Senior Director, Conservation

Location: Sacramento, CA | Oakland, CA

Full time

Requisition : JR932

The National Audubon Society is a leading nonprofit conservation organization with 120 years of science‑based, community‑driven impact, dedicated to protecting birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Birds are powerful indicators of our planet’s health, acting as sentinels that warn us of environmental change and inspire action. Audubon works across the Western Hemisphere, driven by the understanding that what is good for birds is good for the planet.

Through a collaborative, bipartisan approach across habitats, borders, and the political spectrum, Audubon drives meaningful and lasting conservation outcomes. With 800 staff and over 1.9 million supporters, Audubon is a dynamic and ever‑growing force committed to ensuring a better planet for both birds and people for generations to come.

Learn more ubon.org and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @audubonsociety.

Audubon works across California to implement innovative conservation strategies in partnership and collaboration with government agencies, landowners, tribes, non‑profits, and communities across California. Reporting to the Vice President, California, the Senior Director of Conservation will design and lead the implementation of conservation objectives in the state, manage the conservation and science team, and track conservation outcomes and measures of success. They will develop funding relationships with and proposals to foundations, corporations, agencies, and individuals.

The Senior Director of Conservation will engage with members of conservation milestone and initiative teams across Audubon to align priorities and implement collaborative conservation initiatives across the Americas.

This is a hybrid position based in either the Oakland or Sacramento offices.

• $129,000 – $145,000 / year = Alaska, CA (not San Francisco), Connecticut, D.C., Chicago, Oyster Bay, NY
• $144,000 – $162,000 / year = NYC (not Oyster Bay), San Francisco, Seattle

• Oversee and manage California’s conservation and science programs (Working Lands, Coasts, Deserts and Salton Sea, Community Building, Geospatial Science), working to sustainably increase their scope and scale.
• In collaboration with the Vice President, develop and implement conservation strategies for the benefit of birds in California and across the Pacific Flyway, including setting short‑and long‑term goals and ensuring program directors and managers integrate and report annual progress toward goals.
• In collaboration with staff in California and across Audubon, design, and direct California’s conservation programs to fully align with Audubon’s strategic plan, maximizing impact by integrating work across the full suite of Audubon’s science, conservation, policy, community building, and development teams.
• Represent and advocate for California’s work both internally and externally.
• Develop and maintain partnerships and coalitions with federal, state, and municipal agencies, NGOs, and local communities involved in protecting, enhancing, and restoring habitats and birds at critical sites.
• Identify opportunities to partner with Audubon chapters where appropriate.
• Supervise conservation staff, including setting annual objectives and priorities, conducting performance evaluations, and providing leadership and mentorship.
• Hire and supervise seasonal volunteer staff as needed.
• Collaborate with the communications teams in California and nationally to raise the profile of California’s work, disseminating information through various media channels.
• Support annual and mid‑year budget reviews, keep conservation program budgets on target, and proactively identify issues and solutions.
• Support the Vice President with development activities, including solicitation of gifts and prospect development; lead bird walks, give presentations to public commissions, and engage donors.
• Research and secure public and private funding opportunities to support conservation programs.
• Build and support the team’s capacity to provide technical expertise related to birds and habitats in California and beyond.
• Serve…