Freshwater Engagement Coordinator (CFAWN-55) — 15-week

Job Description – Clean Leadership 2022 Program 

We are committed to Employment Equity and our goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative at all job levels. We welcome applications from Indigenous people, Visible Minority Groups, Persons with Disabilities, LGBTQ2+ people and Women in Occupations or positions where they are under-represented. If you are a member of one of the equity groups, you are encouraged to self-identify on our registration form. 

Summary of the Program 

The Clean Leadership program (formerly Nova Scotia Youth Conservation Corps or Youth Corps) was established in 1989 to provide youth with training and employment opportunities in the environmental field. This program engages community partners across the province to hire youth to carry out work in the summer months that fosters environmental stewardship. The Clean Leadership program provides youth with clean sector work experience; an enhanced appreciation of the environment and their community, with opportunity to give back; skills for life-long learning (including job-readiness and leadership skills); and knowledge for future employment and/or education ventures. Interns will benefit from experiential work experience, a professional development training and leadership conference, networking opportunities and new connections. 

Job Title  

Freshwater Engagement Coordinator – 15 week internship  

Job Location 

Remote position, occasional in-person work in Halifax and New Brunswick 

Hours  

Full time – 35 hours per week 

Summary of Position  

The community partner for this Summer Intern position through the Clean Leadership program will be Atlantic Water Network (AWN), a project of MakeWay Charitable Society, reporting to the Research Manager.  

The Freshwater Engagement Coordinator will work on a number of initiatives over the course of the summer in collaboration with AWN’s local and regional community partners. Responsibilities will include leading the outreach strategy for a planned Citizen Science Bootcamp, supporting the delivery of technical training workshops to community-based water monitoring organizations, and creating engaging communications content and products. The Coordinator will also complete an independent research project with the goal of compiling an outreach database of AWN’s growing network of over 100 community partners. 

The successful candidate needs to possess strong written and verbal communications skills and have demonstrated experience with community outreach. This position will require creativity, energy, and enthusiasm for engaging diverse audiences in community-driven environmental change.  

Community Partner 

AWN’s vision is that Atlantic Canadians are collectively empowered to leverage local knowledge in support of healthy waters now and for generations to come.

Our mission is to be a centralized hub that supports community-based water monitoring throughout Atlantic Canada and beyond. We achieve this by:

• Strengthening a regional network with shared water objectives
• Providing leadership, resources, education, and training
• Promoting local priorities in water policy
• Building trust in community-collected data

Learn more about our programs and activities at https://atlwaternetwork.ca.

Duties and Responsibilities  

Complete an independent research project to compile an outreach database of AWN community partners

Implement the engagement strategy for a planned Citizen Science Bootcamp under the supervision of AWN’s Research Manager. Duties include:

• Keeping track of and communicating with event participants
• Preparing materials for engagement activities
• Evaluating progress throughout the project duration

Participate in and assist with the delivery of equipment training sessions for AWN’s network of community-based water monitoring organizations.

Develop and maintain positive relationships with new and existing freshwater community partners

Support AWN communications activities under the supervision of the Communications Specialist. Duties include:

• Creating engaging content (written, photos, videos, graphics) for blogs, social media, AWN’s website, and other communications channels
• Monitor communication channels for unique ideas or trends to pitch and implement through AWN’s communication strategy
• Assisting in the creation of communications training materials and workshops

Work with AWN’s Data Scientist to support the development of a Data Support Strategy and other community engagement activities, culminating in a collaborative end-of-summer showcase.

Attend and assist with a choice of virtual or in-person outreach events (at a minimum, monthly) throughout the summer that are run by community environmental organizations, such as water quality monitoring runs, BioBlitzes, webinars, and workshops.

Requirements/Qualifications 

• Must be a Canadian citizen, Permanent Resident, person who has been granted Refugee Status, or legally entitled to work in Canada;  
• Must be between the ages of 15 and 30 years old (inclusive) at the start of internship; 
• From and/or will be residing in Nova Scotia for the duration of the internship; 
• Must be a full-time student* and intending to return to school in Fall 2022; 
• *Note: Indigenous, Black and/or African Nova Scotian youth between 18-30 years of age do not need to be current students to be eligible. 
• Must not be an immediate family member of community partner; 
• Have an aptitude for safe work practices and the ability to multi-task in a busy work environment; 
• Be able to work productively as part of a team while responding to feedback; 
• Demonstrated passion and interest in future employment in the environmental or clean sector is considered an asset; 
• Coursework in education, communications, natural resources management, planning, environmental sciences, or related disciplines. 
• Must be adept in both teamwork and working independently   
• Strong communication (written and oral) and outreach skills with diverse audiences 
• Comfortable communicating difficult scientific concepts to lay audiences  
• Detail-oriented, with demonstrated experience in event planning  
• Experience with environmental monitoring will be considered an asset  
• Volunteer management experience will be considered an asset 

Wage  

$18 / hour 

Working Conditions  

• Requires a home office setup and laptop (access to coding software and other tools will be provided)   
• Willingness to travel within the province and to other Maritime provinces, should travel be permitted  
• Willingness and ability to work outdoors in various field conditions, should travel be permitted for occasional in-person engagement opportunities 

Physical Requirements  

•   N/A