Environmental Justice Air Monitoring Network Implementation Coordinator- Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge (NWR)

Title: EJ Air Monitoring Network Implementation Coordinator- Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Environmental Justice Leadership Team
Stipend: $500.00/week living stipend $300.00/week housing stipend. Equal to $1600.00 before taxes to be deposited on a bi-weekly basis.

Term:  48-week service term. October 30, 2023- October 30, 2023- September 27, 2024

Reports to: Strategic Plan Implementation Coordinator
Location: Valle De Oro National Wildlife Refuge, 7851 2nd Street SW

Status: Full Time, 48 weeks, 1,700-hour AmeriCorps Service Term

Benefits: Health Benefit eligible upon service start date, AmeriCorps Education Award of $6,495.00 after successful completion of service term. $1,300.00 Professional Development Funds, Public Land Corps (PLC) Hiring authority certificate upon completion.

Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps’ Mission

Our vision is to lead our Nation's back to ecological and cultural well-being by engaging underrepresented Indigenous youth and young adults in conservation service programs that reconnect participants to the land, their cultural heritage, and their traditions. We work to remove barriers to participation, education, and employment by partnering with local community organizations, agencies, and institutes of higher learning to create paid service and career training opportunities, personal and professional development, and pathways to postsecondary education and employment.

Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge Environmental Justice Team

The Environmental Justice Leadership Team was established to guide the implementation of Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge’s Environmental and Economic Justice Strategic Plan, and the overall- just development of the refuge. The mission of the Valle de Oro NWR EJ Leadership Team is to forward environmental, economic, and social justice through the community-based natural and cultural resource management.

Program Overview:

The EJ Air Monitoring Implementation Coordinator will support the Valle De Oro (VDO) Environmental and Economic Justice Leadership team in the implementation of its Strategic Plan, by coordinating the EJ Air Network related community-based environmental remediation, monitoring and mitigation activities to protect local health.

The Environmental Justice Air network coordinator will be responsible for facilitating the assessment, design, and launch of the community-led “EJ Air” monitoring network, which will record and analyze air quality data in the Mountain View Neighborhood, Valle de Oro NWR, and the larger South Valley area. The data collected by the EJ Air project will help identify and assess public health and safety risks from pollution and paint a picture of the environmental injustices faced by local communities. Ultimately, the project will seek to build solutions to mitigate and prevent further harms.

The coordinator will achieve these goals by working to coordinate network partners and community members for meetings, decision making, and the process of collaboratively designing the EJ Air research and data collection plan. The coordinator will also assist in other planning and administrative tasks to ensure the long-term success of this project.

 The EJ Air Network Specialist will work closely with the EJ Air Steering Committee members consisting of the Pueblo of Isleta, Mountain View Coalition, Ancestral Lands Conservation Corps, Friends of Valle de Oro, Los Jardines Institute, Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program and the Federal VDO Refuge, as well as other EJ Air Network Personnel, and EJ Air partners and contractors. As part of this position, the coordinator will be engaged in technical training with air monitoring equipment, as well as local traditional ecological knowledge from indigenous and land-based community members for a holistic monitoring approach. This offers the coordinator career development opportunities to deepen their skills or gain new skills in the environmental monitoring field, which is expected to grow and be increasingly popular as the need for better measures of the environmental injustices we face and create measurable transformative solutions.

Essential functions and responsibilities:

1. Coordinate and Support General operations of EJ Air Network
• Coordinate monthly EJ Air Network Steering Committee meetings, and coordinate breakout working groups, as needed.
• Track and hold voting process for EJ Air Steering Committee to make decisions.
• Learn the fundamentals of air quality, air monitoring, and the importance of air quality standards in relation to environmental and public health and wealth.
• Work with the EJ Air Steering Committee and EJ Air Personnel in planning and implementing a community-led air monitoring network and program.
  
  
2.  Co-Coordinate EJ Air Network community-based design, network plan, and deployment with Steering Committee, network partners, and sub-contractors.
• Coordinate development of community- based air monitoring design between Fall 2023 and Spring 2024
• Participate in the review and evaluation with the Steering Committee and partners to translate the design to be integrated into a Quality Assurance Project Plan and Quality Management Plan.
• Help coordinate general administrative fiscal duties, including Year 2 fundraising and budgeting.
• Maintain job proficiency by attending training, offered internally and by outside vendors and agencies, relevant to air monitoring and contract management.
  
  
3. Coordinate EJ Air Collaborations and Network Partnerships
• Build a working relationship between EJ Air and the emerging community air network in the Albuquerque’s International District.
• Coordinate Quarterly Open-House Networking activities for the EJ Air Network, beginning in December 2023.
• Foster diverse connections and partnerships between EJ Air and other community and institutional initiatives on local, state and national levels. 
• Participate in and document meetings and discussions with the EJ Air Steering Committee, local and state agency partners, and community partners.
• Represent EJ Air Network in meetings and public functions to provide information and to promote coordination with fellow programs.
• Documentation of the work and story of EJ Air to capture learnings and promote engagement.
• Coordinate data sharing and network learning for policy research and development.

Position times are flexible and may include evening and weekend meetings and/or activities.

Training opportunities will be provided for candidate throughout their internship.

• Agree to practice the Environmental Justice (EJ) Principles and the Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing to the best of your ability.
• Read and align the work of EJ Air with Valle de Oro NWR Environmental and Economic Justice Strategic Plan (EEJSP).
• A combination of work (lived experience) and education (equivalent of bachelor's degree) with a strong background in communication, project planning, and environmental justice.

Some of the skills, education, training, and interests being sought include:

• Experience In Community Organizing
• Writing and Communication
• Collaborative and Community-minded
• Computer and Multimedia Skills
• Project Planning and Implementation
• Experience with Environmental Monitoring and/or Public Health
• Community-based Research
• Historical Knowledge of Environmental Justice

Requirements:

• 21 years of age or older
• High School Diploma
• S. Citizenship or Permanent Resident Card, INS form I-551
  • A passport indicating that the INS has been approved it as temporary evidence of lawful admission for permanent residence A departure record (INS 194) indication that the INS has approved it as temporary evidence of lawful admission for permanent residence.
• Valid driver’s license
• Participate in occasional offsite in person/virtual meetings, trainings, and presentations.
• Relevant field experience or coursework.

Preferred Qualifications

• Locals from New Mexico, those who are bilingual, and those with experience in community-based participatory research and programs are encouraged to apply.

This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public inappropriate languages.

To apply, please submit an updated resume and letter of interest along with your online application.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Ancestral Lands Individual Placements Program Coordinator, Andrea Hanks at ahanks@conservationlegacy.org