Career Opportunity

Bilingual (Chinese and English) Environmental Outreach Associate – San Francisco Environment (9922) (Two Positions)

Recruitment: RTF0121871-01115177

Published: April 13, 2023

Accepting applications until: April 21, 2023

Apply using SmartRecruiters, the City and County of San Francisco's application portal Learn More

About:

Do you want to help support environmental change in the Chinese community? If so, we invite you to join the Environment Now team by applying for our Environmental Outreach positions. You’ll use your language and communications skills to engage the public, including the Chinese community, in building a better future for San Franciscans. The San Francisco Environment Department offers an attractive benefits package, including healthcare and paid time off.

We are hiring for two (2) bilingual positions:

• Position 1: Fluent in Cantonese and English
• Position 2: Fluent in Chinese dialect commonly spoken in San Francisco and English

Who We Are - The San Francisco Environment Department (SF Environment) advances climate protection and enhances quality of life for all San Franciscans. SF Environment is a department within the City and County of San Francisco, a local government committed to innovation, leadership and collaboration in creating environmental change.  SF Environment is recognized worldwide for its environmental policies and programs, which center on achieving zero waste, reducing toxic chemical hazards, advancing environmental justice, promoting low-carbon transportation modes, expanding clean energy infrastructure, greening our built environment and protecting our urban forest. We’re a passionate, mission-driven team that values credibility, collaboration, impact, innovation and equity. SF Environment is also a great place to work, offering an attractive benefits package that includes healthcare and retirement.

SF Environment Racial Equity Statement  - For over 20 years, SF Environment has worked with San Francisco’s Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities to mitigate environmental burdens, increase accessibility of environmental programs and benefits, engage community members, and improve health outcomes. BIPOC communities are disproportionately exposed to environmental stressors that include air and soil pollution, illegal dumping of toxics and other materials, industrial land uses and transportation impacts. They are more likely to live in housing conditions with limited access to green space and where poor indoor air quality from pests, mold, and the use of toxic products contributes to the prevalence of asthma and other health disparities. They are more likely to be employed in areas with high levels of exposure to toxics. Now, they are the first communities feeling the impacts of climate change, with the fewest resources to respond. SF Environment has a longstanding commitment to the principles of environmental justice, whereby communities most impacted by environmental stressors and climate change are prioritized and the long-time work of community leaders is recognized and supported. We are committed to uplifting the contributions of local environmental leaders of diverse racial backgrounds and ensuring that racial equity is the cornerstone of all of our programs, policies, and services.

Role description

***4/13/23 - this announcement is being reposted to allow time for additional applicants to apply.  The announcement will close no earlier than April 21, 2023. **

As an Environmental Outreach Associate you’ll work in a role designed to help you develop your career pathway in the environmental field, while providing mentorship and professional development opportunities. You’ll learn and grow professionally on the job, building foundational experience in environmental communications and team leadership and develop subject matter expertise while meeting designated position objectives.

Environmental Outreach Associates support the City’s zero waste, toxics reduction, energy efficiency, clean transportation, environmental justice and climate action goals through in-person and virtual outreach to the public, especially in communities disproportionately impacted by environmental stressors. You’ll gain knowledge of environmental outreach tactics and behavior-change strategies, public speaking, and program administration, including Salesforce CRM. Knowledge and experience gained will position you for success as an environmental communications and outreach professional equipped to serve San Franciscans and beyond—plus career advancement opportunities in related fields.

We are hiring for two (2) bilingual positions:

1. Cantonese and English, and
2. a Chinese dialect commonly spoken in San Francisco and English

Additional Bilingual Pay: Proficiency in reading, writing, typing, speaking, and listeningm in English and Cantonese or another Chinese dialect commonly spoken in San Francisco, is required for this vacancy. Selected bilingual candidates must pass language proficiency and proofreading tests, and upon successful completion will receive a bilingual pay stipend in addition to their base pay.

What You’ll Do - The duties specified below are representative of the range of duties assigned to this position and are not intended to be an inclusive list.

• Conduct outreach to engage residents, businesses and schools in the City’s environmental policies and programs through door-to-door community outreach, phone calling, event tabling, virtual and in-person presenting, email communication, and surveying
• Conduct on-site recycling and composting assessments and train employees and residents at businesses and apartments
• Facilitate virtual and in-person meetings and workshops with businesses, neighborhood associations, parent-teacher organizations, and community groups.
• Translate written material and check translations provided by consultants
• Assist with day to day operations for outreach projects including, developing strategy and messaging and coordinating and scheduling outreach activities for the team
• Collaborate with the partner organizations and internal programs on citywide environmental initiatives
• Assist in leading team training activities and mentoring new employees, while developing your leadership skills
• Assist with updating and developing department collateral in coordination with the broader communications team
• Respond to public inquiries
• Collect and compile data, while learning to use Salesforce CRM
• Assist in the preparation of reports and documents
• Participate in eco-literacy and project-related trainings
• Perform administrative support and other duties/tasks as required
• May require occasional night and weekend work

How to qualify

Minimum Qualifications
Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university; OR

Two years of college education from an accredited college or university, and six (6) months of professional work experience, including internships, research positions, or other experience, relevant to the duties described in the job description.

Desirable Qualifications - The desirable qualifications may be used to select among finalists at the end of the selection process. We do not expect any one candidate to have all the qualifications listed.  We highly encourage you to apply if you are interested in joining us.

• Interest and ability to collaborate with a team to engage with the public throughout an 8-hour workday by going door-to-door in a residential neighborhood, apartment building or business district
• Interest in learning more about equity, inclusion and diversity concepts and applying them in the environmental field in collaboration with a team
• Customer service, sales, and/or outreach experience with ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in written format
• Word processing, spreadsheet, database and internet proficiency
• Possession of a valid driver’s license and willingness to drive a City-issued vehicle as needed (vehicle is provided)

Appointment Type
These positions (two vacancies will be filled) are exempt appointments, with a duration of up to three years. These positions are excluded by the Charter from the competitive civil service examination process and shall serve at the discretion of the appointing officer.

What else should I know?

Details:

• Compensation - $54,522 per year (link to salary range)
• Application Opening: March 14, 2023, reopened on 4/13/23
• Application Deadline: April 3, 2023, will close no earlier than 4/21/2023
• Recruitment ID: 121872
• Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every position to which they apply. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Verification
Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency can be found at https://sfdhr.org/how-verify-education-requirements

Note: Falsifying one's education, training or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification for this and future job opportunities with the City and County of San Francisco.

All work experience, education, training and other information substantiating how you meet minimum qualifications must be included in your application by the filing deadline. Information submitted after the filing deadline will not be considered in determining whether you meet the minimum qualifications.

Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed City and County of San Francisco application.

Applications completed improperly may be cause for ineligibility, disqualification or may lead to lower scores.

Selection Procedures - After application submission, candidates deemed qualified must complete all subsequent steps to advance in this selection process, which includes the following:

Supplemental Information - After submitting your application you will receive a request for additional information about your education and experience. In addition, 3-5 days after submitting your application, you will be emailed a Supplemental Questionnaire with position-relevant questions about your work experience and interest in the position. Please check junk/spam folders to ensure you receive these information requests.

Selection Process and Timeline - Due to the volume of inquiries we receive, we are unable to give application status updates. While we are not able to reach out to every applicant, the hiring manager will contact you directly after the filing deadline if your skills and experiences are a strong match for the position.

Stage 1 of the selection process will consist of an evaluation of applications. Stage 2 - Based on the evaluation of applications, candidates whose skills and experiences are a strong match for the position will be invited to a phone interview. Stage 3 - Candidates who most closely meet the needs of the position will be invited to participate in the panel interview selection process, including an assessment of relative job-related skills and abilities. Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement to Stage 2 or Stage 3 of the hiring process.

For any questions regarding the position or hiring process- please contact the recruitment analyst, Adam Romoslawski at Adam.Romoslawski@sfgov.org

To find Departments which use this classification, please see https://sfdhr.org/sites/default/files/documents/Forms-Documents/Position-Counts-by-Job-Codes-and-Department-FY-2021-22.pdf.

Additional Information Regarding Employment with the City and County of San Francisco:

• Information About The Hiring Process
• Conviction History
• Employee Benefits Overview  
• Equal Employment Opportunity 
• Disaster Service Worker
• ADA Accommodation
• Veterans Preference
• Seniority Credit in Promotional Exams
• Right to Work
• Copies of Application Documents
• Diversity Statement

HOW TO APPLY:
Applications for City and County of San Francisco jobs are only accepted through an online process. Visit https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/ and begin the application process.
• Select the “I’m Interested” button and follow instructions on the screen

Applicants may be contacted by email about this recruitment and, therefore, it is their responsibility to ensure that their registered email address is accurate and kept up-to-date. Also, applicants must ensure that email from CCSF is not blocked on their computer by a spam filter. To prevent blocking, applicants should set up their email to accept CCSF mail from the following addresses (@sfgov.org, @sfdpw.org, @sfport.com, @flysfo.com, @sfwater.org, @sfdph.org, @asianart.org, @sfmta.com, @sfpl.org, @dcyf.org, @first5sf.org, @famsf.org, @ccsf.edu, @smartalerts.info, and @smartrecruiters.com).

Applicants will receive a confirmation email that their online application has been received in response to every announcement for which they file. Applicants should retain this confirmation email for their records. Failure to receive this email means that the online application was not submitted or received.

Terms of Announcement and Appeal Rights:
Applicants must be guided solely by the provisions of this announcement, including requirements, time periods and other particulars, except when superseded by federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. Clerical errors may be corrected by the posting the correction on the Department of Human Resources website at https://careers.smartrecruiters.com/CityAndCountyOfSanFrancisco1/.

The terms of this announcement may be appealed under Civil Service Rule 111A.35.1. The standard for the review of such appeals is ‘abuse of discretion’ or ‘no rational basis’ for establishing the position description, the minimum qualifications and/or the certification rule. Appeals must include a written statement of the item(s) being contested and the specific reason(s) why the cited item(s) constitute(s) abuse of discretion by the Human Resources Director. Appeals must be submitted directly to the Executive Officer of the Civil Service Commission within five business days of the announcement issuance date.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

CONDITION OF EMPLOYMENT:  All City and County of San Francisco employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. Someone is fully vaccinated when 14 days have passed since they received the final dose of a two-shot vaccine or a dose of a one-shot vaccine. Any new hire must present proof of full vaccination status to be appointed. Any new hire who will be routinely assigned or occasionally enter High-Risk Settings, must provide proof of having received a COVID-19 booster vaccine by March 1, 2022, or once eligible.

The City and County of San Francisco encourages women, minorities and persons with disabilities to apply. Applicants will be considered regardless of their sex, race, age, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition (associated with cancer, a history of cancer, or genetic characteristics), HIV/AIDS status, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, military and veteran status, or other protected category under the law.