The Office of Working Lands Preservation within the Virginia Department of Forestry (DOF) is seeking a Conservation Specialist to promote working lands conservation and manage related projects throughout the western region of Virginia. The Office of Working Lands Preservation was created by the General Assembly to focus on the conservation of Virginia’s forests and farms. Projects are primarily open-space easements and also include outreach to internal and external partners on a range of tools to conserve and sustainably manage working lands. Travel is required to project locations within the western region and occasionally to DOF headquarters in Charlottesville.

This position will be based in Salem or Rocky Mount with opportunities for teleworking arrangements.

Responsibilities:
Open-Space Easement Development (50%)

• Serve as an agency expert on open-space easements and other conservation tools 
• Initial outreach and communications with landowners
• Conduct in-depth due diligence for easement and fee simple acquisitions
• Lead the negotiation, development, and closing of open-space easements 
• Generate project maps to document the property and conservation values
• Work closely with citizen-landowners, real estate professionals, agency coworkers, other state agencies, grant-making organizations, local planning districts, county governments, and non-profit organizations to complete working land conservation projects

Outreach & Partnership Coordination (35%)

• Perform outreach and education about working land conservation tools, including participating in the agency’s Generation NEXT Program with Virginia Cooperative Extension
• Provide technical, professional, and other assistance to local governments interested in developing additional working lands preservation policies and programs
• Coordinate with state partners on conservation planning and funding initiatives
• Coordinate with non-governmental partners on joint outreach and educational efforts

Program Support (15%)

• Contribute to monitoring and stewarding open-space easements
• Participate in staff meetings and training activities
• Maintain accurate records