New York Agricultural Stewardship Program Manager

AMERICAN FARMLAND TRUST•City of Saratoga Springs, NY

7h•$80,000 - $85,000•Remote

About The Position

Reporting to the New York and New Jersey Regional Director, the New York Agricultural Stewardship Program Manager leads the Agricultural Stewardship Program Team, along with a growing team of professionals across America focused on emerging strategies that engage farmers in adopting sound farming practices to protect water quality, respond to the growing impact of climate change, and achieve other environmental benefits from well-managed farmland. The NY Agricultural Stewardship Program Manager will play a key role implementing high-impact programs including AFT’s Demonstration Farm Network and national and regional water and climate initiatives in New York with future expansion in New Jersey. As an integral part of the AFT Program team, the New York Agricultural Stewardship Program Manager leads the New York Agricultural Stewardship Program and builds and maintains relationships with farmers and non-operating farmland owners as well as state and federal agencies, universities, agricultural service providers, conservation leaders, and others to develop and implement strategies to facilitate adoption of conservation practices on farmland.

Requirements

Previous experience or willingness to learn agricultural conservation planning and implementation issues and techniques
Practical experience in water resource management, soil health management and/or cropping and grazing systems
Highly motivated, entrepreneurial and a capable problem solver
Experience managing complex or multiple projects, workload, and finances as well as proven ability to fundraise/grant writing
Supervisory experience including motivating, leading, setting objectives, and managing performance
Excellent interpersonal communication skills (phone, public presentation, writing, partner relations) and creativity are essential
Facility with the Microsoft Office Suite is required – additional experience with social media is preferred
Valid NY driver’s license with ability to travel throughout NY and regionally
BA or BS degree and a minimum of 5 years of related work experience in agriculture, environmental management, or natural resource planning.
An advanced degree in one or more of the disciplines noted may substitute for two years of work experience.

Nice To Haves

Previous on-farm experience or related agricultural sectors
Experience in designing field-based/on-farm research projects and analyzing and interpreting results.
Ability to foster effective partnerships in the agricultural and natural resource community including Extension educators, soil and water conservation districts, USDA and state agency personnel, farmers, landowners, historically underserved producers, and others is highly valuable
Experience with public outreach, community engagement and communications

Responsibilities

Lead AFT’s Agricultural Stewardship program initiatives in New York under the direction of the Regional Director, with support from the Agricultural Stewardship Team and other AFT staff.
Supervise, train, and mentor staff to ensure high quality work and accountability with workplans and budgets. Oversight of recruiting, performance reviews, staff deployment/workload/balancing, and career progression with related internal communications, administrative, and financial considerations.
Build, facilitate, motivate, and coordinate new and existing partnerships with a diverse network of agricultural and conservation professionals including AFT state and national staff, NRCS, Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Cornell University, Extension, farmers, crop consultants and others. Enable engagement with these stakeholders to identify barriers, create common ground and foster creative solutions
Oversee and facilitate the development, design, and funding of new and existing projects to accelerate agricultural stewardship including, but not limited to soil health, water quality, soil conservation and mitigating impacts of extreme weather. This includes grant writing and reporting.
Provide technical expertise on a broad range of agricultural stewardship projects including soil health management, climate smart farming practices and other related conservation practices. Be a thought leader around specific topics/emerging practice areas and shaping current/future program development.
Provide day-to-day oversight of implementation of technical agricultural projects, including on-farm research trials, experimental design and execution, quantification tool development, collection and analysis of on-farm data.
Supervise the development and management of engaging educational programs for farmers and landowners. This includes the facilitation and promotion of on-farm demonstration projects, fostering partnerships, developing public marketing materials, e-newletters, and supporting media outreach to highlight key activities and stories of impact
Develop and manage project workplans and budgets and provide input on reporting to funders and AFT leadership
Support AFT New York and National staff efforts on addressing barriers to soil health adoption, including policy recommendations at the state level.
Manage staff for outreach to and working directly with farmers and farmland owners to assess land for potential conservation activities and to promote activities that accelerate the adoption of conservation practices on rented farmland.
Represent AFT at public meetings, conferences, field days, and educational events.
Create and oversee contracts with consultants and partners

Benefits

Insurance coverage begins the 1st of the month following the date of hire.
Medical & Prescription Coverage
Dental Coverage
Vision Coverage
Company Paid Life Insurance & Long-Term Disability (LTD)
Voluntary Life Insurance
Flexible Spending Account (FSA) – Healthcare & Dependent Care
Health Savings Account (HSA)
401k Plan
Sick Leave: Regular full-time employees accrue 13 “sick days” per year.
Vacation Leave: Accrue 15 days during the first year increasing by one day per year to 20 days per year maximum.
Holidays: AFT observes twelve fixed holidays and a week between Christmas and New Years off during the year (all offices closed) plus a choice of up to three (depending on hiring month) floating holidays.
Be a part of a purpose-driven, committed, knowledgeable, high-performing, experienced and fun team
A diverse and inclusive work environment
A cause and mission you can be proud of
Competitive compensation & benefits
Remote work opportunities
Flexible scheduling