Director, Urban and Community Forestry

Sustainable Forestry Initiative

Director of Urban and Community Forestry managing a $5 million grant and promoting urban forestry standards across the U.S. Supporting sustainability initiatives through collaboration with diverse stakeholders.

Posted 5/29/2026full-timeWashington • District of Columbia, Washington • 🇺🇸 United StatesLead💰 $115,000 - $130,000 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Manage and oversee a $5 million grant through the USFS Urban and Community Forestry program.
Provide technical assistance, support and urban forestry expertise to passthrough grant recipients related to reporting, compliance, grant administration, and implementation.
Promote and support the implementation of the SFI Urban and Community Forest Sustainability Standard in collaboration with municipalities, universities and corporations while building relationships across additional sectors.
Develop and strengthen collaborative partnerships that contribute to sustainable urban and community forest management.
Identify and pursue funding opportunities to support the growth and long-term sustainability of SFI’s urban and community forestry initiatives.
Serve as SFI’s subject matter expert on urban and community forestry with interested parties, partners, and at industry events and conferences.
Lead the strategic growth and implementation of SFI’s urban and community forestry program in the U.S., including standards revision and maintenance, outreach and engagement, network development, and initiatives that elevate SFI’s leadership in urban forestry.
Coordinate with communications staff to recognize SFI certified organizations, elevate success stories, and facilitate adoption of SFI Standards.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Degree in forestry, urban forestry, natural resources, or related field, required.
At least 5 years of experience in urban forestry with a vast network within the urban forestry community required.
Sector credentials such as ISA Certified Arborist, ISA Certified Urban Forest Professional, and/or ISA Board-Certified Master Arborist required.
At least 3 years of experience managing a U.S. federal or state grant program is required.
Knowledge of local urban and community forest needs on a national scale.
Familiarity with and appreciation of forest certification standards and the auditing process preferred.
Demonstrated experience in business development, program promotion and strategic relationship building preferred.
Prior involvement with the SFI Urban & Community Forest Sustainability Standard preferred.
Bilingualism or professional language proficiency is a plus (example: French, Spanish etc.)

Benefits

Comp & perks

Medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your family.
Retirement plan with generous employer contribution and additional matching contribution up to 11% of your salary, provided you also contribute 4%.
Paid Time Off – generous vacation policy ranging from 2 weeks to 5 weeks, increasing with experience, all federal holidays, plus 4 floating holidays annually that may be used to observe additional religious, cultural, or traditional occasions that are meaningful to you, and 12 sick days annually.
Educational assistance and investment in professional development.

ATS Keywords

✓ Tailor your resume

Applicant Tracking System Keywords

Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.

Hard Skills & Tools

urban forestrygrant administrationcompliancereportingfunding opportunitiesstandards revisionnetwork developmentbusiness developmentprogram promotionauditing process

Soft Skills

relationship buildingcollaborative partnershipsstrategic growthcommunicationtechnical assistancesupportleadershipengagement

Certifications

ISA Certified ArboristISA Certified Urban Forest ProfessionalISA Board-Certified Master Arborist