With funding through OICF, the San Juan Islands Conservation District is excited to launch the Orcas Island Civilian Conservation Corps certificate program. This 10.5-month pilot program will begin in the fall of 2020 and could serve as a model countywide.
This unique collaboration with the Northwest Indian College and Western Washington University is seeking eight (8) dedicated people between the ages of 18-24 to join a program that integrates paid ($15/hr) forestry conservation fieldwork with field education shaped by the knowledge and traditions of ecology. Integrating western and indigenous sciences, coursework will be taught by professors, graduate students, and specialists from the Northwest Indian College, WWU, WSU, and OSU.
Graduates will be connected to opportunities for careers as an arborist, wildland firefighter, natural resource monitoring technician, conservation scientist, specialist in cultural resource management, land-use planner, and more.
The Orcas Island Conservation Corps is founded upon the value of racial equity—both economic and environmental—and seeks a structure of co-land management where policy and practices are shaped equally by western and indigenous voices. For more info and to complete an application visit the SJICD website.