4 Stewardship Interns will spend their summer in the field, completing trail projects across the picturesque Northern Forest Canoe Trail alongside area land managers and community volunteers.  Projects will include campsite maintenance, river access improvements, signage development, and other stewardship related field work.  Interns will play a key role in preparing for and leading a series of volunteer “waterway” work trips throughout the summer in New York, Vermont, Quebec, New Hampshire, and Maine.  When leading Waterway Work Trips the successful candidate can expect to work under the guidance of the NFCT Trail Director and Field Coordinator.  Interns will be responsible for coordinating project materials, working directly with land owners or managers to assure successful project completion, and delegating tasks appropriately. This position will run from June 11^th to August 16^th.  Stewardship Interns will receive three weeks of training covering topics of Leave No Trace, trail construction and maintenance, universal trail assessment, group dynamics, and leadership skills.  Stewardship Interns will be performing projects in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.  Interns will travel as a group and will camp at the project sites during the work week.  

Internship Goals:

• to perform stewardship based field activities across the Northern Forest Canoe Trail creating a sustainable and environmentally friendly travel corridor;
• to expose interns to trainings, field based jobs, and field based experience to prepare them for future careers.
• to actively participate on a 4-person field crew, sharing in daily chores and maintenance activities under the guidance of the NFCT Trail Director and Field Coordinator;
• to promote an awareness and understanding of the NFCT to volunteers and project partners.

Position Responsibilities:

1. Coordination (When leading a project):  Develop details to fulfill project goals and objectives;

· Work with NFCT Staff to collect all needed tools and materials for field project;

· Delegate tasks needed for project completion;

· Work with land manager/owner to assure that work is being conducted to their wishes;

· Develop a safety plan for camping area, work site, and all travel on project.

2. Communications: 

· Participate in developing the daily crew journal;

· Create a blog article for any projects that you have a lead role in;

· Properly record all mileage and crew purchases;

· Communicate needs and any plan changes to NFCT staff

3. Instruction: 

· Interns will adequately train all volunteers to perform project tasks;

· Crew members will implement morning stretch and evaluation periods.

4. Program Evaluation & Wrap-Up

· Interns will give all volunteers an evaluation form at the end of projects;

· Interns will be allotted time at the end of the internship to evaluate the program;

Requirements

• Candidates must be 18 years of age by the time the internship begins.  
• Candidates must have Wilderness First Aid Certification before participating in the internship.

Successful Candidate Attributes:

• Basic knowledge of paddle skills
• Proven ability to camp out in remote locations for up to a week at a time
• Proven safety record
• Flexible personality, able to adapt to changing situations
• Able to perform physical labor which could include hiking or paddling for extended periods of time and lifting weight in excess of 40 lbs.
• Performs well in a group setting
• Good work ethic
• Able to perform weekly maintenance (timesheet, plan and prepare meals, mileage logs, daily safety meetings, journaling)

Position Benefits:

• Academic credit can be arranged
• $2,500 stipend will be provided ($250 per week of which $50 will be allocated to food expenses)
• Variety of trainings including paddle skills
• Exposure to a variety of land management, recreation, habitat/wildlife professionals
• Reimbursement for mileage associated with work
• Leadership experience
• Great environment for building outdoor, environmental, and group skills

 More information about the position along with application materials can be found at:

http://www.northernforestcanoetrail.org/GetInvolved-2/Internships-49

Questions can be directed to:

Walter Opuszynski, NFCT Trail Director

walter@northernforestcanoetrail.org

(802)496-2285 ext.2