Community Environmental Council Internship 2023

The External Communications Fellow will work collaboratively with the CEC Communications team, the Climate Resilience team, and other staff in two primary areas:

1. Develop communications materials for CEC’s Extreme Heat Campaign
2. Develop art activation plan for CEC’s Environmental Hub

1. Develop communications materials for CEC’s Extreme Heat Campaign:
In summer 2023, CEC will be launching an Extreme Heat Campaign, aimed at hard-to-reach community members with critical messaging about extreme heat. This campaign will be modeled on a national extreme heat campaign and executed in collaboration with regional partners.

The Communications Fellow will be responsible for:

• Using existing collateral, examples, and work done thus far to design a comprehensive and well-planned communications campaign, including English and Spanish speakers.
• Collaborating with the Communications and Climate Resilience teams to execute the campaign.
• Working with Climate Resilience Program staff to develop outcome metrics with a focus on community and internal reporting.
• Playing a lead role in collecting performance data, analyzing the outcomes, and developing a tool for reporting and planning.

Task and deliverables may include:

• Develop content for a campaign landing page; update web pages as needed
• Develop content and digital marketing aimed at increasing awareness of the extreme heat campaign, and action as a result, by hard-to-reach community members
• Create a social media plan (including influencer and partner promotional strategies), and collaborate with the communications team on posting and tracking
• Write press releases, op eds, and blog posts
• Participate in media outreach aimed at pitching stories and placing op eds
• Plan, create, and send email marketing communications
• Play a central role in supporting partners to ensure campaign tools are being utilized and maximized
• Assist with relevant community meetings and events
• Gather stories of individuals and partners who benefitted from extreme heat campaign
• Document impacts of all campaign tactics in either a GoogleSheet or Asana project, with summary highlights for use in materials, including CEC’s 2024 Impact Report
• Draft end of campaign press releases, op eds, blog posts, eblasts, social media posts, and other content aimed at sharing campaign impacts with the broader community

2. Develop art activation plan for CEC’s Environmental Hub:
In early June 2023, CEC will be opening its new Environmental Hub at 1219 State Street, serving both as our staff’s headquarters and as a space for community innovation and collaboration. Located in the heart of the Santa Barbara downtown Arts District, the Environmental Hub is centered on a vibrant section of State Street within a couple of blocks of three major theaters (the Arlington, the Granada, and the Ensemble Theater/New Vic), as well as the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, and other private galleries.

We are envisioning the Environmental Hub as a space that catalyzes the intersection of art and activism. Some of the Hub’s amenities include:

• A large open space atrium equipped with a two-story dropdown screen and state-of-the-art sound system and projector.
• The Conklin Community Room, which can be configured to seat up to 90 guests and is equipped with monitors, speakers, and video conferencing technology.
• A community webinar studio.
• An outdoor back patio, kitchen, and coffee service area.

The Communications Fellow will be a part of a larger Environmental Hub team that will be activating different aspects of this new facility (with other teammates focused on the Conklin Community Room, the community webinar studio, and after-hours event spaces). The Communications Fellow will be specifically focused on engaging and developing partnerships within the arts community.

The Communications Fellow will be responsible for:

• Identifying physical spaces within the Environmental Hub that can be utilized as ongoing exhibit and gallery areas.
• Identifying opportunities for pop-up exhibits or performances.
• Developing relationships with the performing and visual arts community, as well as potential partners such as Art & Lectures, the Santa Barbara Film Festival, the Santa Barbara Arts Commission, etc.
• Cultivating partnerships with the Downtown Organization, Chamber of Commerce, and other entities committed to promoting a vibrant downtown community.

Tasks and deliverables may include:

• Researching the materials, strategies, and best practices of similar facilities in other communities.
• Developing a calendar and guidelines for rotational art displays.
• Developing marketing pitch decks for potential art partners.
• Assembling a marketing list of potential artists or partners.
• Curating one or more art installations.
• Developing standards and protocols for clients using the space for after-hours events.
• Drafting press releases, eblasts, social media posts, and other content aimed at promoting the arts and events aspects of the Environmental Hub.
• Working with CEC staff to organize summer events, such as film screenings, environmental information fairs, etc.

What you need and what you’ll receive:

• This fellowship is an ideal fit for a graduate student interested in nonprofit work, communications or marketing, climate change, and social justice.
• Strong interpersonal writing, editing and proofreading skills, and attention to detail are required.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, collaborative, and independent work environment
• Experience in a project management system, like Asana, is preferred, but not required.
• The ability to travel to various areas of the county for the completion of some tasks may be necessary. Per our policies, the fellow will be compensated for travel mileage (outside of traveling to and from CEC’s offices) but will not be reimbursed for parking expenses.
• A computer with video-conferencing ability is required.
• A desk and workspace, as well as a CEC-issued email account, will be provided.

Direct supervisor: Director of Communications & Marketing
Position period: June 26 to Sep 22, 2023 (some opportunity for flexibility)
Hours: 15 hours/week (some opportunity for flexibility)
Location: A minimum of 60% time located at the CEC’s Environmental Hub (opening June 1) in downtown Santa Barbara on State Street