Associate Director of Development and Communications

Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time. The Carbon Containment Lab (CC Lab) is dedicated to advancing scalable and cost-effective climate solutions. We are seeking a key member of our team, a Development and Communications Associate Director, to join us in New Haven, Connecticut.

About the role

This senior role is designed to combine strategic leadership with hands-on execution, supporting fundraising, donor stewardship, messaging, and public-facing communications in close partnership with senior leadership and program staff.

Responsibilities

• Development and fundraising
  • Build on and improve our existing multi-year development strategy aligned with organizational priorities and revenue goals.
  • Draft and manage grant proposals, concept notes, donor briefings, reports, presentations, and other fundraising materials tailored to foundations, major donors, and aligned philanthropic partners.
  • Maintain and advance our current portfolio of donor and prospect relationships, including outreach, meeting preparation, follow-up, and stewardship planning.
  • Partner with leadership and program staff to identify new funding opportunities.
  • Strengthen internal systems for tracking proposals, reporting deadlines, donor communications, and pipeline development using shared organizational tools.
  • Represent the CC Lab at meetings and events, connecting with partners and funding providers, and community audiences.
• Strategic communications
  • Manage, expand, and execute our strategic communications plan spanning website content, newsletters, social media, events, and external materials.
  • Shape messaging that translates technical and policy-heavy subject matter into clear, compelling narratives for donors, partners, policymakers, and broader climate audiences.
  • Draft, edit, and manage public-facing written products such as blog posts, impact stories, project updates, talking points, and briefing materials.
  • Manage external design consultants.
  • Support organizational visibility through conference materials, speaker preparation, campaign coordination, and external announcements.
• Cross-functional collaboration
  • Work across program, research, and leadership teams to identify milestones, insights, and stories that can support fundraising and communications goals.
  • Help maintain consistency in voice, tone, and brand across external outputs.
  • Mentor junior staff, interns, or contractors contributing to writing, communications, or development operations as needed.
  • Develop a system to track CC Lab’s impact and reach.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 6 to 10 years of relevant professional experience in development, fundraising, strategic communications, public affairs, or related work, ideally in climate, science, environment, or policy-focused organizations.
• Demonstrated success securing and managing philanthropic support, especially from foundations and mission-aligned donors.
• Strong record of translating complex technical or policy material into effective external communications for non-technical audiences.
• Experience operating in entrepreneurial or fast-moving environments with a high level of ownership, coordination, and judgment.
• Excellent and compelling writing, editing, and verbal communication skills.
• Strong project management, coordination, and prioritization ability across multiple deadlines and workstreams.
• Excellence in collaborating with technical experts and synthesizing scientific, policy, or market-oriented content for fundraising and communications purposes.
• Familiarity with common productivity, CRM, website, and communications tools such as Google Workspace, Microsoft Office, Airtable, CMS platforms, social media platforms, and basic design tools.
• Experience with managing external contracted design and web-design firms.
• Strong alignment with CC Lab's mission and demonstrated interest in emerging climate solutions.

Benefits

• Salary of $100,000-$130,000/year
• Flexible schedule, Mondays-Thursdays in our office in New Haven, Connecticut, most Fridays remote (preferred); potential for more days remote
• Medical, dental and vision insurance
• Retirement savings plan
• Professional development and learning opportunities
• Generous paid time off, parental, and sick leave
• Team outings and retreats