Save The Bay: Habitat Restoration Engagement Specialist
Save The Bay is looking for a Restoration Engagement Specialist who will lead community-based restoration programs for both youth and adult volunteers. This role encompasses environmental education, where the specialist teaches participants about the history and ecology of the Bay while fostering a sense of stewardship toward the environment. Responsibilities include managing large volunteer groups for various projects such as invasive species removal, native plant propagation, and shoreline cleanups. The specialist will also play a crucial role in enhancing public engagement by strengthening community partnerships and supporting new programming aligned with equity goals. With a schedule from Tuesday to Saturday, this position offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the health of San Francisco Bay's wildlife and the resilience of shoreline communities.
About Save The Bay:
Save The Bay’s mission is to protect and restore the Bay for people and wildlife. We are the only regional organization that integrates political advocacy, wetland restoration, and education to shape a healthy and resilient region. We are a team of passionate, creative, strategic and collaborative people, dedicated to the urgent work of building Bay Area resilience and hope in the face of the escalating impacts of climate change.
Over two decades, Save The Bay has become a Bay Area leader in the science and practice of habitat restoration, focused on tidal marsh transition zone habitat at landscape-scale for recovery of endangered species, and for ecosystem resilience in the face of climate change. We enlist thousands of volunteers annually to restore the shoreline and educate Bay Area students to be the next generation of Bay stewards through hands-on experiential education and online learning.
Responsibilities
Community-based Restoration: 70% of responsibilities
● Lead Community-based Restoration field programs for student, corporate, affinity and community groups, and for volunteers from the general public (average 3 days a week)
● Participate in habitat restoration activities such as invasive plant removal, native plant collection, propagation and outplanting, and shoreline cleanups.
● Support education program by writing program curriculum
● Ensure best restoration practices for our work, including: invasive plant management, native planting, phytosanitary practices, and volunteer-associated programmatic improvements
● Support summer vegetation biodiversity monitoring
● Assist with operation and maintenance of trucks, tools, and native plant nurserie
Community Partnerships: 15% of responsibilities
● Help build and deepen community partnerships, aligned with our equity goals
● Coordinate restoration programs for community partners
● Maintain detailed records of relationship development and progress with community partners
● Assist with evaluation of program impacts and collaborate on program strategy
● Participate in project planning for community and education goals
● Conduct occasional onsite/virtual partner presentations to support our education and community programs as needed
Administrative & Cross Departmental Work: 15% of responsibilities
● Represent the Habitat Restoration Team at bi-weekly editorial team meetings supporting team and organization-wide communications goals
● Participate in cross-departmental and All Staff activities, such as training and planning sessions, monthly meetings, quarterly events, and team building activities
● Support fundraising campaigns, media events, conferences, and programs with content and messaging to meet Save The Bay’s constituency and engagement goals
● Assist in writing and/or sourcing restoration-focused copy for our Communications team to showcase our work and to increase program engagement with community members
● Other duties as assigned
Qualifications
● Ability to work Tuesday – Saturday to lead our weekend public programs
● Curious and growth-oriented with enthusiasm to work up to four days a week in the field, sometimes in challenging weather conditions
● Detail oriented with the ability to stay organized across multiple projects with numerous stakeholders
● Understanding of Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility (DEIA) work as it relates to habitat restoration and education
● Experience working with diverse student populations & people with differing ability levels
● 2 years experience leading inquiry-based education programs for youth in the field
● Excellent group management & engagement skills
● Experience with wetland restoration, ecology, environmental science/studies, biology, conservation, or similar field
● Knowledge of basic Bay ecology, wetland habitats, and CA native plants
● Strong initiative, creativity and drive in working independently and solving problems
● Collaborative team player that communicates regularly to support team at large
● Flexible and easily adaptable to change
● Clean background check
● First Aid and CPR certified (If not certified, training courses are offered frequently and subsidized by Save The Bay)
● Ability to lift at least 40lbs
Preferred
● Experience working with historically excluded communities, who are most impacted by climate change
● Spanish language skills
● Demonstrated experience building community partnerships
Driving Requirements
● Current California driver’s license clean driving record, and access to personal vehicle required. The Restoration Engagement Specialist will be expected regularly to drive a Save The Bay work truck, occasionally with a trailer attached
● Commute times may be up to three hours throughout a day but are considered part of the 8-hour workday
Compensation
This is a regular, full-time, non-exempt position. Starting wage for this position is $30.91/hour and is not subject to negotiation. We provide annual cost-of-living increase each January 1, and additional 3 percent increases at service mileposts of 3 years in the position, 5 years, 10 years and subsequent 5-year intervals. To maintain internal pay equity, we do not utilize individual merit increases. We offer an excellent benefit package including medical, dental, vision, acupuncture/chiropractic, and life insurance; 12 paid vacation days per year to start, 13-14 paid holidays and 15 days of sick leave per calendar year; 403(b) retirement plan; stipend for working remotely and funds for home office workstation equipment and furniture. Work transportation expenses (mileage and bridge tolls) are reimbursable for travel from home or the location of the start of their drive to work sites up to 50 miles each way per day.
To Apply
This position is open until filled. To apply, please email a cover letter and resume as one PDF to jobs@savesfbay.org. Please make sure to include the position title –Restoration Engagement Specialist– in the subject line. In the body of the email, please share where you found this job listing.
Hiring Timeline (This is our ideal timeline, but it may be subject to changes):
· The priority deadline for applications is May 15, 2026
· We will review resumes and conduct interviews in June
· Finalists will be invited to submit three references
· We would like to make an offer to a candidate by late June or early July and have the candidate start in late July