associate

steward

restoration technician

property management technician

program assistant

The-Nature-Conservancy

To paraphrase my main point: TNC's model for seasonal field staff is outdated.

Don't get me wrong - I learned a lot from my year as a conservation tech. Our regional boss was wonderful and our team was able to participate in all sorts of meaningful work. We had a successful season and were able to manage hundreds of acres of native habitat. A lot of impactful, hands-on work, from invasive species removal to prescribed fire.

That being said, there was this overall feeling that we were understaffed for what we were trying to accomplish. That didn't stop us from trying to do as much as possible - we were fortunate to have a team of hard workers that were passionate for the overall mission. But, it meant there was a sacrifice for time that created an unhealthy work-life balance, and because of this almost all of us spent our free time just trying to recover from long hours of physically-exhausting work.

If the pay matched the work we completed, I think it could have been more justified. But the pay was NOT competitive. There was provided housing, which is a plus. But I have worked for other conservation groups, which also provided housing, and 1. the least amount of pay I ever received from any of my previous seasonal positions was still 1/3 more of what TNC offered, and 2. it was for way less strenuous work. And consequently, there seems to be a shrinking amount of retention and an increasing amount of turnover for TNC's seasonal staff. Myself, and most of my coworkers, did not want to return for the same position for another season.

What could TNC do differently? Allocate more resources for increased staff and wages for on the ground, field and seasonal employees. It's not like TNC as an organization is underfunded - maybe a redistribution of funds is in order. It really struck me how much was expected of us in the field for what we were provided. And ultimately, it made me view those in TNC not working in the field and in higher-up positions with less favor. 

And so, for as TNC is now, here's the takeaway. If you want to get some great experience and make meaningful change, a season in the field will be helpful. But, especially for longer-term field positions, if you don't want to suffer from burnout and potential disgruntlement/life dissatisfaction, look for opportunities that pay more and/or provide a better work-life balance

I worked there for 11 years and loved my job and felt that it was making a difference. I worked hard, held volunteer work days, was very competent and dedicated to my work, working 6 days a week.  The manager/supervisor never came out to the field to see mine or other's work, sat in an office goofing off on the computer or lying on a couch reading. And yet he was supposed to be supervising, writing evaluations about our work, participating in field work. Nope. In 2017 they hired another lazy bum who, though he at least was outside, wandered around all day looking at the pretty flowers while others did the field work. We'd see him walking around, by himself when he was supposed to be with, and supervising seasonal staff. His supervisor even joked about this guy smoking dope. And the answer we got from our supervisor, "it doesn't matter that we take money for work that doesn't get done, no one ever checks". Thus began the decline of the preserves. Unfortunately our complaints fell on deaf ears so we complained to our supervisor's manager, who also did nothing.   In fact, they promoted the wanderer!  Apparently he brown-nosed the right people while I was out working in the field.  The workplace culture was one of mistrust, mismanagement, complacency, and no integrity. The morale was at an all-time low when I finally couldn't take any more. I had to walk away from a job I loved because The Nature Conservancy does not care about conservation. It was the hardest decision I've ever had to make because I honestly cared about the preserves.  They only care about money and image.

I performed a variety of administrative and communication duties (including management and supervision) with increasing responsibility and success during my career, 1983-2002. As the organization expanded, my learning and experience grew - in all aspects of PR and media relations, targeted print and web marketing, events and volunteer leadership, and development-fundraising support. Strength: writing and editing for print and web. Good layout and graphic design skills.

The mission--protecting our natural heritage--was paramount and kept me motivated and successful!

I worked with dozens of biologists, real estate professionals, land use planners and business and academic leaders, as well as students and volunteers. This job required a high degree of flexibility, as priorities changed frequently. Supervisors encouraged my job growth and coworkers were mostly excellent.

Carolina to work on a comprehensive plan to diversify their board of trustees, and developed manifests for over ten state chapter boards.
• Worked on a state-wide ballot measure for conservation to specific target groups with the Forever Wild campaign- an organization serving 195 coalitions whose mission is to expand the number of recreational opportunities available to the public, while protecting water quality.
• Created a database and recruited conservation ambassadors from communities that lacked previous environmental education included but not limited to the Legislative Black Caucus, NAACP, Links, Jack & Jill of America for The Nature Conservancy Alabama chapter.
• Developed source reports, and created manifests of potential board members for twenty-two State Directors for the world-wide office at The Nature Conservancy.
• Initiated relationships with the Audubon society, African American Outdoor Association, Coalition for Natural Resources, Master Gardner Association, Wildflower Society, Environmental Education Association, and the Native Plant Certification Program.

My typical day at work consists of dealing with the day-to-day operations of 7 leases on farms across Ventura County. Other days I contend with trespass and vandalism issues across 3,500 acres of riverine, foothill and coastal wetland habitat.

I learned about contract management and negotiation, managing property records and taxes through an on-line work enterprise cloud computing program called Salesforce. It's an office heavy job requiring time management, constant communication, managing deadlines and constantly putting out fires. 

The hardest part of the job is being in confrontational situations where you have to talk to people who are trespassing on private property and aren't the nicest people usually.

Workplace culture is very ambitious, corporate and not very diverse; not very much recognition is handed out.

The most enjoyable part of the job is sometimes working with volunteers and kids in school groups outside.

TNC is really a fantastic organization. I loved showing up to work everyday knowing I was actually making a difference. I had a great supervisor who cared about my professional development, and gave me plenty of flexibility in where I wanted to be located in the state, as well as my hours in office so I could avoid traffic. I was able to work from home 2 days a week. However, the pay was 20-40% less than what similar positions in government or private sector pay. This is common for environmental non-profit sector but can really get irritating over the years. Also TNC has a 35 hour work week, this sounds great for work/life balance, but if you are hourly, it means you might be making more per hour, but over the year, you're making 12% less than if you has a 40 work week. Great organization, very supportive, has room for you to grow. However, I decided to leave for a different mission-based job so I could make more to support my family. 

I have worked for The Nature Conservancy for over ten years off and on doing mostly seasonal fire work. It was a great place to work and learn until management changed a few years ago. Now there is a large focus on fundraising, government relations, and policy change. 
This is in stark contrast from the on the ground conservation effort that was at the heart of The Nature Conservancy. I know people who had been employed by The Nature Conservancy for many years starting to leave in favor of a more true conservation minded organization. It is such a shame because it used to be such a rewarding place to work. In short if you are truly interested in real conservation work and "saving the best places on Earth" I would advise against The Nature Conservancy.

A typical day in the life of a remediation officer in the Greater Chicago area: Wake up at 5:00am for work at 6:00am. Meet with the team, and travel in the work truck to one of your sites. Once arrived, put on enough sunscreen to protect yourself from the sun despite sweating, and enough bug spray to make your eyes water. You will then fill your applicator backpack with herbicide, and go out into the site to identify and spray invasive species in preserve areas and riverine marshes. This position allows you to learn flora species swiftly, due to full immersion. Co-workers and management often act as other sources for information, filling in blanks in one's knowledge. The most difficult aspect of the job is being outdoors 8 hours a day, no matter the weather- on the hottest days it could be a struggle. The most enjoyable part of the job is the amount that you learn in such a short time, as well as the people that you work with.

A typical day would start with going to a location and using a map to find certain areas, given that, most areas did not have cell phone signals. I loved the land that i worked on and enjoyed the mission I was given. I felt the most interesting skills I learned were being able to accurately read and interpret a map; in addition to, engaging with the public. The management was complex in that i met with my supervisor every outing, but rarely felt like I kept in contact with the management. The workplace culture felt more like a steward-based culture in that I-along with my co-worker and supervisor- were the eyes and ears on the land in order to inform the management of any concerns and report on all interactions with the public. The hardest part of the job is the lack of contact with the management. The most enjoyable part though was interacting with the public.

The Nature Conservancy's internship program stationed me and many other selected students across America to take part in wildlife conservation all over. My typical word day included removal of invasive plant species, the census of endangered animals and plants, and the plotting of lands recently purchased by the Conservancy . The workplace was a new experience since I basically had to live with 4 strangers that I grew closer to over the month being that we had to fully cooperate together. The hardest part of the job was the many hours spent hiking in hard terrain to do our jobs. The most enjoyable part was to spend so much time in a setting not many people get to experience.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Associate 1 salary reported	$77,713 per year
Steward 2 salaries reported	$20.15 per hour
Restoration technician 3 salaries reported	$18.00 per hour
Property management technician 3 salaries reported	$380 per week
Program assistant 2 salaries reported	$21.00 per hour

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