Community Energy Resilience Director

About the Organization

The Climate Center is a climate and energy policy nonprofit working to rapidly reduce climate pollution at scale, starting in California. We believe in vibrant, healthy communities and envision a future where everyone in California enjoys clean air and water, renewable and reliable energy, healthy food, thriving nature, and more. Since our founding in 2001, The Climate Center has been dedicated to making climate solutions a reality in California at speed and scale. We are a think-tank and do-tank working to turn bold ideas into action for a climate-safe future.

We partner with business, local government, labor, academia, and environmental and environmental justice organizations to deliver equitable climate solutions that science demands. Our work is guided by three core principles: follow the latest science, prioritize climate justice, and secure a just transition for oil and gas workers. We are committed to living our values of ambition, collaboration, equity, inclusion, innovation, and responsibility.

About the Role

The Community Energy Resilience Director leads the Community Energy Resilience (CER) Initiative, working to create a cleaner, more reliable, and resilient electricity system for California, prioritizing clean energy development in vulnerable communities that suffer the most from air pollution and power outages. This position also supports and promotes policy that builds community resilience in response to climate change impacts, including wildfire, heat, drought, and sea level rise.

Responsibilities

• Fundraising, budgeting, strategic planning, communications, policy recommendations, and coordinating with staff and contractors.
• Legislative: Monitor related legislation in the California legislature and U.S. Congress; draft and advocate for California legislation to advance CER goals; work with lobbyists and partner organizations to advance initiative priorities.
• Regulatory: Monitor California Public Utility Commission proceedings and California Energy Commission developments; direct The Climate Center’s participation in CER-related proceedings, including drafting and filing comments.
• Coalition Building: Develop and maintain coalitions supporting Community Resilience and CER legislative and regulatory policy goals; organize in-person and virtual meetings.
• Policy Development: Track industry trends and propose policy supporting Climate-Safe California goals; analyze partner policies; write factsheets, FAQs, flyers, position papers, and white papers.
• Communication: Assist the communications team by writing blogs, social media posts, bill summaries, op-eds, and producing webinar and event content on Community Resilience and CER.
• Project Development: Support local community efforts in energy resilience planning and project construction in vulnerable communities.
• Develop and manage the annual workplan and budget for the Community Energy Resilience initiative.
• Write, execute, and report on public and private grants.
• Other duties as assigned by the Chief Policy Officer.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent and at least seven years of related work experience.
• Strong understanding of the distributed renewable energy landscape, including vehicle-to-grid integration and relevant policies/technologies.
• Demonstrated acumen in climate science, policy, and environmental justice principles.
• Familiarity with the California legislative and regulatory process and experience with policy advocacy.
• Strategic thinking and outcome-based planning skills.
• Experience working in coalitions and building partnerships toward common goals.
• Experience working with or in the clean energy industry.
• Strong research and analytical skills.
• Excellent written, interpersonal, and oral communication skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and handle competing priorities.
• Self-motivated with the ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail.
• Fundraising or grant experience is a plus.
• Proficiency with Google Suite, Microsoft Office, and remote work platforms.

Pay

The salary range for this role is $90,000 to $125,000, depending on experience.

Benefits

• Paid vacation: 3 weeks per year (starting).
• 7 scheduled holidays, plus winter break (Dec. 25–Jan. 1) and 2 floating holidays.
• Paid sick leave: 13 days per year.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance (100% employee premium and 50% dependent premium covered by The Climate Center).
• 401k retirement savings with annual employer match (budget permitting).
• Life insurance.