Description

DOES THIS DESCRIBE YOU?

You’re passionate about equitable public access to nature-based parks, open space, and public lands and their sound stewardship. You bring experience planning for the management of public lands, nature-based parks, trail systems, or environmentally sensitive open spaces in California. Your academic background is in landscape architecture, outdoor recreation management, public lands planning, or a related field. You are technologically savvy and enjoy using GIS and graphics software to produce visually informative plans, maps, and public engagement materials. You possess strong public outreach skills and are comfortable with both in-person and online engagement techniques. You understand outdoor recreation planning processes, including site analysis, identifying opportunities and constraints, alternatives evaluation, policy planning, and conceptual site planning. You are a strong writer who can research, organize information, and produce clear written products for a variety of audiences. Assisting communities and government agencies in making informed, equitable decisions about public land management is important to you. You are curious, collegial, caring, collaborative, and committed to quality and continued learning to keep up with changing requirements.
 

Ascent is seeking an Outdoor Recreation Planner to join our conservation and recreation planning sector based in our Lake Tahoe, Sacramento, Berkeley, Irvine, or San Diego offices. In a typical week in this role, you might:

• Work as part of an interdisciplinary team of planners, biologists, outreach specialists, and environmental professionals to plan for the management and stewardship of public lands and open spaces.
• Prepare written planning documents describing existing conditions; planning issues; opportunities and constraints analyses; and goal, policy, and management recommendations.
• Research, evaluate, and document existing conditions such as visitation patterns, land uses, facilities, trail conditions, demographics, natural and cultural resources, and access and transportation systems.
• Produce maps, diagrams, and infographics to convey public access or land management issues, planning alternatives, and recommendations.
• Collaborate with biologists, botanists, scientists, climate adaptation specialists, and environmental planners to develop environmentally sustainable plans.
• Be responsible for and lead field and GIS desktop data collection and review for the purposes of preparing park, trail, and land management plans.  
• Assist with organizing and facilitating stakeholder meetings, community workshops, client charrettes, and other outreach activities, including seeking authentic participation by disadvantaged and non-English-speaking communities.
• Incorporate creative insights and high-quality design into nature-based park, trail, and public lands plans.
• Coordinate with environmental planning leaders and staff in joint planning and environmental review processes for parks, trails, or open spaces.
• Serve as an outdoor recreation topic specialist in support of CEQA, NEPA analysis, or land use plans.
• Team up with interdisciplinary project managers, principals, and other expert colleagues on all your projects.
• Advance equity and inclusion in public access to public lands.
• Interface with clients at state agencies, regional districts and agencies, cities and counties, and NGOs.
• Stay up to date on the current state of the art and practice by reviewing resources from expert organizations and attending conferences, training sessions, and webinars.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s and/or master’s degree in landscape architecture, outdoor recreation management, public lands planning, or a related field.
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant professional experience; 3–6 years preferred, supporting communities and/or public agencies with planning efforts.
• Demonstrated experience preparing graphically rich master plans, management plans, or general plans for public lands, trails, open space, parks, or similar nature-based resources.
• Working knowledge of outdoor recreation planning within the context of ecological management and public access, particularly in California and the Western United States.
• Experience conducting planning and site analysis using ESRI ArcGIS Pro.
• Proficiency in developing graphics and documents using Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator, and Microsoft Office.
• Ability to work collaboratively with interdisciplinary teams and engage effectively with public agencies, stakeholders, and community members.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to contribute to clear, visually compelling planning documents.

Work environment

• Typical office environment
• Hybrid        

Physical Demands  

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at a time.

Travel  

• Travel is required, primarily throughout California
• Generally limited to no more than one multi-day trip per month for site visits, field work, or stakeholder and public engagement

Security clearance requirements: Not eligible for sponsorship 

Additional eligibility requirements: N/A   

At Ascent, we believe in fostering a nurturing environment that prioritizes our people. We are committed to holistic investments in our team, offering not only competitive salaries and comprehensive medical benefits but also a range of perks designed to enhance emotional, financial, and physical wellness. A comprehensive list of benefits offered can be found here. 

As a people-first organization, we value and will strive to ascend by welcoming and uplifting all voices, ideas, achievements, and contributions, including those from marginalized communities and identities. We believe that recognizing and embracing our differences makes us a stronger organization. We commit to proactively nurturing environments of mutual support, respect, and caring for all through our words and actions.

Interested in learning more about Ascent's culture? Reach out to our People Resources team at PeopleResources@ascent.inc. We look forward to hearing from you! 

EEO Statement 

Ascent provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. Ascent is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, contact PeopleResources@ascent.inc.  

Ascent strives for equity in every area at Ascent, including compensation. To ensure candidates are paid fairly, the offered salary will fall within this range and will be determined based on the candidate’s demonstrated qualifications and alignment with the requirements of the position outlined above.