Policy Director

Environmental and Energy Study Institute

Final date to receive applications:
September 30, 2026

Founded by a bipartisan group of members of Congress, the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) has worked since 1984 to provide nonpartisan, science-based educational resources to policymakers and the public about environmental, energy, and climate topics.

EESI’s Policy Director will help advance environmental, energy, and climate policies and solutions that will put the U.S. on a cleaner, more secure, and sustainable path. As a member of the EESI management team, the Policy Director will also inform overall organizational strategy and decision-making, contribute to budget preparation and grant reporting, and grant proposal development. They will lead the design of educational resources with broad bipartisan appeal for members of Congress, their staff, and the public.

Our approach requires thorough research and analysis to support fact-based information, conclusions, and policy recommendations.

The Policy Director will directly supervise policy staff and fellows and help ensure good management of policy interns. The position reports to the President.

The Policy Director will oversee and guide EESI’s efforts to:

• Develop and implement EESI’s environmental, energy, and climate policy initiatives, including innovation, mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.
• Plan and execute EESI-convened Congressional briefings by researching briefing topics, identifying speakers, and coordinating event logistics.
• Communicate with Congressional staff to share EESI resources and respond to queries for information and analysis from Congressional committees and members of Congress and their staff.
• Develop and write content for publication, including web articles, fact sheets, and other policy-oriented written materials; edit and provide editorial feedback for the policy team.
• Serve as a resource for information and analysis for the media.
• Represent EESI in coalition groups and build relationships with new and existing partners to advance EESI’s understanding of key issue areas and maintain a strong network.
• Build and grow EESI’s overall knowledge base.
• Serve as part of the organization’s cross-functional management team.
• Foster a collaborative, collegial, and supportive work environment; encourage staff development, growth in capabilities, and high levels of effectiveness.
• Support organization leaders in staff and intern hiring processes.
• Collaborate with the communications team to develop and implement overall communications strategy and policy messaging.
• Play a key role in developing ideas and preparing proposals to secure the financial resources necessary to support our policy initiatives in collaboration with the development team; coordinate the policy team’s contribution to grant reporting.
• Manage the policy team budget.

At a minimum, competitive candidates will have the following qualifications:

• A bachelor's degree and at least four years of relevant work experience or a graduate degree and three years of relevant work experience.
• At least two years of work experience in a state or federal legislature, or a state or federal agency or a nonprofit organization dealing with environmental, energy, and climate issues. Preference will be given to candidates with experience working in a House or Senate office or on Capitol Hill in advocacy and policy.
• Broad and extensive knowledge and understanding of environmental, energy, and climate policy (including innovation, mitigation, adaptation, and resilience) and relevant science and technology topics. Candidates with experience in national security and international climate diplomacy are encouraged to apply.
• Experience with designing nonpartisan and educational programming…