Development Manager or Director for Climate & Agriculture Non-Profit

Rural Investment to Protect our Environment (RIPE) is seeking a skilled fundraiser, development professional and grant writer to play a critical role in managing and growing RIPE’s foundation grants portfolio, including research, grant writing and reporting, prospecting new opportunities for institutional support. We seek a self-motivated, detail-oriented professional interested in delving into the climate, agriculture, and rural economic development funding landscape. If you are excited to use your expertise as part of a small but mighty team working to achieve ambitious U.S. climate and sustainable agriculture policy with bipartisan support, this is the opportunity for you. 

About RIPE

RIPE’s mission is to inspire a bipartisan climate policy that allows farmers to earn a reasonable return on voluntary stewardship. Our vision, as a farmer-led organization, is to create a climate policy that farmers champion because it values the agricultural sector’s contributions to a wide set of environmental benefits, enables a profit opportunity from voluntary stewardship, helps farmers become more resilient, helps farmers keep their farms in their family, transforms environmental policy into an investment in farmers and rural communities, and supports farmers in being good stewards of the land. Our RIPE100 proposal advances a $100/acre payment for voluntary conservation practices that deliver at least that much in public benefits from a combination of improvements to water, climate, soil, and other elements of the environment.

Key Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the position include but are not limited to the tasks below. If you are skilled in some but not all of these tasks, we invite you to consider applying.    

Research, find, and recommend funding opportunities, with a focus on foundations with programs in climate, environment, or rural economic development; execute cultivation and stewardship plans for top prospects. Support Executive Director in fundraising by drafting strategic updates for slide decks and compelling email communications.  Prepare and produce, in draft and final form, grant proposals, letters of interest, and other solicitations for funding.  Creatively develop and propose new, powerful ways to portray the importance and timeliness of RIPE’s work and communicate the urgent opportunity our organization poses to influence the U.S. response to climate change.  Launch and manage donor communications e-newsletter.  Manage and prepare all formal grant materials, including applications, progress reports, and final reports against received grants.  Maintain a fundraising pipeline, grant deadline calendar, and library of up-to-date common grant attachments and finance and organizational metrics. Perform quality control of grant-related documentation and manage deliverable timelines. Make recommendations on strategies, policies, and procedures related to proposals. Track individual donors and manage donation acknowledgements, annual solicitations, and donor outreach. Collaborate with Director and Finance staff, as necessary, to ensure timely grant submission and accurate grant reporting. Manage grant budgets with confidentiality and integrity. Coordinate fundraising reports for the Board of Directors.

Skills, Abilities, & Qualifications

Five or more years of successful nonprofit experience in grant writing and fundraising with an ability to demonstrate a trajectory of increasing successes. Experience with or willingness to learn the nuances of the environmental foundation field to help prioritize targets.  Experience with federal funding requirements, and application procedures preferred. Impeccable communications skills, including experience writing formal proposals and reports with detail oriented copy-editing.  Excellent relationship management skills including interpersonal, written/verbal communication, and collaboration skills; able to work effectively with people, especially in a small team environment. Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills with attention to details and accuracy. Highly organized with strong project management skills; able to balance and prioritize multiple projects in order to meet deadlines. Self-sufficient, independent, and eager to learn; able to perform independently with minimal supervision while also staying in regular communication with supervisor. Motivated to work in a small, evolving organization and be part of a multi-disciplinary team. Strong research skills: able to both develop a pipeline of funding opportunities as well as access internal and external resources in support of performing the role. Creative thinker who can draw upon past successes while also generating new ideas Able to respond quickly and with excellence to opportunities having short deadlines

Priority will be given to applications received by June 13, 2021. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. We respectfully request no follow-up calls or emails. Please include “Development Manager or Director” in the subject line of your email applications. Applications submitted only via LinkedIn or other platforms will not be considered. To apply, please email your resume, cover letter, and salary range expectations to: Carreers@RipeRoadmap.org. We provide a comprehensive compensation package, including competitive salary, excellent medical and dental benefits, retirement savings, and generous vacation and sick leave policy. This position is remote. Team meetings will be held in Eastern Standard time zone.  

Salary range is $50,000-$65,000 depending on experience, plus generous benefits. We provide a comprehensive compensation package, including excellent medical and dental benefits, retirement savings, and generous vacation and sick leave policy. Headquarters are in Washington, D.C., and work can be done from there or remotely. Work is conducted in Eastern time zone and applicants are expected to be available during those times.  

Currently, RIPE is an independent operating project of the nonprofit umbrella organization, Multiplier, a nationally recognized nonprofit with a growing portfolio of innovative initiatives that conserve and protect a sustainable and resilient world (http://www.multiplier.org). RIPE has filed for its independent 501c3 tax status with the IRS and expects to be a stand alone non-profit by calendar year end.  

EEO STATEMENT:

Multiplier and RIPE celebrate diversity and are committed to building teams and partnerships that represent a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. Multiplier and RIPE Roadmap are also committed to providing an environment of mutual respect that is free from discrimination and harassment. Multiplier and RIPE Roadmap prohibit discrimination in its governance, programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, marital status, amnesty, status as a covered veteran, because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from public assistance, or for any other non-merit based factors.