Pollution Policy and Research Associate Pollution Policy and Research Associate SEI: Building L

SEI:
Building Leaders for a Resilient World

Hybrid
· La Grande, OR, US
· San Diego, CA, US
· Island City, OR, US ... more

1 day ago

SEI’s Climate Corps Fellowship program offers the chance to lead impactful climate and community resilience projects while gaining paid, hands‑on experience. This full‑time, bridge‑to‑career opportunity pairs fellows with host organizations, from local governments to nonprofits and businesses, to drive real‑world change.

About the Opportunity

Start Date: March 2nd, 2026

Length of Fellowship: 10 months

Location Type:Hybrid

Clean drinking water is a fundamental right, yet for three decades, rural communities in Northeast Oregon have faced a widespread groundwater crisis. As a Pollution Policy and Research Associate in the Climate Corps Fellowship, you will join Oregon Rural Action (ORA) to advance the “Safe Rural Water” campaign. This is a hybrid position with the expectation of onsite work 3‑4 days & remote work 1‑2 days per week.

The Pollution Policy and Research Associate will help expand Oregon Rural Action’s capacity for data accessibility, policy research, and environmental education, strengthening community‑led responses to urgent environmental threats in Oregon and building long‑term solutions rooted in rural leadership and equity. Specifically, the Fellow will work to advance Oregon Rural Action’s “Safe Rural Water” campaign to address one of Oregon’s most pressing environmental justice issues, a three‑decade‑long drinking water pollution problem.

This includes supporting ORA’s policy and organizing teams to advance local and state‑level priorities to address widespread groundwater contamination in northeast Oregon through a combination of watchdog research, technical analysis, policy advocacy, public education, and good old‑fashioned grit and determination. The Associate may also have the opportunity to participate in community organizing events, statewide or national coalition work, and strategy retreats with allied organizations.

The campaign is entering its fourth year, with significant successes in building community power and expertise to drive systemic change.

Join us to develop your professional expertise while building a future where rural leadership and equity ensure safe water for all.

About Our Partner:
Oregon Rural Action

Oregon Rural Action (ORA) is a grassroots, culturally diverse, community‑led nonprofit organization in eastern Oregon. They are rural communities working together to promote social and environmental justice, agricultural and economic sustainability, and stewardship of the region’s land, air, and water. They achieve this through community organizing that fosters leadership and collective agency, informed by data and policy research, to drive systemic change.

The organization has a small staff of people who grew up in the region; they build community leadership teams and collaborate with other community‑based and state‑wide organizations to solve problems, including developing innovative ways to meet needs.

ORA works with rural Latinx, Meso‑American Indigenous, and white working‑class communities in northeast Oregon, which are disproportionately exposed to groundwater nitrate contamination and industrial air pollution from industrialized agriculture, power plants, and data centers in Morrow and Umatilla counties, also known as the Lower Umatilla Basin. These communities face systemic barriers to health, information access, and participation in decision‑making processes. The two key programs in 2026 include safe drinking water for rural communities in northeastern Oregon and immigrant justice, working with the people who labor in the region’s industrial agricultural economy.

What You’ll Do

• Conduct watchdog research on sources of pollution in the Lower Umatilla Basin, including Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), industrialized agriculture, processed food factories, data centers, power plants, and more.
• Monitor and engage with key county, state, and federal natural resource agencies on issues related to Lower Umatilla Basin pollution.
• Develop…