The Aspen Institute

The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization committed to realizing a free, just, and equitable society. Since its founding in 1949, the Institute has been driving change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most critical challenges facing communities in the United States and around the world. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Institute has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, and an international network of partners.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

To achieve our mission of a more free, just, and equitable society, we commit to working proactively to advance the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion across our myriad endeavors such as the recruitment, compensation, training, and advancement of staff. The best people-serving institutions make this commitment, and we seek to be a leader in the ways that we do so and learn from others. Visit our website to learn more about our commitment and recent actions taken toward building and nurturing a diverse and inclusive environment.

The Aspen Institute Energy and Environment Program (EEP) explores significant challenges with diverse thinkers and doers to make a more prosperous, equitable, and sustainable society for all. We address critical energy, environmental, and climate change issues through non-partisan, non-ideological convening, with the specific intent of bringing together diverse stakeholders to improve the process and progress of policy-level dialogue. This enables EEP to sit at a critical intersection in the conversation and bring together diverse groups of expert stakeholders. In addition to energy and environmental policy, which the program has been addressing for several decades, EEP is now actively and purposefully engaging in climate change policy – mitigating the effects of climate change, adapting to the inevitable impacts of climate change, and the international cooperation needed to achieve these goals.

This Is Planet Ed is an initiative of the Energy and Environment Program that seeks to unlock the power of education as a force for climate action, solutions, and environmental justice.

CORE FUNCTION: 

The Senior Program Manager- This Is Planet Ed is a leadership position within the program dedicated to and responsible for managing activities related to the successful functioning of projects and program within the Energy and Environment Program, specifically Higher Ed Climate Action. This position plays a vital role in the management and coordination of activities within the program’s Higher Ed Climate Action initiative. The Senior Program Manager- This Is Planet Ed works with EEP’s Senior Fellow, This Is Planet Ed, as well as other senior program staff, on formulating and developing substantive programs in alignment with EEP’s strategy and goals, managing project details, communicating and conducting outreach, and identifying, developing, and securing funders. The Senior Program Manager will lead the management of the Higher Ed Climate Action Task Force. As this is a leadership position, it is expected that the Senior Program Manager- This Is Planet Ed will complete all tasks assigned in a timely manner while maintaining deadlines.  This position may also be charged with overseeing other staff and interns, as assigned. 

Please note that this is a non-permanent position tied to the work of the Aspen Institute’s Higher Education Climate Action Initiative and is expected to last through mid-2024 but may be extended beyond based on available funding.

The Senior Program Manager- This Is Planet Ed with limited supervision and direction, will:

• Research, identify, and develop substantive topics, activities, discussants, participants, and other items that align with the EEP programmatic vision and goals, to help set the direction for EEP Higher Ed Climate Action initiative and the overall This Is Planet Ed and EEP strategy. This includes:
  • Interacting with task force members, participants, and other substantive experts to gather and synthesize information;
  • Managing relationships with partners and contractors;
  • Developing agenda items for listening sessions and convenings;
  • Identifying potential high-quality and diverse speakers, participants, and partners;
  • Attending policy and expert briefings when needed to gather and convey critical subject matter information; 
  • Learning, analyzing and possessing a firm grasp of program-related policy and practice content;
  • Facilitating the development of the Higher Ed Climate Action Plan in collaboration with leadership and task force members;
  • Moderating and/or facilitating group calls, meeting, panels as assigned;
  • Serving as a strategic thought partner to program leadership by providing input, advice, and ideas to inform EEP’s work and work planning; 
  • Helping identify needs and develop content for external communications in collaboration with leadership;
• Represents EEP in meetings, calls, correspondence, and other forms of communications with current and potential partners, sponsors, chairs, discussants, and participants on both substantive and logistical topics.
• Arrange and manage logistical elements of listening sessions and convenings, including:
  • Preparing a timeline plan for each convening;
  • Identifying, negotiating, and securing sites, meeting space, meals, lodging, participant travel, ground transportation, and/or AV requirements for convenings;
  • Traveling to convening locations and manage on-site logistics coordinator;
• Research, write, and edit a variety of different EEP Products, including but not limited to research papers and articles, reports, summary and action items from calls and meetings, email correspondence, invitations, post-convening follow up, and other items. 
• In coordination with Senior Fellow, This Is Planet Ed and the Associate Director for Operations, develop and manage convening budgets, finance, accounting, and general spending and ensuring the program maximizes available funding and minimizes expenses while maintaining EEP participant’s high expectations.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEI&B)

• The Senior Program Manager- This Is Planet Ed will be a key contributor to EEP’s DEI&B journey, including working with the leadership team to build a culture of inclusion and belonging with the team, focusing on diversity and inclusion efforts throughout EEP’s work, and continuing to contribute to projects that move the environmental movement toward better DEI&B outcomes.

JOB REQUIREMENTS:

• Minimum of 8 years experience, experience in education policy preferred;
• A strong ability and desire to rapidly learn new subject matter; 
• Ability to successfully manage many tasks simultaneously, master workflow details, and self-prioritize;
• Excellent time management skills;
• Ability to work autonomously and with a small team;
• The ability to plan, organize and follow through with staff and a variety of constituencies.
• Strong customer service orientation – a “Yes, and” attitude;
• Attention to detail;
• Excellent computer and administrative skills;

• Experience with publications production and dissemination helpful;
• Professional and diplomatic interpersonal skills required;
• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, with a diverse set of stakeholders, in a clear and precise manner;
• Ability to think strategically and creatively to achieve This is Planet Ed goals;
• Ability to work in a collaborative environment to build consensus and gain agreement on a plan of action;
• Demonstrated self-awareness, cultural competency and inclusivity, and ability to work with colleagues and stakeholders across diverse cultures and backgrounds;
• Strong analytical and writing skills with an ability to create materials and/or presentations that represent the organization’s positions and priorities, including for social media and other communications pieces;
• Proven ability to build strong relationships quickly;
• Political acumen;
• Demonstrable ability to discern political, economic and cultural beliefs and ideologies related to policy questions and subject matter, including participant and institutional biases; and
• Willingness and ability to travel, with as much as 25% of the time certain times of the year.

Salary Range: $100,000-$110,000

Please note that this is a non-permanent position tied to the work of the Aspen Institute’s Higher Education Climate Action Initiative and is expected to last through mid-2024 but may be extended beyond based on available funding.

The Aspen Institute offers a generous benefits package including health, dental, vision, and prescription benefits, retirement benefits, and paid leave.

The Aspen Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer and complies with all District and federal laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or protected veteran or disabled status and will not be discriminated against.

Individuals needing an accommodation to complete the job application can contact HRSupport@aspeninstitute.org or call (202) 736-1074.