City Jobs

External Affairs Manager

Entrance Salary

$90,000-$110,000

Description

In 2015, the City of New Orleans launched the world’s first plan focused entirely on city resilience, Resilient New Orleans. The resilience strategy also established the Office of Resilience & Sustainability (ORS) to coordinate projects and programs across city departments, public agencies, and with non-governmental partners. In 2017, the City of New Orleans released a comprehensive, communitywide climate action strategy and in 2022, an updated Climate Action Plan was released. In 2019, the City, in partnership with the Greater New Orleans Foundation and Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, released a climate equity report focused on implementing these plans in ways that achieve equitable results for all New Orleanians.  A core component of implementing each of these plans is building partnerships, securing funding, and effectively communicating progress around the City’s climate action and resilience goals.

Position Description

The City of New Orleans seeks an External Affairs Manager to work in the Office of Resilience & Sustainability (ORS).  This position is responsible for working with the Chief Resilience Officer and Deputy Chief Resilience Officer to develop policy and projects that advance resilience & sustainability priorities in New Orleans, crafting communication plans to build coalitions of support, and tracking and securing funding from federal, state, and philanthropic grant programs as part of the Federal Infrastructure Task Force.  The position will also maintain relationships with government agencies, advocacy groups, and other stakeholders who work in the resilience & sustainability sector. This position is charged with working closely with city colleagues to maintain a high-level view of how each component of the City’s climate action and resilience strategies fit together and connecting outside support and funding opportunities to those strategies.

The External Affairs Manager will serve as a coordinator and facilitator between City agencies and departments, as a point person for non- and quasi-governmental partners, and as a liaison with the state government, including the Louisiana Coastal Restoration and Protection Agency (CPRA), and Federal offices and agencies.  The role calls for a balance of leadership and relationship-building skills, as the External Affairs Manager will interface with key influencers and decision-makers within multiple levels of government, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations locally, nationally, and globally. In addition, this role will require flexibility and strong organizational, written, and communication skills. Successful candidates will have a track record that demonstrates their ability to work independently, to contribute effectively as a member of a team, and to collaborate across organizations.

Responsibilities

• Track and coordinate relevant funding opportunities for the City, partner government agencies, non-profit and for-profit entities that work in the resilience and sustainability sector as part of the Federal Infrastructure Task Force
• Develop the grant applications, reports, and action plans required by State and Federal agencies to access resources dedicated for policies, programs and projects that help the City meet its climate action and resilience goals as part of the Federal Infrastructure Task Force, with a focus on meeting or exceeding the federal Justice40 goals in each grant application
• Advocate on behalf of the city and city partners for Federal, state, and private funding applications and opportunities and manage letters of support for those applications
• Brief government partners and agencies on the goals and priorities of the City’s Office of Resilience and Sustainability, as well as other infrastructure and workforce related departments
• Develop campaigns that build awareness and understanding of environmental issues among New Orleanians and collaborate with the City of New Orleans communications team as needed
• Draft talking points, social media posts, press releases and other communications plans for use by the Mayor, senior leadership or the Mayor’s Office of Communications and manage the office’s website and newsletter
• Manage ORS’ climate data reporting in coordination with the Deputy Chief Resilience Officer, including the City’s biannual greenhouse gas inventory, and plan effective communications campaigns to chart the city’s progress against its climate goals
• Coordinate with colleagues within the Office of Resilience and Sustainability to support the goals of the City’s resilience strategy
• Draft briefing memos to the Mayor, the Chief Resilience Officer, the Deputy Chief Resilience Officer, and executive staff on resilience and sustainability policies, programs, and projects
• Track development of research and best practices nationally and internationally on climate change, risk to coastal cities, and adaptation strategies
• Work with colleagues in the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) to track relevant legislation and policy shifts at the local, state, and federal levels
• Other duties as assigned

Skills and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree in urban planning, environmental studies, engineering, public policy, or related field preferred

• Minimum three years of experience working in government and/or policy development
• Familiarity with and commitment to racial equity and environmental justice issues
• Experience writing and applying to federal and state grant opportunities
• Background in climate policy, climate adaptation, and/or resilience

• Communications experience, including speaking with members of the press, drafting press releases, and creating talking points
• Excellent writing skills and ability to tailor messages and materials to different audiences
• Exceptional strategic thinking and analytical skills with the ability to solve problems in nuanced situations
• Strong interpersonal skills with a track record of building relationships with a variety of stakeholders and influence decision-making processes in a diplomatic and collaborative manner
• Comfort with public speaking in varied settings, ranging from working groups to conferences
• Experience managing projects in a team setting, including developing project plans and meeting project milestones
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, etc.)

Pluses

• Experience working with elected officials and staffers
• Experience living and working in New Orleans
• A track record of writing successful federal grant applications
• Experience working within municipal government on policy, particularly related to environment, sustainability, resilience, equity, or public health
• Experience with negotiations, advocacy, politics, and/or inter-organizational cooperation
• Experience working as a consultant to private or public entities

Reports to

Deputy Chief Resilience Officer, Office of Resilience & Sustainability

Travel

This position may require travel outside of the New Orleans metro area less than 5% of the time.

To Apply

To apply for this position, email a resume, brief cover letter, and a writing sample letter with External Affairs Manager in the subject line to: Greg Nichols at grnichols@nola.gov. 

For priority consideration, please apply by April 12^th, 2024.  Applications received after April 12^th will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

The City of New Orleans is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, creed, culture, or ancestry.