2022 Delaware River Watershed Fellowship at Berks Nature
Start date: June 6-13, 2022 End date: August 22-26, 2022
The Delaware River Watershed Fellowship is a 12-week, paid summer job opportunity designed to introduce young people from local communities to careers in environmental education. Fellows are hired at one of 23 environmental education centers across the Delaware River Watershed. Fellows participate in training sessions to help prepare them for a summer of helping people connect with nature and informing their local communities about issues affecting the Delaware River, the source of drinking water for 13 million people living in the region. Berks Nature, a member of the Alliance for Watershed Education (AWE), is seeking to hire a Fellow from Reading PA., to help connect with local community members around protecting the Delaware River and its waterways.
Position Location: The Nature Place: 575 Saint Bernardine St Reading PA 19608
Compensation: Fellows are paid $15.50/hr, 35-40 hours a week over the summer, with a possible 120- hour extension for September 2022 until April 2023.
Duties:
– Fellows will participate in a 3-day watershed education training at the Pocono Environmental Education Center (overnight, June 15-17.) http://www.peec.org/ (Depending on Covid limitations, some or all of this training may take place virtually.)
– Fellows will help their host Center lead programs and activities, whether in-person or virtually, for community members and visitors to their site.
– Fellows will attend virtual webinars as well as in-person meetings with Fellows from other AWE Centers.
– Fellows will be paired with mentors from AWE Centers as well as past Fellowship alumni. Fellows will check in with their mentors twice a month.
– With guidance from their supervisor and mentors, Fellows will focus their efforts on a specific Capstone Project and present their work at the end-of-program Summit event (August 19).
– Fellows will document their progress by completing a short log report every week.
The Berks Nature Fellow will specifically:
• Help with outreach
• Travel around the city, helping to manage community gardens.
• Develop programming and travel the city setting up an interactive table for off-site programming.
• Assist seasonal staff with summer eco-camp.
• Help produce virtual content for conservation education programs.
• Be trained on water quality and help with water quality studies.
• Run field trips at The Nature Place.
• Be provided opportunities to help connect people to nature, communicate routinely with a public audience, and interact with children of all ages.
Qualifications and Experience:
– Age 18+ by June 6, 2022 start date.
– A background in environmental education is not required.
– Spanish speaking is a plus.
– Some travel is required.
– Must be available evenings and weekends.
– Be outgoing.
– Experience with Microsoft.
– Be able to work in groups and alone.
Essential dates:
– June 7-16, 2022: Fellow start date at Berks Nature (Fellows may arrange with their supervisor to begin any time within the first week of the program.)
– June 15-17: Required Watershed Stewardship Training (overnight) at Pocono Environmental Education Center. (Meals, transportation, and accommodations provided.)
– August 19 Watershed Fellowship Summit (location to be announced).
– August 26: Last day of Fellowship (Fellows may finish their term of service any time after the August 19 Summit as needed.)
How to apply:
Email a resume and cover letter to: Kim.Murphy@berksnature.org
Supervisor: Michael Griffith
Supervisor Email: michael.griffith@berksnature.org
Application Deadline: Wednesday, April 6, 2022
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More about Berks Nature
Here at Berks Nature, we believe nature is essential to our quality of life. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit conservation organization, Berks Nature has been serving the Berks County community since 1974. Land preservation, water protection, trail management, community gardens, education programs, State of the Environment, Eco-Camp and our valued partnerships are at the center of Berks Nature’s
work every day.
More about the Alliance for Watershed Education
Organized in 2016, the Alliance for Watershed Education of the Delaware River is a regional initiative of twenty-three partnering environmental education centers, funded and supported by the William Penn Foundation. Each of these centers is located along the Circuit Trail or a major connecting trail, and on waterways throughout the Delaware River Watershed in Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
This position is made possible through the support of the William Penn Foundation