Community Science Soil Testing Fellowship

by stevie | December 07, 2018 21:19

December 07, 2018 21:19 | Tags: soil , jobs , fellows , fellowship , soil-sampling , fellow

When: Jan 5th - April 5th, 2019
Where: this fellowship is not geographically restricted, however residents of the Gulf Coast are encouraged to apply.
Commitment: roughly 20 hours/week (200 hours over approx. 8-12 weeks)
Fellowship Stipend: $2,500

The Public Laboratory for Open Technology and Science (Public Lab) is a community, supported by a 501(c)(3) non-profit--which develops and applies open-source tools to environmental exploration and investigation. By democratizing inexpensive and accessible Do-it-Yourself techniques, Public Lab creates a collaborative network of practitioners who actively re-imagine the human relationship with the environment.

A fellowship with Public Lab, is an opportunity to work with the Public Lab non-profit team and broader community on a specific project. The major goals of this fellowship are to create a foundational set of soil related resources that can be built upon by others in the Public Lab community.

The Fellow will:

• Create easy to use walkthroughs for how individuals decide which type of soil testing is most appropriate for their questions. This may include:
  • Overview of soil types and breakdown of regional concerns
  • What kinds of issues might be traced to presence of industrial or agricultural (or other) activity.
• Work with 1-2 community groups in the Gulf Coast on soil testing projects, documenting the process on Public Lab.org.
• Work on an overview of existing regulatory pathways, and what testing methods may be recognized, with links to relevant agencies.
• Document case studies on how soil testing has been used, particularly those related to oil and gas contamination, and post them to Public Lab.org
• Attend Public Lab monthly Open Hours.
• Engage in the Public Lab Q&A system on soil related questions.
• Help develop formats for people to share their soil testing data online with Pubic Lab staff and coding community.
• Attend a weekly call with Public Lab staff.
  
  -If available, attend the Public Lab Barn raising in Houston February 22-24th. (transportation, food, and housing will be covered by Public Lab)
• Maintain and adhere to nonprofit policies and procedures, Public Lab values, and the Code of Conduct.

Skills, knowledge, and abilities required:

• Excellent communication skills in online, written, and verbal formats;
• Ability to work collaboratively, both in-person and with remote colleagues, to envision and promote positive change, and to be supportive of others;
• Ability to facilitate activities amongst a highly diverse community of people from many different fields and experience sets;
• Technical proficiency (with full support from colleagues)--ability to learn, disseminate, and teach about technology and reporting in the context of advocacy;

Public Lab is committed to a diverse, multicultural work environment. We encourage people with different ability sets, people of color, and people of diverse sexual orientations, gender expressions, and identities to apply.