Natural Resource Specialist Intern

Job Description
Title: Natural Resource Specialist Intern
Start/End Date: May 20, 2024 - October 4, 2024 (anticipated)
Term Length: 20 weeks
Living Stipend: $500/week
Reports To: Bureau of Land Management, Las Cruces District Office (LCDO) - Supervisory Rangeland Management Specialist
Location: 1800 Marquess Street, Las Cruces, NM 88005
Status: 675-hourAmeriCorps Service Term; 40 hours/week
Benefits: Housing allowance $200/week;AmeriCorps Education Award $2,626 and Public Lands Corps Certificate* - both with successful completion of the internship; health insurance eligible.
AmeriCorpsis the federal agency for national service andvolunteerism. AmeriCorps provides opportunities for Americans of all backgrounds to serve their country, address the nation's most pressing challenges, and improve lives and communities. Environmental stewardship programs help conserve natural habitats, improve energy efficiency, protect clean air and water, and help to mitigate the effects of climate change among other environmental efforts.
Conservation Corps New Mexico (CCNM)
Conservation Corps New Mexico, a program of Conservation Legacy, aims to continue the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930's. CCNM is focused on connecting youth, young adults, and recent era military veterans with conservation service work projects on public lands. CCNM operates programs across southern New Mexico and western Texas that engage individuals and strengthen communities through service and conservation. The CCNM Las Cruces office manages the Individual Placement Program.
Mentorship
These Individual Placement Positions are unique development opportunities. Interns are paired with a local supervisor and gain technical, hands-on experience in the work of these organizations or agencies. Site supervisors commit to facilitate career development; provide an introduction to numerous pathways within the conservation field; and create accessible, meaningful, learning opportunities and experiences for interns.
Position Summary:
Under its multiple-use and sustained yield mandates, the BLM manages public rangelands for various uses and values, including livestock grazing, recreational opportunities, healthy watersheds, and wildlife habitat. These lands preserve the open spaces that continue to shape the character of the West.
The Natural Resource Specialist Intern will assist with vegetation monitoring studies, land health evaluations and watershed health analysis, all of which contribute to the BLM LCDO implementing informed land management decisions on public lands, which will benefit both the community and environment. The project will include assembling existing information such as monitoring data, inventory data, and actual use information, collecting vegetation data using different Core Methods, participating in Land Health Assessments and Ecological Site Verification, and evaluating small-scale erosion control measures.
The intern will be part of in an inter-disciplinary team and have the opportunity to assist a diverse group of specialists in their assessments of their respective resources. Furthermore, the intern will collaborate with private, state, and federal agencies.
Essential Responsibilities and Functions:

• Work as a member of a two to four-person team performing fieldwork in remote locations throughout southern New Mexico.
• Work with supervisor and GIS technician to select locations for data collection and vegetation monitoring.
• Collect data accurately using the Core Methods identified in Monitoring Manual for Grassland, Shrubland, and Savanna Ecosystems, Volume 1 Second Edition.
• Use GPS to navigate to locations for data collection and vegetation monitoring.
• Keep records of sites, analyze samples, record, and enter data.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Per federal grant requirements, this internship is for young adults between the ages of 18-30 (35 for veterans), inclusive, at the time the individual begins term of service.
• High School Diploma.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in Assessment, Inventory and Monitoring (AIM) Methods.
• Experience in Geological Information Systems (GIS).
• Experience in Watershed Hydrology and Watershed Health Assessment.
• Natural Resource degree or coursework.

Physical Requirements:

• To successfully perform essential functions, the individual is required to sit, stand, walk, speak, hear, etc. May be required to stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl for significant periods of time and be able to safely lift 50 pounds on a routine basis. He/she must be able to operate office equipment, telephone, and computer and reach with hands and arms.
• Ability to hike and navigate in rough terrain.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made for qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Participant Essential Eligibility Requirements/Participation and Expedition Behavior

• Work effectively as a member of a team despite potentially stressful and difficult conditions. This may require problem solving on an interpersonal or group level as well as a willingness to accept differences.
• Contribute to a safe learning environment, no harassment of others for any reason.
• Willingness and ability to complete all aspects of the program including conservation projects, education, training, and national service.
• Effectively communicate ideas and concerns as they arise directly to supervisors, colleagues, and organization staff.
• Appropriately represent Conservation Corps New Mexico, the BLM and AmeriCorps to the public and partners at all times.
• Flexibility, adaptability, and capacity to work in a fluid, changing work environment.

Safety and Judgment:

• Effectively communicate danger to others in the form of either a warning of danger others may be encountering or a notification of personal distress, injury or need for assistance. Must be able to do so at a distance of up to 50 meters and in conditions with limited visibility or loud background noise such as darkness or high winds.
• Effectively perceive and understand significant and apparent hazards and follow direction by others so that you will be able to successfully execute techniques to manage hazards. These directions may be given before the hazard is encountered or may need to be given during the exposure to the hazard. Ability to respond appropriately to stress or crises.
• Stay alert and focused for several hours at a time while traveling and working in varied weather conditions.
• If taking prescription medications, participants must be able to maintain proper dosage by self- medicating without assistance from others.

Substance Free:
In accordance with a drug free workplace, alcohol and drugs are prohibited while participating in AmeriCorps and program activities and while on organization property.
Background Check:
A DOI background clearance must be completed before the selected candidate may report to duty. The BLM will provide instructions for completion of the clearance after an intern has been selected and will notify them when they have been cleared to start the internship. This process will determine the internship's exact start date.
Interns will have access to government facilities and systems, and will be supplied with access to gov't vehicles, equipment, and materials needed to work on the projects and activities as outlined above. Interns must adhere to all government regulations and policies for operating equipment, vehicles, security awareness, and safety.
*To be eligible for a Public Lands Corps certificate, interns must be between the ages of 18-30 (35 for veterans), inclusive, at the time the individual begins the term of service.
Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, political affiliation, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.
To Apply: Please submit an updated resume and cover letter along with the online application at https://corpsnm.org/individual-placement-openings. Consideration will be given as resumes are received and this position may close at any time. If you have questions, contact CCNM's Individual Placement Program Director, Joy Hernández at jhernandez@conservationlegacy.org.
For more information about Conservation Corps New Mexico, please visit www.corpsnm.org. Conservation Corps New Mexico is a program of Conservation Legacy.