Employment - Open Positions

The Public Health Institute (PHI) is a large non-profit public health organization conducting a broad range of public health research, training, and technical assistance programs in California, throughout the nation, and around the world. PHI is seeking a 9 to 12 months full time Policy Associate for Regional Asthma Management and Prevention (RAMP). This position is located in Oakland, CA.

RAMP is a collaborative that promotes strategies for reducing asthma through a broad and comprehensive approach that includes clinical management and environmental protection. RAMP brings together diverse partners such as public health and community-based organizations, schools, medical providers, and environmental health and justice groups to join forces in reducing the burden of asthma with a focus on communities inequitably affected by the disease. RAMP is a clearinghouse of asthma information, provides technical assistance to asthma coalitions, and serves as a regional convener in the Bay Area. RAMP also coordinates Community Action to Fight Asthma (CAFA), a statewide network of asthma coalitions working to shape local, regional and state policies to reduce the environmental triggers of asthma for school-aged children where they live, learn, and play. Finally, RAMP serves as a Center for Excellence in Eliminating Disparities (CEED) related to asthma among African Americans and Latinos.

The Policy Associate will manage and contribute to several distinct but interconnected efforts related to reducing environmental pollution in both the Greater Bay Area as well as the state of California. Within the region, the Associate will lead some of RAMP’s collaborative advocacy against environmental pollution as it relates to air quality through the lens of climate change, land use and freight transportation. To the extent that these regional issues also have connections to state-level policy, the Associate will also work with state policymakers. The Policy Associate may also contribute to some of RAMP’s regional efforts related to housing. This position currently has one year of funding. Future funding is possible depending upon RAMP’s overall financial sustainability efforts.

Duties & Responsibilities:

The Policy Associate will report directly to the RAMP Associate Director and will also receive programmatic guidance and support from an existing RAMP Policy Associate. Activities include:

• Climate change and land use
  • Collaborate with other public health and environmental health organizations to provide an asthma/public health voice primarily to regional efforts related to implementation of SB 375 (a bill that will help shape land use and transportation decisions)
  • To the extent that the regional advocacy has state level connections (e.g., possibly through AB 32, the Global Warming Solutions Act), work with other advocates and state policy makers for the adoption of health-protective measures
  • Connect local asthma advocates and coalitions with both regional and state climate change advocacy opportunities
  • Connect local asthma advocates and coalitions with local land use campaigns, helping to insert a public health voice in planning decisions and processes
• Air pollution
  • With other public health, environmental health and community based organizations, advocate for policies and protocols to reduce the impacts from the freight transportation sector
  • Assist with the implementation of a regional campaign for regulators to adopt policies and protocols that recognize and reduce the impact of pollution from multiple sources
• Housing
  • Time permitting, contribute to RAMP’s housing-related efforts. Examples include building relationships between asthma/public health advocates and tenants rights advocates; highlighting the problem of sub-standard housing, etc.

The above activities will utilize a variety of strategies, including but not limited to:

• Developing and expanding upon relationships with key partners throughout the region
• Representing RAMP on regional and potentially state collaboratives
• Organizing and facilitating capacity-building workshops, such as round table dialogues and trainings
• Providing policy analysis of air pollution related regulations, laws, and policies
• Facilitating conference calls and in-person meetings aimed to building consensus and making decisions about specific policy actions
• Traveling within the Bay Area region and occasionally to Sacramento to meet with key allies, educate legislative and regulatory staff, and speaking at hearings as needed
• Tracking the progress of priority policies and utilizing judgment as to when and how to involve other advocates in fast and key decisions

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree required; advanced degree in Public Policy, Public Health or related field preferred
• Minimum five years of leadership, coordination and project management experience
• Knowledge of asthma and environmental triggers is essential, but can be learned on the job
• Proven ability to build consensus and work collaboratively
• Experience in advocacy or policy change
• Experience in public health and/or environmental health; experience with air pollution advocacy and policy preferred
• Demonstrated ability to work with diverse communities and stakeholders, including public health, environmental justice, community based organizations, etc.
• Experience with organizing and implementing trainings and convenings
• Demonstrated initiative and problem-solving skills
• Excellent judgment and decision-making skills
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Experience in development and implementation of strategic plans
• Ability to work independently with little supervision and manage multiple tasks simultaneously
• Ability and willingness to work as a member of a team
• Computer literacy, including Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and the Internet
• Excellent research skills
• Ability to drive across a six-county region and to Sacramento and occasional travel in California and to national conferences

Compensation:

This is an exempt position and the salary is commensurate with experience. PHI offers a generous benefits package including medical, dental, vision, short/long term disability insurance, life insurance, 403b (group retirement annuity) and partial subsidy of public transportation cost. For more information about PHI’s benefits, visit our benefits page at http://www.phi.org/about/employment.html

How to apply:

To apply for this position click here.