State Equity Policy Director

Title: State Equity Policy Director

Department: State Capacity Building

Status: Exempt

Reports to: Senior Director, State Policy and Advocacy

Positions Reporting to this Position: None

Location: Flexible

Union Position: Yes

Job Classification Level: F

Salary Range (depending on experience): $88,000 - $132,000

General Description:

LCV believes our earth is worth fighting for because everyone has a right to clean air, water, and a safe, healthy community. To ensure those rights are protected, we help people use their power to shape policy, hold politicians and polluters accountable, and influence elections.

Our over 2 million members, our volunteers and staff, and our more than 30 state affiliates (together, the Conservation Voter Movement) work for a more just and equitable democracy, where people—not polluters—determine our future. This movement is a powerful national network with deeply rooted, and far-reaching influence in Washington, DC, in state capitals, and in communities around the country. We are unmatched in our ability to ensure meaningful action on our key issues. We aim to bring people and communities together across racial, geographic, political, religious, economic and other differences toward collective goals instead of dividing us from one another.

In 2018, LCV and our more than 30 state affiliates, together, the Conservation Voter Movement (CVM), launched the Clean Energy for All (CEFA) campaign to equitably move the U.S. to 100% clean energy. Through CEFA, the Conservation Voter Movement has successfully translated growing grassroots energy into a movement that demands our leaders respond with the urgency and vision necessary to solve climate change including winning commitments to transition to 100% clean energy from nearly 1400 successful state and local candidates. We have mobilized hundreds of thousands of people to translate those commitments into clean energy progress in 23 states—13 of which have enacted significant statewide clean energy priorities. These victories are creating upward pressure where we have a historic opportunity to shape a just and progressive economic recovery that aggressively tackles the climate crisis, creates good, family-sustaining union jobs, confronts the legacy of systemic racism and toxic pollution in frontline communities, and ensures that communities of color benefit from equitable, targeted, and community-driven investments in the transition to a clean energy economy.

We are looking for a State Equity Policy Director who will play a key role in developing and designing policy guidance for climate advocacy at the state and local level, grounded in social, racial and economic justice, work with CVM partners to implement those policies and identify and share lessons learned with policymakers. The State Equity Policy Director will also help facilitate LCV’s efforts to show federal policymakers that the groundwork for bold climate action centered around racial and economic justice has already begun in states and cities nationwide and ensure federal actions support further sub-federal policymaking. The ideal candidate will have experience working collaboratively with state and local-based coalitions and organizations, and in campaigns with broad, racially diverse coalitions that center equity within policy demands.

Responsibilities:

• Integrate racial and economic justice principles into state, local and regional campaign design; partner with state affiliates, LCV’s Chispa and  climate mobilization teams,  and other departments to enhance policy expertise and partnership engagement.
• Create a “policy lab” that will develop guidance, model policy language and talking points around strategies that facilitate strong, equitable implementation of state clean energy victories, federal economic recovery investments and state policymaking.
• Share and distribute “policy lab” tools with our state affiliates, and use these learnings to inform executive and legislative climate advocacy at the local, state and federal levels.
• Identify opportunities and develop policy guidance for CVM engagement around state and federal agency decision-making as well as state utility commissions. Support efforts to strengthen CVM engagement in agency rulemaking procedures to advance equitable policy objectives.
• Work with partners and allies in the Labor movement to ensure that state and local policies advance the goal of expanding family-supporting union jobs in the clean energy sector.
• Support research around CEFA policy goals; research, track and analyze state climate, fossil fuel infrastructure and transit equity policies; manage policy consultants; help design and lead CEFA convenings.
• Work with the Senior Director of State Policy and Advocacy, State Policy and Advocacy Manager, state affiliates and and key staff in other departments focused on LCV’s climate strategy to develop cross-departmental strategic plans related to advancing racially just and equitable clean energy policies across the Conservation Voter Movement.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Work Experience: Required - 5-7 years of experience in policy research and development with direct experience translating policy research into state and local issue advocacy campaigns and with policy that centers racial equity and economic justice. Preferred - Familiarity with state agency and rule-making processes. Familiarity with clean energy policies.
• Skills: Ability to analyze policy research and synthesize policy goals into campaign goals for local advocates. Excellent writing skills, including ability to translate legislative language and policy research into accessible public materials. Ability to independently lead policy and research projects and manage systems for internal review. Ability to consistently integrate a deep understanding of key racial justice and equity concepts into projects and interactions by addressing structural implications and disproportionate impacts of policies, activities, and decisions on race, class and other marginalized group identities. Strong interpersonal and communications skills with an ability to develop relationships with individuals representing a rich mix of race, gender, talent, experience, and background.
• Cultural Competence: Must share a commitment to advancing racial justice and equity and ensuring an inclusive organizational culture. Familiarity with the complexity of issues and obstacles facing communities’ of color engagement in the environmental movement. Commitment to social change.
• Conditions: Ability and willingness to travel up to 20% of the time. The location of this position is flexible. Please note that all LCV staff are currently working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To Apply: Send cover letter and resume to hr@lcv.org with “State Equity Policy Director” in the subject line by March 24, 2021. No phone calls please.

LCV is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a racially just, equitable, and inclusive workplace.