Tribal & Community Relations Lead

Energy Northwest • Richland, WA

18h

About The Position

In alignment with agency strategies and priorities, this position is responsible for developing and implementing Energy Northwest’s Tribal Affairs strategy and program in coordination with senior leadership, Public Affairs, Nuclear Development and other project teams. Serve as an agency community representative. Perform other internal and external public relations to include research, planning, writing and content creation, analysis, project work, presentations, tours, events, and local and regional community engagement.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree and a minimum of five years of relevant experience working in tribal affairs, external affairs, advocacy, lobbying and/or related careers, ideally in positions that have served American Indians/Alaska Native and other diverse constituencies; strong demonstration and experience of building, managing and sustaining professional relationships also acceptable
• Associate’s Degree from an accredited college or university and seven years relevant experience
• High School Diploma/GED and nine years relevant experience

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a holistic Tribal engagement program
• Develop engagement policy to include program guidance and best practices, systems for tracking and maintaining information on Tribal engagement and partnerships, develop engagement strategies, and build technical and staffing capacity (if/when appropriate). Include plan for outreach visits to Tribal nations and communities for leadership.
• Serve, as appropriate, as the agency’s representative to Tribal Nations and Indigenous communities including serving as a representative of the agency at related Tribal events at relevant state, regional and national meetings.
• Develop and maintain Tribal relationships and engagement with an appreciative understanding of Tribal cultures, histories and interests in our project areas, recognize the vital importance of Indigenous knowledge in environmental stewardship and leadership.
• Coordinate and manage the relationship between the agency and tribes across the state/region.
• Meet regularly with Tribal leaders and affiliated organizations in the state and region to build, strengthen and sustain relationship with Energy Northwest.
• Demonstrate expertise in state and federal laws, regulations, and policies affecting Native American and Alaska Native tribes, including Tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, government‑to‑government consultation requirements, and associated regulatory frameworks.
• Work internally to build cultural competency and capacity for appropriate partnerships and be a critical advisor, thought partner, and expert resource to support the responsible development, construction and operation of clean energy projects.
• Serve as a resource for all EN staff who seek to build relationships with Tribes and Indigenous communities.
• Provide thought leadership and visibility for Tribal engagement strategies and actions with internal project teams such as legal, environmental compliance and strategy, clean energy development, public and government affairs, engineering, and construction management; external teams like environmental and engineering consultants and external legal counsel; and external stakeholders such as the Department of Energy, private landowners, community organizations such as TRIDEC, the cities and ports, and local/state/federal resource agencies.
• Engage with Tribal focused agencies and organizations in the state, including but not limited to the Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs, the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, the Department of Energy Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, DOE-RL’s Tribal Program, the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, Columbia River Intertribal Fishery Commission, Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians and other related Intertribal organizations in the northwest region.
• Advise the leadership team on issues affecting tribes and Native communities.
• In consultation with Tribal officials and Energy Northwest leadership, develop strategies, procedures, and protocols for discussions with Tribal governments with the goal of creating mutually beneficial agreements and partnerships.
• Coordinate and collaborate with other stakeholder Tribal liaisons.
• Identify consultants and resources need to support the Tribal relations program; and work collaboratively together to achieve desired results.
• Engage in learning about projects and initiatives Energy Northwest is involved in. Understand projects and initiatives the tribes are interested and involved in.
• Serve as a key resource to connect Energy Northwest team members to appropriate Tribal members.
• Other duties as assigned.
• Must participate on the Emergency Response team (ERO) when designated.
• Must support the biennial refueling outage.

Benefits

• Energy Northwest (EN) provides a phenomenal benefits package.
• Washington State also has no state income tax, and the Tri-Cities provides a cost-of-living lower than the national average.
• EN offers substantial retirement benefits through three retirement programs including the Washington State Public Employees' Retirement System pension plan (PERS), a 401(k) savings plan with an employer match component, and a 457(b) savings plan.
• EN also offers multiple options for medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance coverage.
• Other voluntary benefits may include flexible spending accounts (FSAs), tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment, childcare subsides, health reimbursement arrangement (HRA VEBA), health savings account (HSA), supplemental life insurances, credit monitoring/identity theft insurance, and more!
• Qualifying employees will typically start a personal time accrual rate of 160 hours per year and EN provides nine paid holidays throughout the Calander year; personal time accruals grow significantly at various service intervals.
• We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate due to race, color, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, national origin, veteran status or on the basis of disability.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 501-1,000 employees