Now accepting applications for Illinois and Indiana. Compensation: $3,000/month. Apply by June 6 with cover letter and resume to Ed Fallon at ed@climatemarch.org.
Logistics
Route. Collaborate with Staff, Logistics Team and Program Team. The duty of the State Coordinator is to establish a pedestrian-safe route that also allows for access to/by marcher support vehicles. The route should be driven and viewed carefully to determine any discrepancies between GoogleMaps and reality, access by support vehicles and marchers, and for efficiency. Make sure there are no impassable spots and actively seek better options than what has been roughly laid out. When identifying an ideal route, consider distance, traffic, visibility, safety, scenery, shade, access to amenities, walking surface, potential “Break Truck/Eco-Commode” support vehicle stops, etc. When possible, route should engage diverse cultural and socio-economic populations – those impacted most by climate change, as well as those more affluent populations most responsible for contributing to it. Distance between camps should ideally be 14-17 miles/day, though we understand there may be days that must be longer or shorter. Remember that a significant change in elevation reduces the distance marchers are able to comfortably cover in a day. The full route is to be posted on Wagn (our custom Wiki) and collaboratively updated as needed. The Operations Director facilitates route confirmation, aka routing, for the March on the ground wherein specific route details are verified. If changes to the route may be required for any reason, Program Director, Operations Director, and other relevant Staff and Marcher Team Leaders must be included in this decision-making process.
Campsites. Campsites should accommodate up to 50 people, and possibly 30 tents. This number will increase, dependent upon our expected marcher population increasing substantially beyond Colorado. Campsites also should be able to accommodate 8 – 12 vehicles. They should be as close to the March route as possible. Optional but gratefully accepted are amenities such as water and showers. In the Midwest, it is also important to identify a safety plan in case of a tornado, i.e., a nearby building with a storm shelter, a nearby ditch free of water, or how vehicles would be able to load up marchers and drive away, if all else fails. We can not afford to pay for campsites, except in rare occasions. We will leave camp areas better than we found them. Some possibilities include intentional communities, eco-villages, public parks, farms, private land, BLM land, etc. For program events and/or camp meetings hosted in camp, enclosures, buildings, and stages, meeting spaces should also be noted. Resonant past locations have included a sustainable Arizona Mesquite Company farm, the Santa Fe Dam Recreational Area, Joshua Tree Spiritual Retreat Center, to name a few.
Stay Days. Schedule Stay Days (roughly one per week) in urban center, small towns with amenities (laundry, cafe, post office, library etc) or occasionally in areas of natural beauty. Consider how the Stay Day site might benefit a rally, house parties, marcher in the home, other special events (i.e. Open Village, see below). Stay Days, well-scheduled, are opportunities for marchers to catch up on personal needs and to visit local sites of unique cultural, community, and environmental beauty. Seeking a balance between natural beauty, collaborative program development between local communities and the March, and in-depth discussion/training/facilitation is essential for selecting these days. If possible, Stay Days are also a great opportunity for fun, morale-building, marcher revitalization events, and to network with local organizations, musicians, artists, schools to show appreciation for the work the marchers do and vice-versa.
Fundraising. Work with Director in collaboration with Fundraising Team. Identify potential donors and work with the Director on soliciting their support. Also, organize house parties with Fundraising, Program, and Allies Teams on as many days as possible, for marchers to attend, talk about climate change and why they are marching, and accept donations.
Operations
Medical. Report to Communications & Operations Team. Include nearest hospital, medical clinic locations and directions for every day of the March. These will be in the daily route updates posted in camp and the internet.
Water. Report to Operations Director to find sources of water for the regular refilling of drinking water tanks, if none available at camp site.
Food. Collaborate directly with Kitchen Team. Contact local farmers and food vendors along the route, especially at the beginning of the state and in areas of low population density, and let them know of our interest in buying food from them. In keeping with our principles of sustainability, we prefer to buy food that is locally grown, organic and healthy. We appreciate any and all donations, too, of course, as we will operate on a very tight budget.
Eco-Commodes. Report to Operations Director. Seek locations for proper, sustainable, conscientious disposal of humanure and waste materials. Also, if possible, identify businesses that might have an abundant supply of wood shavings from untreated wood.
Connectivity. For Program, Communications, Allies Team connectivity, check availability of WiFi and at least mobile data service (AT&T, Verizon). In the absence of good service, a list of local businesses (coffee shops, libraries, community centers, bars, restaurants, etc) with WiFi should be collected and shared with Staff and Teams.
Marcher in the Home. A program for all marchers to pair up with community host families for an evening that might include dinner/breakfast, a shower, laundry facilities, and direct engagement with a member of the community interested in supporting the efforts of the Climate March. Not only do these programs provide our marchers a much-appreciated break from sleeping on the ground every night, but they provide excellent program outreach as well. This is best organized through a network of churches or other affinity organizations that can screen prospective housing offers to eliminate the risk of a host who might have the wrong intentions. Safety first.
Events (includes Program, Allies, Education, Advance Teams)
Rallies. Locate rally sites in key communities. Make sure site has shade and is accessible. Keep it to an hour or so. Arrange a representative, diverse, passionate line-up of speakers from local partners, allies, hosts; and include 2 – 3 marchers (local if possible) and music/multimedia/interactive segments. It is essential to include the Program, Communications, and Allies Teams for purposes of promoting Rallies.
Presentation/Speaking. Work with Program Director in collaboration with Advance Team and Allies Team to find opportunities for marcher presentations to share at schools, churches, civic groups, businesses, and to government officials. Provide the Program Director, Allies Team and Education Team leaders a list of such favorable prospects along the route with demographic information and notes.
Open Village. We invite the general public, our partners, and local media to our camp to experience the traveling exposition of sustainability and renewable energy that we showcase. This Open House/Road Show might include program content from marchers, solar cooking demonstrations/samples, Eco-Commode tours, wind & solar generator displays, music, etc. These types of events may be best conducted during Stay Days.
Affinity Events. Events where we could setup a table, present, or participate. This might include trade shows, arts/music festivals, conferences, symposiums, college recruitment fairs, career fairs, etc.
Alliance Building
Partners. Collaborate with Allies Team. Invite as many state, city, community organizations as possible to collaboratively plan and implement as many aspects of the March as possible. Cultivate relationships of mutual benefit and support for locally hosted events.
Media/Publicity. Work with Communications Director to contact possible press opportunities. Collaborate with marchers & virtual marchers Communications Team & Media Teams. Ask our local coalition partners to help get the word out, and invite as many as are able to march for all or part of the state (or beyond, of course).