Reports to:                        Stewardship Program Manager

Want to play your part in protecting our local communities from the impacts of climate change? Ready to roll up your sleeves to help achieve tangible results? Ready to begin a career in conservation?  Want to be part of a talented, deeply committed, and national award-winning conservation organization? Then please read on!

Sonoma Land Trust (SLT) is looking for two entry level Stewardship Technicians who are interested in gaining a wide range of stewardship experience in anticipation of a land conservation career. These positions will spend approximately 75% of time in the field.

SLT serves a diverse audience with broad cultural heritages, socioeconomic backgrounds, genders, and orientations. We encourage applications from candidates who reflect and value the audiences and populations we serve.

Overview

The Stewardship Technician works closely with Stewardship colleagues to assist with implementation of SLT’s property and infrastructure repair and maintenance and performs a broad range of natural resource management and restoration activities on our preserves countywide. Work includes, but not limited to, wildfire resiliency work, erosion control, livestock grazing, weed control, and various habitat enhancement projects. The position will assist with many aspects of our six focal strategies in the 2028 Strategic Plan. The Technician will also provide administrative and field support to the conservation easement program. The Stewardship Technician may supervise volunteers, and/or interns.

You are encouraged to apply if you:

• Have relevant coursework and/or work experience in land management, land conservation, agricultural land management, project management or similar fields.
• Have ability and interest in learning to assist with natural resources and wildlife habitat management.
• Are knowledgeable about maintenance and repair of infrastructure like buildings, ranch roads, fencing, and water systems.
• Are interested in learning and gaining experience in all aspects of conservation easement program management.
• Are interested in a position that is focused on being in the field.

Primary Responsibilities

Preserve Management

• Assist with all aspects of SLT preserve management plans including natural and cultural resource protection and enhancement, infrastructure maintenance, wildfire readiness, and meeting with and providing guidance to contractors, consultants, and volunteers.
• Inspect and monitor preserves and properties to assess conditions, including roads, gates, agricultural infrastructure, natural resource conditions and public recreation facilities.
• Conduct facilities maintenance such as debris removal, building maintenance, and trail clearing.
• Assist with the Living with Fire Program including pile burning, prescribed fire burn unit prep and participating in prescribed burns throughout the county.
• Implement wildfire protection plans including maintaining defensible space, building hardening and vegetation management projects across the preserve system.
• Assist the Community Engagement and Education Department and lead Stewardship related volunteer workdays including planning, training, and associated recordkeeping.
• Coordinate and assist the collection, management, and analysis of resource monitoring data and reporting.
• Develop and maintain good working relationships with tenants, agricultural lessees, neighbors, vendors, contractors, partner organizations, and the community at large.

Conservation Easement Program

• Coordinate conservation easement monitoring visits with Conservation Easement Program Manager and Stewardship Project Manager; take detailed field notes; utilize most recent data collection tools using tablets and phones; and complete monitoring reports according to program standards.
• Work closely with conservation easement landowners to plan and schedule the annual monitoring calendar.
• Review monitoring reports for potential easement violations and work with Conservation Easement Program Manager to determine appropriate solutions.
• Ensure that conservation easements and other legal requirements are adhered to on preserves.
• Maintain documentation per Land Trust Alliance and SLT policy standards.

Administrative duties

• Work with Stewardship Project Manager and Stewardship colleagues to develop annual work plans for assigned projects. Maintain appropriate records, review project budget reports, and stay within budget.
• Maintain accurate records and documentation, both paper and digital, for assigned projects and Preserves in accordance with our recordkeeping practices required by LTA accreditation.

Public Relations and Education duties

• Assist with public recreational activities such as public hikes, stewardship workdays, environmental education, and member events in collaboration with the Community Engagement and Education team.
• Work with Marketing and Communications team to develop communications around current and ongoing Stewardship projects.

Fundraising duties

• Work closely with Philanthropy team to keep abreast of fundraising opportunities with interested parties.
• Participate in and/or lead donor hikes on SLT preserve properties and conservation easement properties.

Other Duties

• Responsible for regular maintenance and cleanliness of SLT vehicles.
• Keep trails, roads, and parking areas open using a string trimmer and/or chainsaw.
• Various monitoring activities: vegetation, wildlife cameras, invasive plants, etc.
• Regular property visits and upkeep.
• Provide assistance as issues and incidents occur.
• Participate in training opportunities relevant to job duties.
• Participate in staff meetings, strategic planning, Stewardship team meetings, regional work groups, and similar SLT activities.

Essential Qualifications

• Relevant coursework and/or work experience in land management, land conservation, agricultural land management, project management or similar fields.
• Familiar with infrastructure issues/concerns, maintenance and repair of buildings, ranch roads, fencing, and water systems.
• Ability and interest in learning to assess property and infrastructure for wildfire protection activities such as building upgrades, defensible space, and vegetation management.
• Ability and interest in learning to assist with management activities in natural resources and wildlife habitat.
• Good written and oral communication skills.
• Familiar with and able to use common hand tools and power tools,
• Ability to work occasional weekends or after business hours.
• Prolonged walking, hiking, and standing; light to heavy transporting and lifting; pulling; pushing; stooping; reaching; manual dexterity; visual and hearing acuity, with or without correction.
• Valid driver’s license required.

Preferred Skills and Experience

SLT is open to candidates with diverse backgrounds, experience, and transferrable skills. We are looking for candidates with the following experience OR the ability to develop skills in each of these categories:

• Wildland Fire Fighter Type 2 qualification or willingness to obtain within the first year of employment.
• Experienced and comfortable driving full size pickup trucks and towing trailers.
• Experienced safely operating offroad vehicles such as ATV’s and UTV’s.
• ESRI ArcPro and GPS data collection skills or willingness to learn within the first year of employment.
• Experience and certification in the use of chainsaws.
• Verbal and written Spanish language ability.

Schedule, Salary & Benefits

The position is full-time, 40 hours per week, non-exempt status.

Wages starting at $26.11 per hour, commensurate with experience. Benefits include generous employer contributions to medical, dental and vision insurance plans. Employer contribution to retirement plan after one year of employment. Paid time off includes 15 paid holidays, paid vacation based on tenure and personal and parental leave in accordance with SLT policies and procedures.

This position is located at the Sonoma Land Trust office in Santa Rosa, California. Staff are working in a hybrid model; however, Technicians will spend the majority of their time in the field.

About Sonoma Land Trust

Sonoma Land Trust works in alliance with nature to conserve and restore the integrity of the land, with a focus on climate resiliency. The organization is also committed to ensuring more equitable access to the outdoors. Since 1976, the non-profit Land Trust has protected over 56,000 acres of scenic, natural, agricultural, and open land for future generations. Sonoma Land Trust is accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission and was the recipient of the 2019 Land Trust Alliance Award of Excellence. For more information, please visit the Sonoma Land Trust website.

We are passionate about building and sustaining an inclusive and equitable working environment that is representative of the communities we serve. We know that having varied perspectives leads to better outcomes to solve the complex problems of conservation, climate change and environmental justice in Sonoma County.

And to best serve the people of our community, we are taking the actions outlined in our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Plan.