Tom Graff Fellow - Clean Energy , Environmental Defense Fund, Chicago, Illinois

Posted by: Allison Friedman // Rate It Green Admin

Environmental Defense Fund is currently looking to hire a fellow to drive the development of strategic partnerships that help advance clean energy and climate mitigation in the built environment while delivering health benefits to populations that have not yet been reached by the green building movement and renewable energy advocacy efforts.

With world attention focused on both the environment and the economy, Environmental Defense Fund is where policymakers and business leaders turn for win-win solutions. This leading green group, founded in 1967, has tripled in size over the past decade by focusing on strong science, uncommon partnerships and market-based approaches. You can be part of a vibrant workplace that welcomes diverse perspectives, talents and contributions, where innovation and a focus on results are a way of life.

This is a unique and exciting opportunity to drive education, project design and strategy implementation across local communities, industry coalitions and market mechanisms that will shape and guide energy efficiency and sustainability in Illinois. This position will allow EDF to provide focused outreach to partners and community organizers across Chicago in order to gain an understanding of the current efforts underway in specific areas and how the opportunities available through the implementation of the recent IL Future Jobs Bill and the BIT Building Program can complement and advance those efforts


Responsibilities:

-Assess specific communities’ existing sustainability plans and engage community organizations already working on environmental projects across Chicago to develop applicable program implementation plans that are inclusive and relevant.
-Focus on educating residents and community leaders through relevant programming and social media campaigns to spread the appropriate targeted messages
-Use the BIT Building Program’s set of 16 best practices to approach organizations with a basic framework that can be tailored to their structure and allow actual implementation of measures for conservation and reduction.
-Expand the adoption of energy and building efficiency measures in neighborhoods across Chicago where a lack of resources and information to organizations that have so far been unable to implement practices that are standard in other areas and industries.
-Develop resources that will promote the BIT Building program’s 16 proven best practices, standardize ongoing performance measurement and improvement goals, and provide an online clearinghouse to spread implementation tools
-Assist in the design of programs outlined in legislation passed by the IL General Assembly that provides $750 million to advance energy efficiency in low-income and public housing, requires the doubling of energy efficiency and achieve a permanent load reduction of 21.5% by 2030 and the creation of more than 4,000 megawatts of new wind and solar projects in Illinois.
-Work with Chicago’s sustainability stakeholders to ensure that they focus their expertise based on the needs and priorities identified by the residents and representatives of the city’s many overlooked neighborhoods who deserve to have their voices heard
Interact with stakeholders in the private, government, NGO and grassroots sectors and give a broad perspective on the work that needs to be done and the impact that can be made so that they focus their expertise on the needs and priorities identified by the residents and representatives of the city’s many overlooked neighborhoods who deserve to have their voices heard.
-Support work to empower 77 of Chicago’s neighborhoods through the education and training members in energy reduction strategies, renewables adoption and sustainability initiatives


To learn more and to apply: https://www.edf.org/jobs/tom-graff-fellow-clean-energy