Summer 2019 Internship: Field Ecology Intern, Maine Natural Areas Program (Apply by 2/15/19)

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Maine Natural Areas Program
Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry

Field Ecology Intern

The Maine Natural Areas Program seeks summer interns to assist with the identification, monitoring, and assessment of natural communities and rare plants in various locations throughout Maine. Fieldwork includes collection of ecological data (e.g., vegetation composition, soils, forest structure), identification of plants, and use of hand-held GPS units. Some office work is required, including creating GIS maps, data entry and analysis, and landowner contact.  Individuals must be able to work outdoors for long periods of time under a wide variety of conditions, including long hikes across rugged terrain. The position requires a strong interest in plant ecology, forestry, or wetland ecology, and unmitigated enthusiasm.

Familiarity with New England’s vegetation or related field experience is strongly preferred, along with experience using ArcGIS. Position is 40 hours/week from approximately May 2019 to September 2019 and pays $13.00/hour.  Some overnight travel is required.

Preference will be given to applications received by Friday February 15th, 2019.

To apply, send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three references to: Kristen Puryear

Maine Natural Areas Program 93 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333-0093
[email protected] (electronic applications preferred)
For more information on MNAP: www.maine.gov/dacf/mnap/

Summer 2019 Internships & 6 month position: Maine Coast Heritage Trust (Apply by 2/21/19)

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Assistant Trail Stewards  

Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) is looking for two Assistant Trail Stewards who will work with a leader on many of the Trust’s mainland and island preserves for 12 weeks over the summer months starting in early June.  Work will include trail clearing, trail improvement, boundary marking, painting structures, basic carpentry, and vegetation control. The trail stewards will move frequently, although will occasionally work on the same site for more than one week. Accommodations will vary, depending on location.  There will be cabins at some sites, other sites will require camping.  Days will be long, and days off will be clustered.  Some basic gear will be provided. Send resume and letter of interest by   February 21, 2019 to Peg Adams, Maine Coast Heritage Trust, One Bowdoin Mill Island, Suite 201, Topsham, Maine 04086 or to [email protected].  For more information go to www.mcht.org and click on “About Us” and “Jobs”.

Summer Assistant Steward– MDI Area
6 month position

Maine Coast Heritage trust (MCHT) is looking for a stewardship assistant to work with MCHT stewardship staff based in our Mount Desert Island office. The position is from late April to October (start and end dates are flexible). Applicants must be self-motivated individuals able to work independently, and as part of a team. The work will include a variety of different stewardship tasks, with an emphasis on helping the regional steward based at the MDI office with ongoing work on the Blue Hill Peninsula and surrounding islands. Work will include preserve monitoring and maintenance, trail work, boundary marking, conservation easement monitoring, and miscellaneous carpentry work on kiosks, barn infrastructure and other small structures. Send a cover letter indicating which position you are applying for, resume and references by February 21, 2019 to:  Peg Adams at:  [email protected] OR Maine Coast Heritage Trust, One Bowdoin Mill Island, Suite 201,Topsham, ME   04086. For more information go to www.mcht.org and click on “About Us” and “Jobs”.

Summer Assistant Steward– Southern Maine
3 month position

Maine Coast Heritage trust (MCHT) is looking for a stewardship assistant to work with MCHT stewardship staff based in our Topsham office. The position is from early June to early September (start and end dates are flexible). Applicants must be self-motivated, able to work independently or as part of a team, and willing to work irregular hours (including occasional weekends). The work will include a variety of stewardship tasks, with an emphasis on helping the regional stewards based out of the Topsham office manage MCHT island and mainland preserves.  Applicants should also be familiar with coastal navigation and boat handling, and willing to travel throughout the Kittery to Belfast area.  Send a cover letter indicating which position you are applying for, resume and references by February 21, 2019 to:  Peg Adams at:  [email protected] OR Maine Coast Heritage Trust, One Bowdoin Mill Island, Suite 201,Topsham, ME   04086. For more information go to www.mcht.org and click on “About Us” and “Jobs”.

Opportunities in Kachemak Bay, Alaska

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Opportunities in Kachemak Bay, Alaska

Alaska Coastal Summer Institute (summer 2019)

ACSI is built around four core experiences (each about a week in duration) hosted by local research agencies and community-organizations in the Kachemak Bay area.  These core experiences provide a fun, fascinating, and highly effective way to learn how scientific knowledge is being built and used in Kachemak Bay. Students will also attain job-related skills in research design, data collection, analysis, and scientific communication. Plus, students can grow their professional network and become familiar with a number of the research agencies working in Kachemak Bay, exploring different career options and build connections with organizations that offer seasonal internships, as well as research/graduate school positions! Each core experience determined by the partner agencies offers students insight into their most interesting and important research, community-based monitoring, and science communication work.  The cost is approximately $3000, but some scholarship assistance may be available. For more information, go to https://www.akcoastalstudies.org/education-programs/alaska-coastal-summer-institute.html

Field Studies for Student Groups at Peterson Bay (spring, summer, fall)

CACS crafts unique Alaska Coastal Ecology educational programs for middle school, high school, and college student groups from around the state, country, and even world.  If you are interested in bringing a group of students to our remote Peterson Bay Field Station in spring, summer, or fall, please get in touch.  Using evidence-based teaching methods and immersing students in the amazingly diverse and complex human-ecological systems of the Kachemak Bay region, these field study trips can be just a couple days long as part of a longer trip throughout Alaska, or you can focus your time in Kachemak Bay, spending over a week at the Field Station.  Check out https://www.akcoastalstudies.org/education-programs/summer-youth-programs/for-groups.html or this brochure for more information.

Environmental Education Jobs and Internships (spring & summer 2019) with the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies

Do you enjoy getting people excited about our natural world?  As an Environmental Educator, Naturalist, or Intern with the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, you’ll have the opportunity to share your energy and enthusiasm by leading educational programs for children, school groups, and visitors to Alaska.  As a non-profit environmental education and stewardship organization, the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies’ mission is to foster responsible interaction with our natural surroundings and to generate knowledge of the unique ecosystems of Kachemak Bay. Our seasonal staff are employed at the Wynn Nature Center (a 140-acre boreal forest preserve) the semi-remote Peterson Bay Field Station (coastal ecosystems) and the Yurt on the Spit.  Responsibilities vary by position. Check out our website for more information: https://www.akcoastalstudies.org/about-us/jobs-volunteers.html

Semester by the Bay (fall 2019, and new this year, spring 2020)

Each fall, the Kachemak Bay Campus of Kenai Peninsula College, University of Alaska Anchorage, located in Homer, Alaska, offers students from around the country the opportunity for an academic hands-on learning experience studying biological sciences with easy access to cold-water marine habitats and an Alaskan theme. The semester has been designed to meet the needs of students majoring in the natural sciences in a creative and adventurous way.

Kachemak Bay is one of the richest marine estuaries in the world. Charismatic species such as sea otters, killer and humpback whales, bald eagles, puffins, jellies, halibut, and salmon utilize the waters and coastal environments of Kachemak Bay. Students are immersed with these and other species, such as beluga whales, during hands-on labs, field trips conducted throughout the semester here in Kachemak Bay and the surrounding waters of Cook Inlet, and during undergraduate internship opportunities conducted with our community partners. Check out http://semesterbythebay.org/

Teen Eco-Adventure Camp (Late July 2019)

For ages 12-15, this 10 day outdoor adventure and environmental stewardship camp explores the changing environment and how this connects to a most basic and delicious part of our lives – food!  Activities include backcountry & yurt camping, hiking along forests, beaches, alpine, and at the foot of a glacier, berry picking and preserving, learning about salmon fishing, tidepooling, understanding ethnobotany and local edible plant uses, and having fun in the kitchen making a range of homemade foods. Throughout all this, participants learn about how different changes to the forest, beach, and marine ecosystems affect the food we eat and how our food choices affect the environment and communities around us. Contact [email protected] or 907-235-1974 for more details.

Announcement: RAY Diversity Conservation Fellowship Program, Webinar info session, 12/7 from 3-4

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In 2015, the Environmental Leadership Program was invited to co-design and manage the Roger Arliner Young (RAY) Diversity Conservation Fellowship. The RAY Fellowship was created to address the lack of racial diversity within environmental conservation which is a persistent problem that is becoming increasingly recognized. Recognizing that diversity is a value important to the conservation sector and that we have not always made the progress we strive to make, we seek to work together to help rectify this shortcoming by striving for greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in conservation. Not only is it intrinsically incumbent upon our sector to change practices that contribute to the lack of people of color, but addressing this problem will also make our work more relevant, accessible, and successful. To this end, the Roger Arliner Young (RAY) Conservation Diversity Fellowship focuses on increasing opportunities for people of color to learn about, engage with, and enter the environmental conservation NGO sector. The Fellowships will be designed to support and attract recent college graduates of color with exceptional promise and demonstrated accomplishment who seek to be leaders in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors.

In July 2019 the RAY Fellowship Program will welcome its 4th Cohort of RAY Conservation Fellows. While marine conservation remains a priority, Year 4 will also mark the Program’s expanded efforts to provide fellowship opportunities in conservation broadly, including land, habitat, freshwater, climate, energy, etc.

Please join us tomorrow for an Informational Webinar to hear from RAY Program participants (Fellows and Staff Members at hosting organizations) and learn about the benefits of participating for internal teams and programs at your organization.

Bring your energy and questions and we’ll see you then!

Webinar Dates & Registration Links:

If you are unable to participate, please feel free to pass along to your colleagues.

Thank you!

Errol

Errol Mazursky
Executive Director
Environmental Leadership Program
P.O. Box 907
Greenbelt, MD 20768-0907
202-422-9193
www.elpnet.org

Summer Internship: Phil’s Farm, Eliot Maine

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2019 Summer Internship at Phil’s Farm
Description of farm including location

Phil’s Farm is a 1 acre, no-till farm that produces organic vegetables, herbs and flowers in Eliot, ME. The farm was started by Phil Cuddeback, class of Bowdoin 2013, in the spring of 2018. The food is sold primarily to a 50 member CSA with a pickup location at a brewery in Portsmouth, NH. The CSA allows Phil and his farm crew the opportunity to engage with their customers and in turn helps the customers gain a better appreciation for the food they’re eating. Other markets include a farmers market in York and a couple restaurants.

Phil’s Farm believes in producing affordable food in a way that is good for the environment, the people producing it and the end consumers. As a result, we do not use any pesticides, herbicides or harmful chemicals on the farm. We also strive to minimize the use of gasoline, oil and plastic products and instead use solar power, hand tools and reusable bags or no packaging at all whenever possible.

To learn more, check out www.philsfarmcsa.com and @philsfarm_inmaine on Instagram.

Start date and end date of internship and hours
The internship will take place from June 3rd to August 30th.

The expected hours on the farm are Monday through Friday 6am to 4pm with a quick break for breakfast and an hour for lunch. Attending the CSA pickup on Thursdays from 5-8pm is optional but can be a fun way to interact with the customers.

The crew this year will be myself and one MOFGA (Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners) apprentice. The apprentice will likely be someone who is learning to farm but will be with me from April to October.

Detailed list of the intern duties

Greenhouse planting, watering and potting up – We fill trays with potting mix, plant the seeds, cover with more potting mix and water them in. Each day, all the trays get watered. Certain plants like tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers get moved from trays to larger pots to give them more space before being transplanted outside.

Bed preparation – this involves raking leaves off the bed, broadforking to loosen the soil, applying compost and amendments and raking the bed again to create a level surface.

Transplanting – the act of taking seedlings from the greenhouse and planting them in the field.

Harvesting – we use a knife to cut greens or simply our hands to harvest larger products like tomatoes and cucumbers.

Washing and packing – we use both a series of dunk tanks and a spray hose to clean the vegetables. They then get weighed and packed into bins or bags.

Pest and disease management – this can involve physically removing pests like the cabbage worm or protecting drops with a thin fabric sheet called row cover. Disease management can involve pruning and removing infected plants.

Almost all of the tasks will be done together as a team. This allows me to best teach the tasks as well as to work efficiently while having fun.

Expectations

Firstly, I’d like to share the expectations I have for myself. These are:

  • To create a fun, educational and effective work environment
  • To end work at 4pm each day – this give you time to relax, make dinner and do things off the farm in the evenings.
  • To understand that you may be learning a lot of things for the first time and that things may take you longer to do while you’re learning them.
  • To appreciate your hard work and contribution to the farm and business

My expectations for you are to:

  • Work hard
  • Try your best with each activity
  • Be ready to start work on time each day
  • Have fun
  • To learn
  • Be communicative and honest with me with any challenges you’re experiencing directly related to the farm
  • And hopefully, to fall in love with farming.

Skills, abilities and perspective desired in a successful candidate

A successful candidate should feel comfortable and enjoy working with their body. You should also be comfortable working on tasks for a couple hours at a time – sometimes we’ll listen to music, have a conversation or just enjoy the silence in almost a meditative state. You should also enjoy working outside and be willing to work in all kinds of weather conditions.

I would like you to have the understanding and to keep in mind that I am running a business and that this is my second year doing so. This can sometimes be stressful and I may ask that we try to do things faster or skip certain steps in order to get certain tasks finished in a given amount of time. Farming is all about timing and process.

Application requirements

Resume and a brief cover letter.

Housing included?

Housing is not included but I can help you find suitable housing through craigslist and my network of friends in the area.

Compensation

This is an unpaid internship but I encourage you to apply for the Bowdoin Career Planning Funded Internship Grant for up to $5,000. You are also welcome to take home as much food from the farm as you would like.

Contact

Please send you resume and brief cover letter to me at [email protected].

Phil’s Farm

(610) 574-6357

585 Goodwin Rd. Eliot, ME 03903

philsfarmcsa.com

@philsfarm_inmaine

Off Campus Workshop: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Chicago- Deadline: 1/28/19

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Workshop: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Earth and Environmental Sciences: Supporting the Success of All Students

April 10 – 12, 2019

University of Illinois at Chicago

Application Deadline: Friday, January 28, 2019

This workshop will focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the Earth and environmental sciences. We have the responsibility and the opportunity to make choices in our teaching and in our programs to better attract and support a diverse population of students. To move forward with this work, we will discuss the challenges and barriers students encounter, and explore a range of approaches that can be adopted to broaden participation and foster inclusion at the course and program levels. At the department and program level, we will apply a framework of engagement, capacity, and continuity (Jolly et al., 2004) to program evaluation and design. For the plenary and concurrent workshop sessions, we will draw from our collective experiences, from the science and sociology literature on this topic, from InTeGrate modules, from NAGT’s Traveling Workshop Program, from SAGE 2YC resources, and from recent publications in the Journal of Geoscience Education (e.g. Carabajal et al., 2017; Callahan et al., 2017; Sherman-Morris & McNeal, 2016; Wolfe & Riggs 2017). Workshop participants will leave with specific strategies to implement in their classes, as well as with discussion points to share with their programs.

Workshop Goals

  • Discuss diversity, equity, and inclusion and how they strengthen Earth and environmental sciences
  • Recognize barriers to and opportunities for inclusion
  • Explore strategies and practices that attract students, cultivate their science identities, help them to thrive in college and beyond
  • Apply a framework of engagement, capacity, and continuity to program evaluation and design
  • Develop an action plan with strategies to strengthen diversity, equity, and inclusion at the course and program levels
  • Enable networking, sharing, and collaboration within the Earth education community to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion

Workshop Cost

There is no fee to attend this workshop, and the project grant covers participant meals and supplies during the workshop. Participants or their institutions are expected to cover the cost of travel to and from the workshop as well as lodging (a hotel room block has been reserved). Travel and lodging details are forthcoming.

A limited number of workshop stipends (not to exceed $500) are available on an application basis to help defray travel expenses in cases of financial need. Stipends are available for airfare only.

 

More Information

The workshop application and additional information are linked from the workshop website: https://serc.carleton.edu/integrate/workshops/twp_support_students/index.html

 

I am one of the leaders for this workshop and would be happy to provide more information or answer questions.  Please feel welcome to share this workshop announcement with faculty at and beyond Bowdoin.  Thanks!

 

Kind regards,

Rachel

 

—

Rachel Beane, Ph.D.

Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Professor of Natural Sciences

Department of Earth and Oceanographic Science

Bowdoin College

6800 College Station | Brunswick, Maine 04011 USA

+1-207-725-3160

On Campus Event: Bowdoin Marine Science Semester Student Presentations & Holiday Reception, Friday 12/14

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You are very welcome to join the Bowdoin Marine Science Semester 2018 for our annual student research presentations and Schiller Coastal Studies Center holiday reception.

When: Friday, December 14, 2018

student presentations 2:00pm – 5:30pm

holiday reception to follow (~6:00pm)

Where: The Schiller Coastal Studies Center Farmhouse, 240 Bayview  Rd, Orrs Island
Interested in catching a ride? Email Rosie: [email protected]

Announcement: Farm Link Montana- free searchable database for opportunities in Montana (December 2018)

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The 2019 farm season will be here before you know it! Get your hands dirty learning the ins-and-outs of farming or ranching and get exposure to a variety of local and sustainable food systems amid the rugged, breathtakingly beautiful landscape of Montana!

Farm Link Montana is a free, searchable database of current listings for jobs, internships, and land opportunities in Montana. It features a searchable map of farms and ranches across the state hiring for the upcoming season. Learn about each operation and apply to multiple jobs at once with just one application. Opportunities range from organic veggies, wheat, and pulses to hops, dairy and more!

Now is the time to apply! Hiring for the season is underway so don’t miss out!

For more information and to apply, visit https://www.farmlinkmontana.org/

Dave Renn
Beginning Farmer & Rancher Program Manager
Community Food & Agriculture Coalition
www.farmlinkmontana.org
406-926-1004