The California Ocean Protection Council (OPC) is hiring a Senior Environmental Scientist (Specialist) to lead its Marine Protected Area (MPA) Program. OPC is a Cabinet-level state policy body that works to ensure healthy coastal and ocean ecosystems by advancing innovative, science-based policy and management, making strategic investments, and catalyzing action through partnerships and collaboration.
The Senior Environmental Scientist will serve as the team lead for OPC’s MPA program and will be responsible for: coordinating the efforts of OPC’s MPA program manager and Sea Grant Fellow; leading implementation of the state’s MPA Management Program in collaboration with OPC’s other MPA program staff and external partners, which includes investments and actions related to outreach and education, research and monitoring, compliance and enforcement, and policy and permitting; grant and contract management including developing work scopes, tracking deliverables, processing invoices, and grantee coordination; and additional organizational support and capacity, as needed.
Applicants should have a minimum of four years of relevant post-graduate work experience, a strong scientific background, working knowledge of coastal and ocean issues and stakeholders in California, experience working on projects and/or research related to MPAs in California or elsewhere, and excellent written and verbal communication skills. Completion of the Senior Environmental Scientist (Specialist) State Civil Service Examination is required and exam scores must rank in the top three tiers within the applicant pool to be further considered in the application process; information on the examination can be found here. The ability to work in a fast-paced environment and prioritize tasks is a must. A PhD, ecological modeling experience, and two years of field work are preferred but not required. The position is located in Sacramento, California.
This job announcement is a repost of the position that was released in November 2019. If you applied at that time and are still interested in the position, please resubmit your application materials through the link below.
The application deadline is January 29, 2020. For more details and to apply, please visit: https://jobs.ca.gov/CalHrPublic/Jobs/JobPosting.aspx?JobControlId=187238
The Ocean Protection Council is pleased to announce a funding opportunity for projects focused on outreach and education to improve compliance with marine protected area (MPA) regulations in California:
2020 Marine Protected Area Outreach and Education Small Grants Program
The MPA Outreach and Education Small Grants Program, funded by the California Ocean Protection Council (OPC) through the Once-Through Cooling (OTC) Interim Mitigation Program and administered by Coastal Quest, is a competitive grant program providing support for projects focused on outreach and education to improve compliance with MPA regulations statewide. Applicants may submit proposals for $25,000 – $100,000. A minimum total of $750,000 will be distributed under the MPA Outreach and Education Small Grants Program’s request for proposals (RFP).
Please see the full RFP for additional details
The Ocean Protection Council and the NOAA Marine Debris Program co-hosted a webinar for the California Ocean Litter Prevention Strategy (Strategy) implementation process on December 9, 2019. We are pleased to announce that the webinar recording is now available! The webinar featured guest presentations from:
Angela Howe of California Surfrider provided an update on legislative activity both in and outside of California.
Overall, 22 progress reports were provided for action items in the Strategy during this reporting period, out of 32 actions with a lead organization that committed to progress reporting.
Finally, the first in-person implementation workshop for the Strategy is being planned for June 24-25, 2020 in Los Angeles. Please watch the webinar recording for the details, and additional resources are available on the OPC website.
OPC is accepting public comment on the Draft 2020 – 2025 Strategic Plan to Protect California’s Coast and Ocean. Comments can be submitted by email to COPCpublic@resources.ca.gov and must be received by 5pm on December 13, 2019.
The California Ocean Protection Council (OPC) is hiring a Senior Environmental Scientist (Specialist) to lead its Marine Protected Area (MPA) Program. OPC is a Cabinet-level state policy body that works to ensure healthy coastal and ocean ecosystems by advancing innovative, science-based policy and management, making strategic investments, and catalyzing action through partnerships and collaboration.
The Senior Environmental Scientist will serve as the team lead for OPC’s MPA program and will be responsible for: coordinating the efforts of OPC’s MPA program manager and Sea Grant Fellow; leading implementation of the state’s MPA Management Program in collaboration with OPC’s other MPA program staff and external partners, which includes investments and actions related to outreach and education, research and monitoring, compliance and enforcement, and policy and permitting; grant and contract management including developing work scopes, tracking deliverables, processing invoices, and grantee coordination; and additional organizational support and capacity, as needed.
Applicants should have a minimum of four years of relevant post-graduate work experience, a strong scientific background, working knowledge of coastal and ocean issues and stakeholders in California, experience working on projects and/or research related to MPAs in California or elsewhere, and excellent written and verbal communication skills. The ability to work in a fast-paced environment and prioritize tasks is a must. A PhD, ecological modeling experience, and two years of field work are preferred but not required. The position is located in Sacramento, California.
The application deadline is November 22, 2019. For more details and to apply, please visit: https://jobs.ca.gov/CalHrPublic/Jobs/JobPosting.aspx?JobControlId=179933
The Ocean Protection Council held a public meeting on November 13th starting at 1 PM in Sacramento.
The agenda can be viewed here.
… read more
The staff at OPC are devastated at the loss of our friend and colleague Adrian Dahood-Fritz, and her husband Andrew Fritz, who were both victims of the catastrophic Conception dive boat accident that occurred on September 2, 2019.
Adrian was the Senior Scientist and Policy Advisor in our marine protected areas program and had been working with us since April 2019. In addition to bringing a wealth of scientific and technical expertise to our team, she brought a level of passion, determination, and dedication that will be impossible to replace. Adrian had a fantastic sense of humor and charmed us with unbelievable stories, including those about her adventures in the Antarctic and her love of cats, krill, penguins, and pancake ice.
Adrian wasn’t afraid to push back on consensus opinions and was skillful at articulating her point of view. She was a brilliant scientist and was always thoughtful, critical and measured in her approach. She had a unique ability to dig into the details of a scientific issue while always keeping the broader goal of marine conservation in focus. Prior to working at OPC, she worked for the National Science Foundation’s Office of Polar Programs and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division conducting research, influencing policy, and helping establish and manage protected areas in Antarctica.
In May, Andrew volunteered his time and skills to video an OPC-hosted workshop on marine protected areas. It was an altruistic gesture that demonstrated the love and support he shared with Adrian. We are grateful to have had the honor to meet him and deeply appreciate his generous contribution to our work.
We recognize that this accident has had a significant impact on our entire ocean community and that many of our colleagues and partners have also suffered incredible, unfathomable loss. We stand with you in this time of grief as we hold the spirit of our friends and loved ones close to our hearts.
In Adrian’s memory, the Adrian Dahood-Fritz Memorial Fund has been established with the Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS). All donations will support travel for early career researchers to attend international conferences. For more information on APECS and how to donate to the Memorial Fund, please visit: https://www.apecs.is/who-we-are/support-apecs/adrian-dahood-fritz-memorial-fund.html
Please note, the donation page will need to be translated. To do so, click on the yellow donate button, add a dollar amount and click on the blue shaded link says “Doner med PayPal,” log into your PayPal account, and then the webpage will be translated to English. All of these steps will occur prior to confirmation of payment.
California Governor
Gavin Newsom
Secretary for Natural Resources
Wade Crowfoot
Executive Director
Mark Gold
- February 26 - Sacramento
- June 17 - location TBD
- September 17 - location TBD
- December 15 - location TBD
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The OPC works jointly with government agencies responsible for ocean and coastal resource management, and is supported by several partner organizations.
