JOB SUMMARY
The Louisiana Field Director will work to advance the mission of Action for the Climate Emergency (ACE), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to educating and activating millions of young people to end the era of fossil fuels, accelerate the deployment of renewable energy, and ultimately avoid the worst impacts of the climate emergency.
This is a full-time, remote position based in either the New Orleans or Baton Rouge metro areas. The Louisiana Field Director will work from a home office and will participate in regular in-person organizing events, field operations, and partnership meetings. The Louisiana Field Director will also meet regularly by video chat with ACE team members, partners, young people and funders. Candidates must be available for regular travel throughout Louisiana to participate in fieldwork, campaigns, actions, in-person presentations, assemblies at local high schools, conferences, organizing, other events, and to attend staff retreats.
KEYS TO SUCCESS
You are an organizer through and through. Organizing comes naturally to you and you see both the value of field-based and digital organizing, and how powerful they can be in combination. You’ve worked on campaigns that range from climate justice to voting rights, and you care deeply about ensuring that young people have access to the ballot and are able to fully participate in our democracy.
You prioritize building a community of people to share the wins and the struggles of organizing. You develop and maintain a strong vision for base-building and the importance of building relationships with a diverse group, such as people of color, people with disabilities, low-income families, unhoused people, and immigrants. You know how to build alliances and find points of collaboration even when there are competing interests.
You understand the in and outs of campaign implementation that prioritizes building local and national people power. You have a track record of accomplishing ambitious goals and taking initiative and getting results even when there are obstacles. You set a high bar and meet it because you think three (or 30) steps ahead to anticipate hurdles and come up with pragmatic solutions. You plan backward and involve stakeholders appropriately.
You practice and prioritize building teams that are heard, respected, valued, and retained. You approach leadership with a mindset of “power with” rather than “power over” and regularly include others in decision-making. You have experience managing multiple projects and keeping tasks from slipping through the cracks. You use resources wisely and can manage a team of staff, consultants, and volunteers to leverage time and talent for impact.
Commitment to racial equity and social justice: You recognize the role of race, income, age, immigration status, and other identities in shaping climate disparities, and you consistently amplify community voices to advocate for more equitable policy solutions. You recognize how your own identities show up in the work, and welcome, reflect on, and act on feedback with an eye toward continuous learning about race, ability, and other lines of difference.
Key Responsibilities
Leadership and Management: Louisiana is a long-term investment priority state for ACE. With more than 34,000 youth members and seven youth-led Action Teams already in place, we are eager for our new Louisiana Field Director to take the reins in developing a thoughtful, evidence-based state strategy in collaboration with our partners and funders on the ground, and with a special focus on civic engagement. The Louisiana Field Director will also manage a Louisiana Organizing Manager (to be hired) whose main role will be to directly recruit and manage 20 youth-led Action Teams statewide, participating in state-based climate advocacy and civic engagement work, including all aspects of recruitment, on-boarding, training, engagement, advocacy, civic engagement, and legislative action.
Campaigns Strategy and Field-based Campaign Work: The Louisiana Field Director will stay tuned in to local and state current issues to inform our Louisiana strategy, and help to co-create and implement state-based climate education, civic engagement, and climate advocacy campaigns to grow our base and engage new young people in our campaign work. Additionally, the Louisiana Field Director will lead and manage all field-based work seasonally each election cycle to increase diverse youth participation in our democracy, as well as manage field-based climate and clean jobs advocacy activities at the state level in partnership with state-based partners and youth members.
Digital Base Building and Outreach: The Louisiana Field Director will manage the state-based digital communications and media program to engage the 34,000+ members of the Louisiana Youth Action Network and the seven youth-led Action Teams. This includes writing copy and programming associated emails and text messages, supporting the digital advertising team with copywriting and creative, and supporting script development for any Louisiana-specific video creative.
Content Development: ACE is a digital-forward organization. As such, the Louisiana Field Director will support the development of state-specific video content, social media campaigns, live events, and other relevant content creation as needed. This may include the use of short-form video ecosystems like TikTok, Reels, or Triller to communicate effectively about policies, events, coalitions, campaigns, trends, related hashtags, and other news of the day.
In-School Assembly Presentations: The Louisiana Field Director will be trained to deliver ACE’s in-person climate education program, Our Climate Our Future Live, to high schools in the New Orleans metro area and will also supervise the Louisiana Organizing Manager (to be hired) to do the same. Our Climate Our Future Live is a powerful education and base-building tool for the purposes of expanding our Youth Action Network, recruiting for ACE Action Teams, and registering youth voters.
Qualifications
A minimum of 5-7 years experience in field or issue organizing, preferably with a climate or civic engagement focus.
Exceptional leadership and management skills as demonstrated through leading organizing teams and campaigns.
Strong digital skills in email and SMS marketing, social media, workflow management (e.g. MobileCommons, Engaging Networks, EveryAction, Salesforce, Monday.com, or other useful organizing technologies).
Experience strategizing and leading campaign work in the climate, clean energy or civic engagement sectors.
Strong analytical skills with the ability to set priorities, complete work with minimal supervision, and meet deadlines. The best candidates aren’t waiting to be told what to do—they are using the information they have to make decisions and get the work done.
Strong track record of time and project management.
Self-starter with exceptional organizational skills and creativity.
Existing expertise or willingness to master trends in climate education, youth development, youth organizing, and the climate movement.
Awareness of the issues of concern to young people, including climate change and climate justice, and a passion for empowering youth to take action.
Strong interpersonal skills and ability to cultivate and manage partnerships, internal and external. Excellent communicator, reliable and clear.
Minimum of 10+ years of work experience in the fields of electoral campaigning, civic engagement, and/or climate and clean energy policy
Employees must be able to perform the essential functions of the position satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job, absent undue hardship.
POSITION DETAILS
Schedule: Full-time
Annual salary range: $80,000-90,000, commensurate with experience
Generous benefits include: Medical, Dental, Vision, 403b retirement savings plan, Vacation, Sabbatical, Paid Parental Leave, 2 Floating Holidays, 2 Community Service Floating Holidays, sick time, two weeks of full-staff time off (July 4 week and Christmas-New Years week) and 13 observed holidays
ACE is an equal-opportunity employer that highly values staff diversity
Location: Remote, New Orleans or Baton Rouge metro area
ACE is an equal opportunity employer that highly values diversity, equity, and inclusion and views the climate crisis as a social justice crisis. People who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), people who experience gender oppression, people with disabilities, and people who identify as members of the LGBTQIA+ community are particularly encouraged to apply.