Conservation Scientists and Foresters jobs in South Carolina

President

Conservation Voters of South Carolina (CVSC) is the political voice of South Carolina's environmental community. We advocate for our air, land, and water through bipartisan and pragmatic political action. CVSC is a nonprofit organization that, along with its sister organization, the CVSC PAC, advocates for laws that protect our environment, supports pro-conservation candidates, and holds elected officials accountable. The CVSC Education Fund also works to educate and engage South Carolinians to protect the South Carolina we all love.

Scope: The Board of Directors of CVSC seeks an inspiring, visionary, and strategic executive to serve as our next President. This leader will guide a skilled advocacy team in advancing our vision of a South Carolina where leaders drive sustainable growth, protecting air, land, and water; where businesses thrive along with clean energy innovation; and where leaders at every level recognize that environmental protection strengthens—rather than hinders—progress.

Succeeding CVSC’s second executive leader, who oversaw significant growth in staff, budget, and influence, the next President will build on this momentum and lead the organization into its next phase of impact. Setting the strategic and day-to-day direction of the organization and reporting to the Board with comprehensive guidance but minimal direct supervision, the President will oversee Senior Vice Presidents across Development & Operations, Impact & Collaboration, Policy & Government Relations, and Political Strategy.

As CVSC’s thought leader and spokesperson, the President will be a visible statewide leader—cultivating relationships with policymakers, conservation executives, donors, business leaders and community partners. They will build and leverage political influence to deliver bold conservation victories rooted in CVSC’s values: strategic, accountable, bold, trustworthy, bipartisan, impactful, people-focused, and equitable.

The ideal candidate is a proven leader and communicator with experience implementing bold visions, leading multi-year policy and political campaigns, raising significant funds, mentoring staff, and managing complex organizations.

Position Purpose: CVSC completed a new 10-year strategic plan in late 2024 with a number of ambitious goals for both conservation policy and conservation leadership. The core purpose of the President will be to drive this ambitious strategic plan forward, leading and inspiring the CVSC team as we build and wield political influence in order to advance public policy that protects the air, land, and water of South Carolina.

Our 10-year strategic plan includes the following core objectives:

Land Protection – advancing the policies and funding necessary to secure the protection of an additional 3 million acres of culturally and environmentally significant landscapes.
Clean Water – advancing policies to ensure sustainable water management that balances the needs of people, nature, and business.
Clean Energy and Transportation – advancing policies that move South Carolina towards a carbon-free future, both in terms of energy generation and transportation sectors.
Expanding Access to Environmental Decision-Making – advancing policies to ensure that all South Carolinians have access to the political and policy-making processes that affect environmental decisions.
Building Partnerships – leading efforts to expand the conservation movement in South Carolina, deepening transformative partnerships and training the next generation of advocates to drive meaningful change.
Supporting Conservation Leaders – leading efforts to train, support, and elect a bipartisan majority of conservation leaders at the Statehouse and in County Council chambers across the state.
Organizational Sustainability – grow the CVSC budget in order to expand the organization’s reach and impact, including hiring staff to implement the strategic plan and advance the core objectives.

Location: The position must be based in South Carolina (non-negotiable), but may be performed remotely from within the state. CVSC has a physical office in Columbia and a co-work space in Charleston. Day and overnight travel will be required.

Specific Responsibilities:

Communicating and Advancing a Strategic Policy Vision

Keep CVSC’s long-term vision front and center, ensuring that individual policy campaigns contribute to and advance the organization’s bold 10-year conservation goals included in the strategic plan.
Identify emerging threats and opportunities in conservation policy and politics, positioning CVSC for continued success in an ever-changing political landscape.
Recognize areas of alignment and collaboration with partner organizations and communities across South Carolina, ensuring that a shared vision is both articulated and pursued.

Building Bipartisan Political Influence

Employ strong political acumen to oversee strategies and tactics to build and wield political power for the benefit of the environment.
Represent CVSC in discussions with elected officials, candidates, the environmental community, the media, and other stakeholders.
Work with the CVSC Political Team to oversee the organization’s endorsement process, and play a critical role in executing an aggressive independent expenditure campaign strategy to secure the election of CVSC-endorsed candidates.
Serve as the organization’s ultimate compliance officer; develop and maintain a robust understanding of operational rules, strategies, best practices, and compliance requirements for 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), and PAC organizations.

Stewarding Organizational Culture and Operations

Establish organizational tone and policies to ensure that CVSC’s culture aligns fully with its values.
Support, develop, and grow CVSC’s high-functioning team while providing leadership that fosters a people-focused and productive workplace environment.
Collaborate with the Operations team to identify and implement activities that improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness while ensuring compliance with all applicable rules, regulations, and best practices.
Develop, track, and execute a budget that reflects CVSC’s values and priorities while advancing the organization’s vision and goals. This includes serving on the board Finance Committee and monitoring both long-term and short-term investments, as well as operating accounts.

Strategic Alignment and Engagement of the Board of Directors

Act as the primary liaison with the CVSC Board of Directors and develop and deploy an engagement strategy to maximize each Board Member’s involvement in one or more of the organization’s core functions—policy, political, fundraising, and partnerships.
Serve on the Board Recruitment Committee and will play an active role in developing and stewarding a bipartisan pipeline of leaders from across South Carolina who are eager to be active and engaged members of the Board.

Fundraising

Cultivate and steward strong, impactful relationships with a portfolio of top-tier donors, prospects, and institutions.
Hone and deliver compelling fundraising proposals to current and prospective donors that connect them to the work and position them as essential partners in CVSC’s success and mission.
Work with and engage the Board of Directors as active participants in the organization’s fundraising and development activities.
Hold ultimate responsibility for all fundraising efforts and will ensure that the organization meets its annual revenue goals.

Required Qualifications

7-10 years of leadership experience in an organization where policy advocacy is a core focus, with robust expertise in fundraising, policy campaigns, government relations, political campaigns, human resources, and organizational management.
Strong personal commitment to conservation and environmental protection.
Collaborative, team-oriented mindset, a deep understanding of organizational culture, and a firm commitment to sustaining a values-based, people-focused workplace.
Proven ability to engage effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders, including major donors, foundation partners, elected officials, business leaders, board members, staff, candidates for office, organizational members, consultants, contractors, national partners, and media positively and professionally.
An expert communicator with demonstrated ability to distill complex information into clear and concise narratives that leads to buy-in and agreement among a broad collection of stakeholders and partners.
Visionary leadership style with a demonstrated ability to think quickly, make decisions under pressure, and strategically advance organizational priorities.
Proven ability to motivate, manage, and lead a team of high-performing individuals, both one-on-one and in group settings.
Proven strategic thinking skills, with the ability to anticipate future consequences and trends and incorporate them into organizational planning.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace, with the ability to navigate donor and voter database software.
Deep commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, valuing individuals and respecting differences in race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, ability, and socio-economic circumstance.

Preferred skills and qualifications

Working knowledge of South Carolina’s electoral and legislative processes and their power dynamics
Experience and knowledge of environmental and conservation policy

Work environment: CVSC is a mission-driven organization whose staff are deeply passionate about advancing environmental policy in a just and equitable way. We are seeking a dynamic and effective President who will inspire, lead, and support our team in achieving the organization's and the South Carolina conservation movement's goals.

Terms of employment: Compensation for all CVSC staff is largely contingent on fundraising (grants and individual donations) as well as performance. CVSC strives to provide a reasonable work-life balance, depending on the nature of an issue or timeframe. Regular out-of-town travel in South Carolina will be required with occasional overnight stays.

CVSC is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a racially just, equitable, and inclusive workplace.

Salary/Benefits: CVSC offers a competitive non-profit sector salary for this position in the $150,000 - $180,000 range, depending on experience and qualifications.

We provide a high-quality health insurance plan paid at 100% for employees and 60% for families and dependents. CVSC also provides a Flex Spending Account as well as short-term disability, dental, and vision coverage at no cost to employees.

Our benefits package also includes a SIMPLE IRA retirement plan with a 3% match, a monthly cell phone stipend, a technology/office setup stipend, and an annual professional development budget for each employee. Our benefits plan also includes 14 holidays, 17 days of PTO (increasing with tenure), 8 weeks of paid parental leave, and a sabbatical program after 4 and 8 years of service.

Please note that as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, CVSC employees are not eligible to participate in the Federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.

Application Instructions: Please submit your resume and a cover letter that addresses how your expertise matches the job description and why you want to work to protect the air, land, and water of South Carolina. The position will remain open until filled, with application review beginning on or before September 26. For a full position profile and organizational description, please click here.

CVSC is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

President of Conservation Voters of South Carolina

President of Conservation Voters of South Carolina at Conservation Voters of South Carolina – Columbia, South Carolina

Explore Related Opportunities

About This Position

Scan to Apply

Job Location

Frequently asked questions about this position