Advocacy Associate Job Announcement

The Organization: With a 50-year legacy of engaging the hiking community, Washington Trails Association enhances hiking experiences in Washington state by empowering a diverse and growing community of hikers to explore, steward and protect trails and public lands. WTA is the nation’s largest state-based hiking and trail maintenance organization, with 15,000 member households, thousands of volunteers each year, and an online community of more than 100,000. WTA’s annual budget is approximately $5 million, of which $2.6 million is contributions from individuals.

The Position: WTA is looking for an exceptional persuasive writer with strong interpersonal and digital communications skills who can collaborate with staff on a variety of public lands and trails issues. As a member of WTA’s advocacy team, the Advocacy Associate will help enhance advocacy communications across the organization, using the magazine, website, email newsletters, social media and other platforms to engage WTA members and supporters. This position will also provide assistance on a variety of advocacy issues and projects. The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker who enjoys engaging with people and who can communicate enthusiasm for hiking. The Advocacy Associate reports to the Advocacy Director. This is a part-time, non-exempt position.

Responsibilities

Content Creation (40%):  Write, edit and maintain original content for WTA’s website and other media that supports the advocacy work at WTA. Ensure accurate and timely creation and delivery of content. This includes blogging and producing semi-static content with a particular emphasis on our organizational initiatives and advocacy priorities.  Support publication of WTA’s bi-monthly magazine by writing articles and locating collateral material like photos and illustrations.  Coordinate all Trail Action Network alerts within Phone2Action systems and track usage statistics.  Collaborate with communications program staff on editorial calendars.

Project Assistance (35%):  Support advocacy program activities, including initiatives, policy and planning issues. Duties include: research and analysis; developing communications materials; writing for print and online sources; and monitoring and evaluating issues.  Support the Trail Action Network and Trail Ambassadors programs.  Support advocacy program signature events: Land Manager Potlucks and Hiker Rally Day.

Information Monitoring (15%):  Enter contact information associated with Trail Action Network sign-ups into WTA’s Salesforce database.  Assist with data clean up to keep Salesforce database accurate and up-to-date.  Ongoing advocacy webpages audit to ensure evergreen pages are still relevant, updating information as needed.

General (10%):  Assist with other WTA events as needed (includes occasional nights and weekends).  Attend and participate in WTA, trainings, retreats and other program events.  Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications: Preferred job skills and experience include:  At least 1 year of relevant experience in advocacy issues, writing and communications, preferably with a nonprofit advocacy organization.  Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to maintain good professional relationships with staff, board, volunteers and contributors in person and by e-mail/phone.  Cultural competency skills and demonstrated ability to work with people of diverse races, ages, genders, abilities and economic backgrounds.  Exceptional writing, copyediting and proofreading skills. Demonstrated ability to write in a variety of styles that complement WTA’s other external communications.  Working knowledge of advocacy engagement and digital communications techniques a plus.  Strategic thinker, with the ability to map daily responsibilities to the organization’s mission and goals.  Enjoy engaging with a wide range of people in person at events.  Creative, self-starting and detail-oriented individual with the ability to find innovative uses of tools and technology to implement effective and efficient engagement strategies.  Strong computer skills, including proficiency with Microsoft Office and Adobe Creative Suite.  Commitment to WTA’s mission and values. Ability to communicate enthusiasm for hiking.  Experience with email marketing software, such as Campaign Monitor and Salesforce, a plus.  Experience with advocacy engagement systems, such as Phone2Action, a plus.  Bilingual, a plus.  Schedule will include occasional work on evenings and weekends.

Compensation This is a part-time position of 30 hours per week based in Seattle. Compensation is $18.00 per hour. Benefits include medical, dental, vision and long-term disability insurance; retirement plan; transit pass; and holiday, vacation and sick leave.

To Apply: Email a resume and a brief cover letter describing how your experience and qualifications translate to the requirements of the role by March 5 to jobs@wta.org. Please reference the job title “Advocacy Associate” in the subject line.

Washington Trails Association is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, color, creed, gender identity, marital status, military status, national origin, parental status, political ideology, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.