About Us

Front and Centered imagines a future full of possibilities, and one that is rooted in the rise of frontline communities for climate justice. Born seven years ago as a collective of visionary Black Brown Indigenous and People of Color community leaders, we have emerged as the leading statewide coalition advancing the solutions to climate change and environmental injustice by advancing our vision for a Just Transition. The essence and the ideas which seeded the bold vision as a people-powered, values-based climate and environmental justice movement in Washington early on, remain embedded in our community leadership which guides our Front and Centered team of experts into the future.

Black, Brown, and Indigenous leaders are organizing in rural towns and rising in urban neighborhoods across the state. The coalition envisions “a future where our communities and the earth are healed and thriving, our people have dignified work and the building blocks of opportunity and prosperity, and our government values, respects, and represents us.” They shine a light on the environmental injustices endured. They survive and thrive against all odds, as they share their wisdom, insight, and solutions to climate change and environmental racism. Across the state, coalition members bear witness to oppression and come together to lift what is possible.

With community voices guiding the vision and strategies of Front and Centered, a new team serves as a backbone for the coalition, taking shape as a new statewide center for coordinating and developing policy analysis, advocacy strategy, research and development, leadership support, capacity building, and diversified funding and other resources to sustain and grow the movement. This unique integration from community-driven expertise and resources is what Front and Centered powerfully brings together -- the people, policy, and practice of strategic impact. Our body of work is broad and deep, from the groundbreaking Environmental Health Disparities Map, the 100% Clean Energy Transformation Act, the Healthy Environment for All Act, to the methodologies and reports generated as a result of our community data-driven listening sessions. The coalition will continue to build and bring all tools to bear – from law and policy changes to innovations which are evidence-based and inspired by frontline community stories, to public education.

Join us as we develop our next actions to show how frontline communities are leading the transition away from an extraction-based economy toward a regenerative future!

About The Position

The Program Engagement Lead will work with a collaborative cross-sector programs team to advance participatory member engagement in the development and implementation of Front and Centered agenda for climate and environmental justice. They will be responsible for engaging members in issues by bridging member interests with coalition wide priorities, supporting policy leads in creating effective participatory programming, educating to build alignment and interest, and developing and implementing campaign strategies that advance policy priorities through a community driven mobilization. The Lead will work in close partnership with the Membership Lead that is responsible for nurturing the overall member experience. The Lead will work on projects and tasks across the Programs and Policy supporting issue leads, under the supervision of the Co-Executive Director of Policy & Programs and will coordinate closely and participate in Membership activities and the Membership Lead.

Front and Centered 2022 agenda includes:

• Healthy and Resilient Communities & Livelihoods - Every community has clean air and we prevent and address pollution, not just as a single source, but for its cumulative effects on overburdened neighborhoods and climate impacts and communities are more prepared to meet their own needs and less dependent on extractive industries.
• Energy Justice - Everyone has appropriate, affordable, access to and control over renewable energy that power their homes and communities and eliminates excessive use of energy and toxic energy generation.
• Transportation Justice - Every community has reliable, accessible, affordable transit and infrastructure to safely roll, walk, and wheel that is free from toxic air and contributing to climate change.
• Just Governance - The communities most impacted by the extractive economy are at the center of government decision-making on the transition to a just and equitable environment.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

Curating member responsive program and policy participation opportunities

• Build and implement opportunities for short-term and long-term member participation through work groups, committee structures, legislative and community actions, and other meeting and project specific opportunities.
• Welcome and help onboard members and member representatives to member engagements forums and assist with orientations and other educational materials on policy priorities.
• Summarize and synthesize information through verbal and written reports.
• Coordinate in-person and virtual meetings to ensure active and equitable participation.
• Coordinate educational and training opportunities on key topics per Front and Centered coalition member priorities.

Campaigns and Mobilization

• Support delivery of specific campaigns policy priorities by leading on grassroots engagement strategies, work plans and implementation.
• Develop strategies to engage and elevate broad based and targeted community awareness on key topics and policy priorities.
• Communicate, coordinate, and collaborate with staff/members of allied frontline organizations and other aligned partners in developing and executing collaborations.

Communications

• Help create written and multimedia content development for social and digital media, including providing input into communications content.
• Develop content and tools for community engagement and education via written content and visual elements.

Support the membership lead in general membership development

• Maintain and deepen relationships with coalition members to support membership development through in-person and virtual engagement opportunities.
• Conduct outreach and maintain a system for data collection, data analysis and evaluation of coalition activities

General administrative management

• Administer the Front and Centered work groups and events, including meeting logistics, agenda and supporting documents.
• Maintain evaluation tools and provide progress reports.

Additional Information

Position Located: This is a hybrid in-person/remote position based in Washington State

Schedule

This is a full-time (35-hour week), Washington state-based position.

Office hours are typically Monday-Friday from 9am-5:00pm, with occasional evening and weekend work. We currently work under a hybrid remote-work arrangement model: work-from-home and onsite/in-person environments. Some travel is required; Front and Centered hosts in-person staff meetings up to four times a year (when COVID allows safe travel and social interactions) and hosts a number of in-person and virtual convenings throughout the year.

Compensation and Benefits

Starting salary range is $65,000 to $75,000 plus a generous benefits package. The Front and Centered’s benefits package including medical and dental insurance coverage, 4 weeks paid vacation, sick leave, and 12 paid holidays. Front and Centered values our employees and ongoing professional development and growth.

About You

Qualifications and Experience

The ideal candidate will possess:

• Passion for facilitating frontline communities participation in changing the rules, for making justice the center of the climate and environmental conversation, and for being part of a dynamic, fun, and creative team.
• At least three years of professional experience related to community organizing or engagement, including relationship building, understanding community concerns, and strategic mobilization.
• Ability to engage community leaders and their members in action, in-person and remotely, and across a diverse statewide groups of prospective participants
• Demonstrated commitment to advancing racial equity or working directly in and for communities of color with experience working in diverse communities namely with people of color and indigenous peoples as well as disenfranchised communities.
• Strong commitment to the vision, mission, and values of Front and Centered.
• Proven ability to take initiative, identify priorities and accomplish tasks, and advance projects.
• Team player capable of working both collaboratively and independently.
• Deep knowledge and passion for social movements, environmental justice and racial justice.
• Experience working with and taking direction from frontline communities and working with community based organizations.
• Ability to travel and attend meetings, potentially on weekends and evenings

Application Instructions

Applicants should submit a resume, cover letter, and three relevant professional references to jobs@frontandcentered.org, put “Position Title” and “name” as the subject line of the email.

Deadline: Priority Deadline is Monday, March 14th. Applications will be reviewed and considered on a rolling basis with interviews anticipated to start mid-March.

Preferred Start Date: Ideally by mid-April

Work Culture and Work Environment

Front and Centered emerged from a broad coalition of diverse community groups working at the intersection of equity and environmental justice. We strive to create a work culture that is inclusive, collaborative, and adaptive to the diverse and dynamic context of how Front and Centered serves the coalition. To this end, every staff member is expected to work as a partner and within a culture of supportive leadership and lifelong learning and knowledge sharing; understand and engage in teamwork which is characterized by hope, celebration, creativity, collaboration, cultural humility, equity, and respect; exercise the highest level of ethics, professionalism, discretion and confidentiality; demonstrate initiative, organization, and an ability to multitask and manage multiple priorities.

We are a small team of enthusiastic, hard-working, and often very busy people. It is a fast-paced environment but where staff enjoy each other’s company and take time to build a supportive and inclusive culture.

Diversity | Equity | Inclusion

Front and Centered strives to create an inclusive workplace in which we meaningfully connect as colleagues and community partners, reflective of the people with whom we live, serve, and share in community. As an equal-opportunity employer, we work with people of diverse personal, professional, and regional backgrounds, so that our board, team, community members and advisory council have a collective impact on delivering on our mission. People of color and others from underrepresented groups, especially people with direct experience working within the communities Front and Centered partners with, are encouraged to apply. We invite people to be part of our team, regardless of their race, ethnicity, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, marital status, age, physical abilities, political affiliation, religious beliefs.