Background

Namati helps people understand, use, and shape the law to support and defend their communities.

Namati’s US Environmental Justice (EJ) Program partners with communities and residents in the Mid Atlantic region (DC, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia) to tackle environmental threats to health and livelihoods. Under an initiative called EMBARC, we are increasing equity in federal funding distribution by assisting overlooked communities with envisioning the changes they want to see for where they live, identifying and pursuing funding sources to catalyze the change, tracking the implementation of the funding, and gathering and circulating information about areas of improvement with federal grantmakers. Through the MidAtlantic Justice Coalition, we are also working with dozens of partners to build people power and forge a just society with good economic opportunities and a safe environment. 

Namati is seeking a part-time contractor experienced in US federal government grant proposal processes to 1) support partner applicants in identifying suitable opportunities and developing proposed projects and proposal packages, and 2) work with our team to share applicants’ experience pursuing federal funding with grantmakers and other decision-makers.

Over a 6-month period, the contractor will-

• Research, identify, and recommend federal funding opportunities to advance economic and environmental justice aligned with EMBARC locales’ community and local government priorities.

• Support local official and community member applicants with proposal development by adding capacity to local government application processes across the following areas: evaluating candidate funding opportunities, developing proposed projects with partner locales and potential applicants, managing relationships, writing and/or editing proposal submissions, managing and coordinating the proposal development process, reviewing proposals before final submission to ensure compliance and quality, and ensuring applicants are aware of award and compliance responsibilities.

• Educate and mentor local community residents about government grant processes, so they can meaningfully participate and assist local government in developing proposals and implementing grant programs.

• Maintain a record of EMBARC federal funding opportunity research, proposal development processes, and application results.

• Support the program’s efforts to build strong rapport with officials and administrative agency leaders in EMBARC locales, with the goal of creating channels to provide officials with bottom-up feedback from locales with firsthand experience at attempting to access funding for most-impacted communities.

Hours and location

This is a part-time contract for 6 months, with the number of weekly hours varying depending on the needs of the program at that time. Please share your availability in your application. Applicants interested in a longer-term engagement beyond 6 months should also note this in their application form.

The contractor will work remotely, but some work involving in-person relationship building, community meetings, and/or meetings with local officials may require regional travel by car (in accordance with Namati’s COVID policies). Therefore, Namati is prioritizing applicants based in the Mid Atlantic region (Washington, DC; Maryland; Virginia; or Delaware). Please indicate in the application form where you are based, as well as if you have a driver’s license and access to a car.

The US EJ team is distributed across the region and relies heavily on electronic communications and channels to collaborate and stay in close touch (Slack, email, text messages, Asana, Google office suite, Microsoft office suite, EveryAction, to name a few).

We are looking for applicants that-

• Have significant experience (likely 3-5 or more years) in all aspects of identifying, evaluating, and preparing applications for US government federal funding and other grant opportunities, especially in a collaborative, multi-organizational, or consortium-like team context. Priority for agencies relevant to addressing the various conditions in historically under-resourced, overburdened, or marginalized communities in the mid-Atlantic region.

• Strong experience and familiarity working within Grants.gov and other US government platforms is required.

• Demonstrated experience with multi-year budgeting and financial monitoring is preferred.

• Demonstrated experience with drafting contracts, partner letters and MOUs is preferred.

• Have a passion for addressing the human rights and social justice dimensions of environmental problems, in solidarity with the people who are most affected; are aligned with Namati's culture principles (hyperlinked here).

• Have goal-orientation and a bias toward action, and the ability to drive forward multiple complex tasks and projects, meet goals on deadline, and work under pressure.

• Have excellent organizational, communication, and emotional intelligence skills.

• Are comfortable working as part of a pilot project, where things are changing or adjusting frequently.
  

To apply

Please complete our online application form, which will request answers to the following questions:

• Please upload a resume reflecting your relevant experience.

• Why are you best suited to do this work (please address the criteria in the posting)?

• What is your expected availability? 

• Please provide a proposed hourly rate. 

• If you are interested in a longer term engagement (beyond 6 months) please let us know here.

• Where will you be based if offered a contract?

• Do you have a driver's license and access to a car?

• Please provide the names of three references that can speak to your qualifications. We will not reach out to any references until the finalist stage.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to a first round interview and may also be requested to provide previous (redacted as necessary) work samples.

If you have any difficulties with the application form or if you use assistive technology and are unable to access any material on our site, please contact us at usenvironmentaljustice@namati.org indicating your name and the issue you are experiencing.