Conservation & Lands Manager

The Middlebury Area Land Trust (MALT) seeks a highly organized and collaborative Conservation & Lands Manager to lead the stewardship and day-to-day management of MALT’s growing portfolio of conserved lands.

This is first and foremost a land management and stewardship position. The Conservation & Lands Manager will report directly to MALT’s Executive Director and will take primary responsibility for the day-to-day care of MALT-owned lands, monitoring MALT’s conservation easements, and maintaining strong relationships with landowners, municipalities, conservation partners, and other stakeholders.
The position will oversee stewardship of MALT’s six properties totaling approximately 450 acres and the annual monitoring of 24 conservation easements protecting approximately 2,100 additional acres. The Manager will also work with municipalities and other partners to help steward approximately 450 acres of additional public and conserved lands. Together, these properties represent a diverse network of forests, fields, wetlands, wildlife habitat, trails, and other natural and recreational resources.
The Conservation & Lands Manager will be expected to understand this portfolio at both the landscape and individual-property level. Working closely with the Executive Director, the Manager will establish clear annual stewardship priorities, maintain and update property management plans, identify future needs, develop work plans and budgets, and ensure that MALT has the systems and resources necessary to steward these lands.
Day-to-day responsibilities will span forest and habitat management, invasive species control, mowing and brush management, conservation easement monitoring, property infrastructure, and coordination of higher-level trail stewardship needs. The Manager will perform some fieldwork directly, but an equally important part of the position is making sure the work gets done effectively—planning projects and helping to coordinate contractors, volunteers, interns, AmeriCorps members, and seasonal trail staff to implement an integrated stewardship program across MALT’s lands.

Qualifications
Required or Strongly Preferred
Bachelor’s degree in natural resources, forestry, ecology, environmental science, conservation, land management, or a related field; or equivalent significant professional experience managing conserved or natural lands.
Strong organizational and project-management skills, with the ability to manage multiple properties, projects, contractors, schedules, and priorities simultaneously.
Good interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to work diplomatically with landowners, volunteers, contractors, community members, and organizational partners.
Good written and verbal communication skills.
Ability to work independently while functioning effectively as part of a small, highly collaborative staff..
Willingness and ability to occasionally perform hands-on stewardship work using appropriate tools and equipment.

Helpful Experience
Experience in several of the following areas would be particularly valuable:
Conservation easements and annual easement monitoring
Forest management and silviculture
Wildlife habitat and biodiversity management
Invasive species management
Trail planning, construction, or maintenance
GIS and natural-resource mapping
Conservation project development and land transactions
Contractor and project management
Volunteer or seasonal crew supervision
Municipal or nonprofit land management
Operating tractors, mowers, brush cutters, chainsaws, or other land-management equipment

Tagged as: Conservation