person
  • Ability to lift 20-30 lbs occasionally for short periods for supply distribution such as small trees, tools, recycling equipment, or bags of litter
  • Ability to navigate across uneven or wet natural terrain, dig holes with a shovel and scoop mulch with a pitchfork for demonstration at volunteer tree planting events
  • Ability to bend to the ground in natural outdoor environments to demonstrate litter pick-up with volunteers
  • Ability to load or unload a truck with supplies for volunteer events
  • Ability to walk up to two miles while supervising volunteers
  • Ability to drive and possess a valid driver’s license


Preferred Schedule

The typical work week will range from 36-40 hours spanning certain designated business hours. Periodic weekend and evening work for service projects, events and meetings will be required several times per month. If an event is scheduled for an evening or weekend, the work week may be adjusted accordingly. The schedule is flexible with supervisor approval. Some remote work will be possible while in person work will also be required and will follow City of Durham Covid-19 safety measures.

JOB CODE: KDB