Director of Policy - Ocean

WHO WE ARE

We know that our climate goals can only be met by rapidly reducing emissions and removing the carbon that already exists in our atmosphere. Carbon180 is a climate NGO with a vision to remove legacy carbon emissions from the atmosphere and create a livable climate in which current and future generations can thrive. Based in Washington, DC, we design and champion equitable, science-based policies that bring carbon removal solutions to gigaton scale.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Here at Carbon180, we believe there is no “perfect” candidate and want to encourage applying even if all the requirements listed aren’t met. Our goal is to build an authentic workplace by valuing diversity in our candidates. We are always looking to expand our growing team with dynamic and enthusiastic individuals. We look forward to receiving your application! 

THE OPPORTUNITY

Overview

Carbon180 is seeking a director of policy to lead our growing ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR) work around all approaches for enhancing the uptake of carbon dioxide by the ocean. This individual will be responsible for developing and executing Carbon180’s federal ocean policy strategy in partnership with the senior leadership team. Additionally, they will build, manage and lead a team of policy experts to propose and draft new policy ideas, identify where Carbon180 can have the greatest impact, engage with coalitions, and perform direct outreach and advocacy to policymakers and agency leadership (including in-person attendance for Hill meetings, conferences, and networking events). This position requires that you live within two hours driving distance of Washington, D.C.

The director of policy will collaborate with the science and innovation team to ensure policy development is rooted in the best available science and addresses real-world barriers faced by on-the-ground practitioners; the environmental justice team to ensure ocean policies are equitable and just; and the government affairs and communications teams to educate policymakers and other key audiences. 

This role is also responsible for developing and managing yearly and quarterly policy goals and an associated budget, and working with the development team to meet specified fundraising requirements. The director of policy will report to the senior director of policy and government affairs.

Major Roles + Responsibilities

• Lead the development and execution of Carbon180’s ocean policy strategy, working with the ocean policy team to set annual, monthly, and weekly priorities aligned to our organizational strategy.

• Manage a team of policy staff to accomplish this strategy, identifying hiring needs, running hiring processes, providing day-to-day project support, and supporting individual professional development and mentorship.
• Lead the team in building and executing campaigns, including developing novel policy ideas in key issue areas, planning and leading coalition-building and outreach activities, and coordinating with our communications team to develop new content, engage with reporters, leverage social media, and act as the policy lead on other communications tasks.
• Represent Carbon180 by participating in events, talking with media personnel, and giving presentations, all towards building high-level relationships across key audiences with organizational resources and other support.
• Serve as the lead on ocean-related fundraising in coordination with the director of development and executive director, including building relationships with funders and creating funding proposals.
• Manage an annual program budget and related grants.
• Drive cross-team collaboration and forecast what specific projects may need for support from the organization.

WHO YOU ARE

Major roles + responsibilities

Our ideal Director of Policy - Ocean believes deeply in our mission. Beyond that:

• You actively seek opportunities to dismantle inequitable systems and other harmful corporate norms and are comfortable learning and growing your DEIBJ literacy.
• You’re high-impact, low-ego, and kind to yourself and others. Our core values (below) resonate with who you are and what you believe.
• You’re a gifted speaker — and an even stronger listener. You’re comfortable in conversation with a variety of stakeholders, from Fortune 500 CEOs, to the Washington Post, to a team of engineers. You can translate ideas across audiences and modes of communication in an organized, thoughtful way.
• You inspire and motivate others to action. You build relationships quickly and deftly, and people trust you. You leverage your storytelling skills to elevate the impact of our work in a way that inspires others to action.
• You’re a systems thinker and creator. You're unfazed by ambiguity, and thrive in situations where you get to build something out of nothing, or create order out of chaos. You want to do work that's never been done before, better than anyone's ever done it. You build systems that last beyond your tenure in prior roles you’ve held, but you believe nimble systems > bureaucracy any day.
• You move fluidly from strategy to execution. You appreciate the big picture and feel inspired to set a bold vision, but you know it's all in the details. You manage projects fluidly, fiercely prioritize, and track timelines, data, and information in an organized and systematic fashion. You don't drop balls, miss deadlines, or forget to respond to someone's inquiry — and you’re not afraid to roll up your sleeves to do the work.
• You’re a driver of results. You've demonstrated the ability to drive results in the pursuit of ambitious goals and you combine your exceptional strategic, analytical, and critical-thinking skills with your penchant to use data to drive decision-making toward achieving impressive outcomes.
• You build trust and leverage meaningful relationships to get things done. A relationship-builder at heart, the people you work with trust that you leverage relationships to get things done in a mutually beneficial, non-transactional way. You are both warm and demanding. You do the things you say you will do, hold others accountable, and support the people you engage in the pursuit of our shared goals.

Beyond that, you have:

• 8+ years of experience in federal policy, including experience in government and/or non-governmental organizations working on ocean and/or climate policy.
• Deep understanding of relevant authorizations, appropriations, and agency structures.
• Expertise on ocean-based CDR policies, approaches, and markets.
• Knowledge about the state of the field and where policy will be most impactful in advancing solutions for ocean-based CDR.
• Experience developing and executing successful policy change strategies and campaigns.
• Experience managing teams and supervising employees.
• Comfort with public speaking and media engagement.
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice (DEIBJ).

WHAT WE OFFER

Carbon180 is deeply committed to providing market-leading compensation and robust benefits to our employees. Our salaries are in the 70th percentile of the Washington, DC market. We employ an external firm to conduct market analyses every three years, and we are committed to safeguarding internal salary equity. For those reasons, we have a non-negotiation policy on salaries.

The starting salary for this position will be between  $178,090 - $194,280, with opportunities for growth up to $242,850.

Carbon180 prides itself on offering benefits and perks to our employees that illustrate how we live our values, including:

• 36-hour workweeks (we close at 1 pm every Friday) and dedicated no-meeting time each week.
• A remote-first flexible work culture.
• Four weeks of PTO, three weeks of paid org-wide breaks including one week in the summer and two weeks in the winter, four weeks of sick leave, and five floating holidays/personal days.
• 100% company-covered insurance premiums for medical/dental/vision/long-term disability for you and your dependents.
• Quarterly health and wellness, book, and learning and development stipends.

TO APPLY

To apply for the role of Director of Policy- Ocean, please submit an application.

On the application, you’ll be asked to

• answer some basic questions about your background and experiences,
• in place of a cover letter, answer a few written reflection questions to help us learn more about your interest in joining our team and in this role specifically, and
• attach your resume in the application form.

Interview process and timeline

• Applications are being accepted and reviewed through January 31, 2025. 
• There will be three rounds of interviews in February and early March.
• We anticipate extending an offer in early March.

If you have any questions or issues submitting your application, please email us at [email protected].

OUR VALUES

At C180, we believe in living by an internal set of core values, which we strive to embody and celebrate in moments big and small.

• One Boat. We work hard to ensure that we are rowing in one direction as a team, aligning our work and resources to shared goals..
• Pencil to Pen. We think critically, do our research, and weigh multiple options. Then, we commit to move to action.
• Win + Lose Together. When one of us succeeds, we all win. When we encounter challenges, we determine how best to redirect the energy and resources of the team to solve them.
• Person in the Professional. Our team is composed of real people with real passions, interests, and needs within and outside of work. We believe we need to care for ourselves and others to be our best and most productive selves at work. 
• Make Space, Share Space. We believe in making space for all voices to be heard, within our team and our broader work - particularly and especially voices historically disenfranchised and disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change.
• Be a Window, Not a Door. We’re committed to transparency, and to shining light on how and why decisions are made. We are honest with one another, ask for clarity, and operate with integrity to build a culture of trust.
• Grow the Braintrust. We are committed to constantly learning, and to staying up to speed on the science of our field. We work to grow our knowledge, sharpen our skills, and to bring great minds to the field of carbon removal.

We currently require that all employees who plan to enter a Carbon180 office or otherwise meet in person with coworkers or other third parties on Carbon180 business are fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus. Accordingly, this role may require full COVID-19 vaccination (subject to any exemptions or accommodations due to medical or religious reasons).

Carbon180 is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other occupationally irrelevant criteria. Carbon180 continually seeks to enrich its staff and team culture. In particular, we’re dedicated to broadening opportunities for individuals from demographic groups that are historically underrepresented in the sciences and in environmental advocacy. We’re also committed to building an inclusive workplace culture where talented people of widely different backgrounds can thrive. We've adopted this commitment because we believe the inclusion of culturally diverse perspectives will improve our work and produce better societal and environmental outcomes for all, including historically disenfranchised communities.