Director, Community Building

About Audubon 

The National Audubon Society is a leading nonprofit conservation organization with 120 years of science-based, community-driven impact, dedicated to protecting birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Birds are powerful indicators of our planet’s health, acting as sentinels that warn us of environmental change and inspire action. Audubon works across the Western Hemisphere, driven by the understanding that what is good for birds is good for the planet. Through a collaborative, bipartisan approach across habitats, borders, and the political spectrum, Audubon drives meaningful and lasting conservation outcomes. With 800 staff and over 1.9 million supporters, Audubon is a dynamic and ever-growing force committed to ensuring a better planet for both birds and people for generations to come. Learn more at www.audubon.org and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @audubonsociety. 

Position Summary:

The Director, Community Building will be responsible for regional efforts to educate, engage and activate existing Audubon chapters and members while expanding the sphere of influence of the Audubon network in New Mexico and Arizona. The Director, Community Building will be responsible for developing partnerships and providing education, training and capacity-building opportunities, tools, and mechanisms to build the connectedness, capacity, diversity, and size of the Audubon network in the region. The Director, Community Building will oversee programming at the Randall Davey and Rio Salado Audubon Centers in Santa Fe and Phoenix respectively, in collaboration with the Center Directors at these centers, with a goal of building and managing culturally resonant programs and messages that address community needs and connect to actions positively contributing to the conservation of our region’s birds and the spaces they need to thrive. The Director, Community Building will collaborate closely with the Senior Director of Policy to successfully engage our bipartisan network and conservation partners for successful policy campaigns and conservation leadership. They will oversee the development and delivery of Audubon’s community engagement and community science programs with a specific goal of reaching new audiences and diversifying our membership to be fully representative of Arizona and New Mexico communities.

As a senior leader on Audubon’s Southwest team the Director, Community Building will work with the Executive Director to direct operations and strategy to achieve maximum conservation impact in Arizona and New Mexico.

This is an on-site position located at one of our Audubon Centers either in Santa Fe, NM or Phoenix, AZ.

Compensation:

$95,000 – $107,000 / year

Additional Job Description

Essential Functions

• In alignment with Audubon’s Community Building milestone strategy, lead the development and execution of Audubon’s community building strategy in Arizona and New Mexico, identifying and achieving strategic priorities related to center operations, network engagement and community education.

• In partnership with Audubon Southwest Executive Director and Policy Director, provide overall strategic guidance to Audubon’s Southwest team, connecting and aligning actions and outcomes across community building, policy and advocacy, and habitat delivery programs to maximize conservation impact.

• Engage with Community Building Milestone initiative teams (Community Chapters, Conservation Action Centers, and NextGen) to coordinate on strategy and shared projects, ensuring that Southwest regional efforts align with and contribute to Flight Plan Milestones.

• Responsible for hiring, mentoring and supervising the education and engagement teams, including overseeing the recruitment and training of seasonal educators, volunteers, and interns leading to effective and impactful programming

• Work closely with the Center Directors in the region to oversee and guide programming towards achieving Flight Plan milestones.

• Establish assessment tools for measuring and evaluating program effectiveness and provide frequent reports on outcomes to the Executive Director.

• Cultivate and maintain effective partnerships with key stakeholders including, but not limited to, community organizations, other state Audubon offices and chapters, educators and school administrators, National Wildlife Refuge and National Parks employees, tribal entities, partner biologists and other specialists. Additionally, developing new partnerships that leverage Audubon’s conservation and education outreach into broader and more diverse communities.

• Serve as a spokesperson for Audubon Southwest as needed.

• Along with the other members of the senior leadership team, responsible for fundraising and helping to secure donations. Effectively and enthusiastically communicate the case for support of the Center’s program at community and fundraising events.

• Manage annual program budget and provide required financial reporting to the Executive Director, to include analyzing cost/revenue information against programmatic goals.

• Enhance existing sources of earned income, including program revenue, camp and school program tuition. In addition, work with senior leadership team to identify and develop strategic partnerships for scholarship donations.

• Prepare information for funder reports respond to education-related inquiries from donors, when needed.

• Support a culture of philanthropy, including public funding efforts.

• Collaborate with colleagues across the Americas including through joint planning and execution of shared priorities.

• Maintains and fosters culture of safety.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in natural sciences, environmental education or related area and 10 years’ professional experience developing programming. A similar combination of education and experience will also be considered.

• Demonstrated understanding of environmental and outdoor education philosophies and best practices, as well as knowledge and appreciation of the people, values and current conservation and policy issues throughout New Mexico and Arizona.

• Effective leadership skills, one able to think strategically and creatively, juggle multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and work in a dynamic environment.

• An engaging and energetic demeanor and the ability to inspire and motivate staff, volunteers, and potential partners. Must have strong interpersonal and social skills, a positive attitude and good sense of humor.

• Commitment to Audubon’s organizational values of care, collaboration, change, integrity, impact, and innovation.

• Experience fostering inclusive and collaborative work environments is valued.

• A self-starter, one who is team-centric and willing to work in a flexible, non-structured environment.

• Experience managing both paid education staff and volunteers.

• Excellent organizational, writing and speaking skills a must, as well as strong oral and written communications skills in order synthesize and communicate technical and complex information to both technical and non-technical audiences.

• Fundraising experience including, writing and overseeing grants, cultivating and managing individual donors, as well as foundations and other public agencies.

• Technical skills including, proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, experience working with social networking techniques to build awareness and engage others, and comfort developing measurement and evaluation (M&E) methodologies for programs.

• Ability and willingness to travel locally and out-of-state and be comfortable with working evenings and weekends as job demands. Must possess a valid driver's license.

• Ability to work outdoors, in all weather conditions and on varying terrain, and the ability to occasionally carry field equipment with or without accommodation.

• Spoken and written Spanish language proficiency is strongly preferred.

National Audubon Society Competencies: This role will also be accountable to apply and develop the following competencies.

Building Trust: Take actions that give others confidence in your intentions and see you as a truthful and reliable person who follows through on promises and commitments.  

Coaching: Guide and develop individuals within the organization, nurturing their professional growth and enhancing performance for the future. 

Decision Making: Make decisions based on comparative data and input from various sources, incorporating diverse viewpoints and insights for a holistic understanding. 

Leading and Facilitating Change: Be effective in guiding, managing, and supporting organizational or systemic transformations, including considering diverse needs and perspectives.  

Strategic Leadership: Demonstrate creative problem-solving skills and articulate strategic vision to help team members and the organization achieve long-term goals.  

EEO Statement

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic outlined by federal, state, or local laws. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible hiring process for all candidates.

Accessibility Statement

The National Audubon Society endeavors to keep our careers site accessible to any and all users.  If you would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process, please contact Accommodations@audubon.org. This contact information is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.