Co-Founder/COO

About Alaska Future Ecology Institute (AFEI)

The Alaska Future Ecology Institute (AFEI) is a nonprofit organization committed to rigorous scientific testing and responsible implementation of Arctic Rewilding as a nature based solution to mitigate climate change. 

Research indicates that restoring millions of large, cold-adapted herbivores to the Arctic can stave off catastrophic climate tipping points such as thawing permafrost and terrestrial albedo loss while sequestering gigatons of carbon, reversing biodiversity decline, enhancing food security for rural and Indigenous communities, and improving ecosystem resilience.

Working at the frontier of climate science and ecology, AFEI seeks to realize the potential benefits of Arctic Rewilding through global fieldbuilding and developing a flagship demonstration site in interior Alaska. We work with an international team of collaborators to advance research, develop policy frameworks to facilitate the deployment of Arctic Rewilding in the real world, and engage with diverse stakeholders ranging from tribes and communities to NGOs, wildlife management agencies, land managers, and policymakers across multiple countries to exchange knowledge, align priorities, and explore pragmatic pathways to implementation. 

About the Role

AEFI seeks a founding Chief Operating Officer to grow the organization from an ambitious ecological vision to a world-class climate initiative. This is a true co-founder role, for someone who wants to take ownership for bringing organizational clarity and operational readiness to a young organization poised to have climate impact on the gigaton scale. We’re looking for someone who is energized by the idea of operationalizing a first of its kind 7,000-acre fenced and fully instrumented demonstration site in Alaska and excited about building the systems that will turn us from a scrappy group of passionate collaborators to a high-functioning institution. The ideal candidate can discuss terraforming with a Silicon Valley futurologist one day and spend the next helping the team coax an errant herd of bison in for a veterinary check before having tea with Native elder. The right person for this role is comfortable and unflustered working with people from a broad range of cultural backgrounds and political viewpoints and can engage scientists, local Alaskans, Indigenous groups, investors and policymakers with equal integrity and ease. 

Key Responsibilities

Operational Excellence & Organizational Development

• Translate AFEI’s big-picture vision into feasible operational plans

• Build systems that are sufficiently sophisticated, but not overcomplicated for the organization’s current stage of growth; lead the adaptation of these systems to meet evolving requirements as the organization matures

• Serve as the operational backbone for the organization, overseeing budgeting, finance, grant reporting, HR, compliance, and internal accountability

• Establish organizational cadence, reporting, and execution discipline

• Define roles and determine appropriate timing and sequencing for hiring additional early team members

• Hold ultimate responsibility for logistics (e.g., construction coordination, permitting, etc.) for the Alaska demonstration site

• In partnership with CEO, develop and deliver on a vision for the culture and norms of the organization

Partnership & Stakeholder Management 

• Manage relationships with Alaska DNR, ADFG, federal agencies, tribal organizations, and regional landholders to ensure formal and informal permissions are in place throughout planning, construction and operation of Alaska demonstration site

• Identify and cultivate relationships with relevant individuals and organizations (e.g., land managers, state/federal/international wildlife and natural resource agencies) to create a network of stakeholders

• Support convenings and partnerships across the global Arctic Rewilding network 

• Convene researchers to define and execute on research agenda

• Lead the execution AFEI’s ambitious plans for thought leadership, including development of a carbon credit methodology, Arctic Rewilding toolkit and predictive models, publication of academic papers, and delivery of bespoke support for implementation of Arctic Rewilding by other organizations

Financial Stewardship and Fundraising

• Take ownership of the overall financial health and sustainability of the organization

• Review assumptions and projections to refine near- and medium-term funding requirements

• Put in place and ensure adherence to systems and processes for financial planning and management, including robust budgeting, forecasting and cash management processes

• Manage budgets, financial reporting, audits, and compliance

• Create and present materials to potential funders

• In partnership with CEO, build and maintain relationships with current and potential funders

Required Qualifications

• Strong budgeting, execution, and project-management capacity

• Ability to work across cultures and contexts — Indigenous communities, scientists, funders, field teams, and government 

• Experience navigating ambiguity and complexity in order to deliver on large-scale multi-stakeholder programs 

• Comfort building while implementing (“build the plane as you fly it”)

• Humility and pragmatism in developing strong, productive relationships across cultural, political and ideological lines

• Excitement to help build a field, not just an organization

• Curiosity about the science underlying Arctic Rewilding; interest in developing fluency with relevant concepts

• Willingness to work in rugged field conditions 

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing projects and budgets in climate-tech, conservation, international development, or government

• Conversant in Ecology and climate science (advanced degree welcome, but not required)

• Conversant in relevant policy areas i.e., climate, conservation, rural development, workforce development, sustainability and economic development

• Experience with the culture, lifestyle, and politics of Alaska, rural America, and/or Native American communities

What Success Looks Like

Within 6 months

• Co-create organizational strategy

• Create budget, operational plan and fundraising strategy for next 18 months

• Introduce systems for consistent management of finance, HR, compliance, reporting and governance

Within 12 months

• Demonstrate to potential funders that AFEI has the capacity and systems to deliver on $10M investment (show off the organizational clarity and operational readiness you’ve put in place!)

Within 24 months

• Secure $10M in philanthropic investment

• Fully operationalize demonstration site in Alaska

Logistics

• Starting salary in the range of $150,000-170,000 with expectation that co-founders will agree to increase their compensation as organization matures and secures a strong financial position

• This role is grant funded for 6 months; ongoing salary is contingent upon strengthening our financial position through active fundraising 

• This position is fully remote

• Regular travel to Alaska is expected

• Must be legally authorized to work in the US

About Alaska Future Ecology Institute (AFEI)

The Alaska Future Ecology Institute (AFEI) is a nonprofit organization committed to rigorous scientific testing and responsible implementation of Arctic Rewilding as a nature based solution to mitigate climate change. 

Research indicates that restoring millions of large, cold-adapted herbivores to the Arctic can stave off catastrophic climate tipping points such as thawing permafrost and terrestrial albedo loss while sequestering gigatons of carbon, reversing biodiversity decline, enhancing food security for rural and Indigenous communities, and improving ecosystem resilience.

Working at the frontier of climate science and ecology, AFEI seeks to realize the potential benefits of Arctic Rewilding through global fieldbuilding and developing a flagship demonstration site in interior Alaska. We work with an international team of collaborators to advance research, develop policy frameworks to facilitate the deployment of Arctic Rewilding in the real world, and engage with diverse stakeholders ranging from tribes and communities to NGOs, wildlife management agencies, land managers, and policymakers across multiple countries to exchange knowledge, align priorities, and explore pragmatic pathways to implementation. 

About the Role

AEFI seeks a founding Chief Operating Officer to grow the organization from an ambitious ecological vision to a world-class climate initiative. This is a true co-founder role, for someone who wants to take ownership for bringing organizational clarity and operational readiness to a young organization poised to have climate impact on the gigaton scale. We’re looking for someone who is energized by the idea of operationalizing a first of its kind 7,000-acre fenced and fully instrumented demonstration site in Alaska and excited about building the systems that will turn us from a scrappy group of passionate collaborators to a high-functioning institution. The ideal candidate can discuss terraforming with a Silicon Valley futurologist one day and spend the next helping the team coax an errant herd of bison in for a veterinary check before having tea with Native elder. The right person for this role is comfortable and unflustered working with people from a broad range of cultural backgrounds and political viewpoints and can engage scientists, local Alaskans, Indigenous groups, investors and policymakers with equal integrity and ease. 

Key Responsibilities

Operational Excellence & Organizational Development

• Translate AFEI’s big-picture vision into feasible operational plans

• Build systems that are sufficiently sophisticated, but not overcomplicated for the organization’s current stage of growth; lead the adaptation of these systems to meet evolving requirements as the organization matures

• Serve as the operational backbone for the organization, overseeing budgeting, finance, grant reporting, HR, compliance, and internal accountability

• Establish organizational cadence, reporting, and execution discipline

• Define roles and determine appropriate timing and sequencing for hiring additional early team members

• Hold ultimate responsibility for logistics (e.g., construction coordination, permitting, etc.) for the Alaska demonstration site

• In partnership with CEO, develop and deliver on a vision for the culture and norms of the organization

Partnership & Stakeholder Management 

• Manage relationships with Alaska DNR, ADFG, federal agencies, tribal organizations, and regional landholders to ensure formal and informal permissions are in place throughout planning, construction and operation of Alaska demonstration site

• Identify and cultivate relationships with relevant individuals and organizations (e.g., land managers, state/federal/international wildlife and natural resource agencies) to create a network of stakeholders

• Support convenings and partnerships across the global Arctic Rewilding network 

• Convene researchers to define and execute on research agenda

• Lead the execution AFEI’s ambitious plans for thought leadership, including development of a carbon credit methodology, Arctic Rewilding toolkit and predictive models, publication of academic papers, and delivery of bespoke support for implementation of Arctic Rewilding by other organizations

Financial Stewardship and Fundraising

• Take ownership of the overall financial health and sustainability of the organization

• Review assumptions and projections to refine near- and medium-term funding requirements

• Put in place and ensure adherence to systems and processes for financial planning and management, including robust budgeting, forecasting and cash management processes

• Manage budgets, financial reporting, audits, and compliance

• Create and present materials to potential funders

• In partnership with CEO, build and maintain relationships with current and potential funders

Required Qualifications

• Strong budgeting, execution, and project-management capacity

• Ability to work across cultures and contexts — Indigenous communities, scientists, funders, field teams, and government 

• Experience navigating ambiguity and complexity in order to deliver on large-scale multi-stakeholder programs 

• Comfort building while implementing (“build the plane as you fly it”)

• Humility and pragmatism in developing strong, productive relationships across cultural, political and ideological lines

• Excitement to help build a field, not just an organization

• Curiosity about the science underlying Arctic Rewilding; interest in developing fluency with relevant concepts

• Willingness to work in rugged field conditions 

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing projects and budgets in climate-tech, conservation, international development, or government

• Conversant in Ecology and climate science (advanced degree welcome, but not required)

• Conversant in relevant policy areas i.e., climate, conservation, rural development, workforce development, sustainability and economic development

• Experience with the culture, lifestyle, and politics of Alaska, rural America, and/or Native American communities

What Success Looks Like

Within 6 months

• Co-create organizational strategy

• Create budget, operational plan and fundraising strategy for next 18 months

• Introduce systems for consistent management of finance, HR, compliance, reporting and governance

Within 12 months

• Demonstrate to potential funders that AFEI has the capacity and systems to deliver on $10M investment (show off the organizational clarity and operational readiness you’ve put in place!)

Within 24 months

• Secure $10M in philanthropic investment

• Fully operationalize demonstration site in Alaska

Logistics

• Starting salary in the range of $150,000-170,000 with expectation that co-founders will agree to increase their compensation as organization matures and secures a strong financial position

• This role is grant funded for 6 months; ongoing salary is contingent upon strengthening our financial position through active fundraising 

• This position is fully remote

• Regular travel to Alaska is expected

• Must be legally authorized to work in the US

AFEI is committed to rigorous scientific testing and responsible implementation of Arctic Rewilding as a nature based solution to mitigate climate change.