The primary focus of this position is to gain relevant experience in the natural resources/conservation field, while examining the Department’s conservation work through an equity lens.
Employees will:
- Participate in field opportunities in the wildlife, fisheries, and law enforcement divisions;
- Create video and photo documentation of the field opportunities that can be used on the VTFW webpage, Facebook and Instagram accounts;
- Participate in the one-week Wildlife Management for Educators & Outdoor Education Techniques course administered by VTFW at the Green Mountain Conservation Camp: Buck Lake in Woodbury, VT;
- Complete weekly reports that include activities completed, lessons learned, questions still being considered, and ideas for improvement; and,
- Complete a capstone project, as described below. The primary focus of the capstone project will be the justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) work being done by the Department through the lens of specific conservation-related work already done by the Department.
Capstone project description:
- The capstone project will be a deliverable to be decided upon by the employee and their supervisor. The primary focus of the capstone project will be the justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) work being done by the Department through the lens of specific conservation-related work already done by the Department. Capstone projects could include (but are not limited to): a presentation on the importance of environmental justice in Vermont, a video documentary of the employment experience, creating/delivering a lesson plan on racial equity in the outdoors, develop effective support materials addressing needs of underrepresented audiences, create a summary of recommendations for JEDI work for the future, etc. The employee will work with their supervisor to determine a capstone project and project completion timeline.
Other relevant information:
- Temporary employees may only work 1,280 hours in a 12-month period.
- Temporary employees are not eligible for healthcare coverage through the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department.
- Housing is not provided.
- COVID vaccination attestation or weekly COVID testing required for employment. Testing is free to the employee and provided by VTFW.
- Opportunities for professional development trainings, certifications, and networking with conservation professionals.
- Laptop and other work-related equipment will be provided.
- Other questions about this position should be sent to Nicole.Meier@vermont.gov
To apply:
Send your resume and letter of interest to Nicole.Meier@vermont.gov . Be sure to include why you are interested in this position and how work around issues of JEDI affect you personally/professionally.
Learn more:
Website: https://vtfishandwildlife.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vtfishandwildlife
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vtfishandwildlife/
Apply by April 15, 2022
We have both agency-wide and Department-specific teams related to equity, justice, diversity, and inclusion. The goals of these teams is to advance equity internally and externally though communications, workshops, relationships, and more.
I am the civil rights liaison for our Department, and I am tasked with ensuring we are (at the very least) compliant with Title VI, but more than that I want to ensure that we are reaching out to communities that we have traditionally harmed and excluded. We are working on repairing our relationships with our indigenous communities, BIPOC communities, LGBTQ+ community, and the disabled communities in Vermont by seeking input, asking for advice, paying them equitably for services, and asking what they need.
Hiring two staff members to this position will allow us to offer underrepresented communities a pathway into the natural resources/conservation fields, which are typically very white and male dominated.