Policy Associate, ILH&PR

Policy Associate

The Initiative on Land, Housing & Property Rights (the Initiative) seeks a Policy Associate to help further build up the Initiative's Legal Reform and Policy Laboratory (the Lab) under the direction of the Policy Director. The Lab develops legal reform and policy proposals to address critical land and housing issues at the local, state, and federal level and, in addition, assists other stakeholders doing such work.

A model of the type of legal reform and policy proposals the Initiative works to develop is the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA), a groundbreaking model state property statute, which was principally drafted by Professor Thomas W. Mitchell, the Initiative's founder and Director and a Mac Arthur Fellow. Thus far, the UPHPA has been enacted into law in 27 states and jurisdictions that are located in every region of the country.

It has helped thousands of disadvantaged families across the country maintain ownership of their family-owned properties and their generational wealth. In addition to developing model legislation, the Lab also works to develop policy solutions using other tools, including, for example, working with other stakeholders to develop model private agreements that disadvantaged families can use to manage their family-owned properties in ways that better promote just and sustainable ownership.

Overall, the Lab works to advance policy solutions to remedy economic instability and property loss among vulnerable communities. In addition to heirs' property policy work, the Lab engages in a growing scope of work on other reforms to advance affordable and fair housing for homeowners and renters, prevent land loss among disadvantaged communities, promote environmental justice, and support intergenerational asset building.

The Policy Associate will work with the Policy Director and external stakeholders on projects in the Initiative's policy agenda while under the supervision of the Policy Director. The Policy Associate together with the other members of the Policy team – and other Initiative staff as needed – must work assiduously to ensure the high quality of policy projects at each stage of every project and also must complete each stage of any project in a timely way to maintain a proper work flow.

As needed, the Policy Associate will provide support to the Policy Director in identifying funding opportunities for policy projects and in helping to draft funding proposals to support the Initiative's policy work. Further, the Policy Associate will work with other members of the Policy team and other Initiative staff members to draft summaries of the Policy team's work, summaries that may be used for marketing, fundraising, mandatory internal and external reporting requirements, and other purposes.

Applicants should have strong organizational, time management, research and writing, and communication skills; experience working in a collaborative environment; and a demonstrated commitment to improving policy outcomes related to real property issues that impact poor and disadvantaged communities.

This is a hybrid position with a minimum of three days per week in the Initiative's office and availability for meetings in the Boston area. There may also be some travel required throughout the United States.

Duties include:

• Policy Work Responsibilities (60%) Monitor local, state, and federal housing and other real property policies and identify opportunities for the Initiative's engagement. Conduct independent research on relevant topics, potential legal reform and policy projects, and on relevant stakeholders, including but not limited to civic leaders and policymakers, nonprofit organizations, academics and researchers, philanthropic organizations, and private sector leaders. Such research will enable the leadership team to decide whether to pursue certain potential legal reform and policy projects, and it also will enable the Initiative to provide thought leadership on various housing, land, and other real property policy matters.
  
  Under the direction of the Policy Director and in partnership with other Initiative staff, contribute to drafting and…