The David O. Matthews Conservation Award

Application Deadline
Applications are due Monday, February 1st.  Students will apply through eRecruiter. 

Award
Maximum of $6,000 for a 14-week volunteer opportunity (40 hours a week).  Student must complete volunteer assignment between May 2010 and August 2010.  Student must use the $6,000 to budget for housing, food, health care, local travel, and other living expenses. 

Purpose
The David O. Matthews Conservation Award was established to support an SNRE graduate student who will volunteer with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in the Division of International Conservation in the Wildlife Without Borders Program (Latin America and Caribbean Branch).

Eligibility (SNRE and US FWS will screen for these criteria) 

• Currently enrolled SNRE graduate students.  Both students graduating or returning in the fall semester are eligible to apply.  Wildlife Without Borders would prefer to have master's students, rather than doctoral students, but all students are encouraged to apply.  
• Must be in good academic standing (cumulative GPA must be at least 5.0)
• Proficient in Spanish (converse on the phone, email) 
• U.S. Citizen
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Skills  
• No criminal record (there will be a background check)

Application Requirements

• Current, up-to-date, resume (two page maximum)
• Cover Letter (one page)
• Telephone interview will be required for finalists (the interview will include some questions in Spanish)
• Graduate transcripts (OAP will provide).  SNRE staff will make certain that any applicant with a GPA lower than 5.0 (a 5.0 or higher is considered good academic standing) will not be considered. 

Students must apply via eRecruiter.

Volunteer Description, Goals of Volunteer, and Skills the Volunteer Will Gain

Team Lead: Sarah Gannon-Nagle will be the team lead for the volunteer.
Location:
Wildlife Without Borders Regional Program for Latin America and the Caribbean
Division of International Conservation
US Fish and Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS 100
Arlington, VA  22203
Special Notes: Wildlife Without Borders will provide desk space and a computer.  No travel (except for local travel and a possible overnight trip to West Virginia for training) may be necessary.  The student will not need a vehicle for this volunteer opportunity.  

This volunteer opportunity is with the Branch of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), Division of International Conservation, under the Assistant Director for International Affairs (AD-IA) at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  The mission of the Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is to conserve, protect, and enhance fish and wildlife resources and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The AD-IA coordinates the Service’s international activities and programs that involve wild flora and fauna and is responsible for implementing provisions of international conventions, treaties, agreements, and domestic laws related to wildlife management and conservation.

The Division of International Conservation staff serve as the Service's primary liaisons with national and international governments, agencies, organizations, and individuals concerned with environmental programs for the conservation of wildlife of international importance, their habitats, and ecosystems. The Division is concerned with international technical assistance programs for conservation of flora and fauna and is responsible for ensuring that all Service international activities and programs are coordinated and implements a voluntary grants program to support in-country capacity building for wildlife conservation in developing countries around the world.

The Branch of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) carries out all Division responsibilities as they relate to Latin America and the Caribbean, including the coordination of the Wildlife Without Borders Regional Program for Latin America and the Caribbean.  This involves supporting wildlife management training and exchange programs, and providing staff assistance to the Director on matters pertaining to international policy and assists in developing and implementing agreements, conventions, and treaties.

The volunteer will be responsible for providing assistance to the International Affairs Specialists on a variety of projects.
Key Tasks and Responsibilities:
The volunteer performs routine, procedural, or standard clerical or technical support functions in support of International Affairs Specialists and the Branch Chief. Duties include, but are not limited to:
1. GIS Mapping
Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software on the division’s shared computer, creates or updates a map of recent projects supported by the Wildlife Without Borders Regional Program for Latin America and the Caribbean (WWB-LAC).  This includes creating a list of project titles, organizations, and matching funds.  Several variations of this map may be created to highlight protected areas, species, or indigenous tribes which have benefitted from the support of the Wildlife Without Borders program.
2. WWB-LAC Conservation Priorities Map  
Develops a GIS model highlighting funding priorities using criteria from the WWB-LAC program.  This may include assessing which areas of the LAC region are most at-risk due to development, where high levels of endemism and biological diversity occur, and other factors as determined by the LAC branch.  The end product is a map indicating geographical areas within the LAC region which the WWB-LAC program may prioritize for grant projects.     
3. LAC Grants Assessment:
Creates a list of organizations that have earned repeat grant awards from the Wildlife Without Borders Regional Program for Latin America and the Caribbean, assessing the total amount of funding received in recent (past 5-10) years.
Evaluates successful proposals and create a list of the most frequent sources of matching funds.
4. Protected Areas Photo Inventory
Develops photo inventory of protected areas/communities which have been beneficiaries of WWB-LAC grant funds in recent years by looking through report materials submitted and requesting photos as needed from grantees.  This will require the use of Spanish language skills for reading and conversation.
5.  Participate in Grants Review Process
Participates in spring/summer grant review session by capturing review committee comments and follow-up questions for grant applicants. 
6. Assist with Congressional Events
Assists with set up, sign-in, and tear down of Congressional briefings in the House and Senate and other summer briefings as needed.
7. Database for Graduate Theses in Wildlife Conservation 
Develops/creates a simple, searchable database (Excel spreadsheet) of the graduate program theses FWS has collected.  The database will be searchable by author, title, university, key word(s), etc.
8. Projects Funded in 2010 by Wildlife Without Borders
Creates a synopsis of projects funded to date in 2010 (using past project lists from the website as a model).

Knowledge Required:

• Knowledge of the capabilities, operating characteristics, and advanced functions of a variety of computer software programs and databases sufficient to send/receive email , prepare a variety of documents using word processing software (i.e., Microsoft Office Suite programs - Excel, PowerPoint, Word), and input/modify/locate/extract data. Ability to integrate a variety of data gathered from different software types into cohesive material. GIS skills are required.
• Ability to gather basic information, recommend correction of simple problems, extract data from prescribed sources and prepare recommendations for improvement.
• Understanding of time management principles sufficient to be able to plan and organize work; prioritize/re-prioritize assignments to meet deadlines (especially under pressure of short time frames).
• Skill in establishing and maintaining effective and cooperative work relationships sufficient to be able to work as a team member, including the ability to effectively work with peers, supervisors, and other individuals, and coordinate a variety of correspondence activities and/or develop responses to inquiries.
• Fluency in the Spanish language sufficient to conduct assignments and converse with Spanish speaking only individuals.
• Basic knowledge of grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation needed along with good editing skills sufficient to ensure that documents are organized, clear and concise; tone is appropriate; writing style and format conform to established patterns; and grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are accurate.
• Multiple activities are oftentimes pursued concurrently, with duties involving related procedures, processes, or methods but requiring a high degree of organizational capability as well as accuracy and flexibility to prioritize, within general guidance provided by the supervisor, work assignments, based on the understanding of their relative priority. For routine day-to-day assignments, the incumbent decides what needs to be done by identifying easily recognizable differences in the basic characteristics and nature of the assignments. 

Personal Contacts:
Contacts are primarily with staff within the LAC/DIC; however, some external contacts (often foreign nationals) may occur that are of a structured nature (e.g., the purpose of the contact and the question of with whom to deal are relatively clear).
Purpose of Contacts:
The purpose of the contacts is to plan, coordinate, or advise on work efforts.  The volunteer will also engage contacts in pursuit of learning about mission-related issues and professional development opportunities.  Tact, courtesy, helpfulness and dependability are expected for all interpersonal contacts. 

Selection Criteria
1) some prior experience studying or living in a Spanish speaking country
2) strong interest in the conservation of biological diversity in the LAC region
3) self motivation (can carry out projects with minimal supervision) 
4) completion of course work or project work using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
5) strong writing and analysis skills
6) knowledge of applied conservation biology as demonstrated by course and project work

Other Important Notes
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in the Division of International Conservation would be responsible for helping volunteers clearly define the duties expected of them, provide a professional setting for their volunteers, provide appropriate supervision, and are responsible for submitting an evaluation of the student to SNRE upon the conclusion of the volunteer opportunity.

Limitations for students applying for multiple SNRE volunteer funding opportunities
The David O. Matthews Conservation Award is intended to be the sole source of funding for this volunteer experience. Students may not combine funding sources (ie. Weinberg, Sussman, Doris Duke, Erb Institute, Wyss, International Institute, or other types of funding) for this volunteer experience. If a student who received or is likely to be supported by other types of internship funding is interested in interning or volunteering for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife Without Borders program, SNRE staff will work with US FWS staff to determine if a separate internship or volunteer placement can be found for the student using the alternate source of funding.  

Timeline for 2010

• February 1, 2010:  Student deadline to apply.  All resumes and cover letters will submitted on eRecruiter.  SNRE Staff will review applications for basic selection criteria.  Sarah Gannon-Nagle will coordinate the LAC branch’s selection of finalists.  Sarah will contact SNRE to let SNRE know of finalists.  SNRE will set up phone interviews for finalists.  Sarah will conduct interviews (to be completed by the end of February).
• March: Sarah Gannon-Nagle will work with the LAC branch to notify the student of their selection.  The selected student will go through a background check (which may take 3-6 weeks).  The selected student will need to have their fingerprints taken as soon as they are notified of their selection.  Fingerprinting is free for U-M students and staff through the U-M Department of Public Safety.  Students may schedule an appointment (year round) on TUES or THURS between 2:00-3:45pm by calling 3-3434. The appointment should take around 15 minutes, you must bring photo ID.  Please bring a copy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s preferred fingerprinting form.
• April: Student will receive the funding in their account.  Student will be required to write a thank you letter to the donor.
• May - August: Student will complete volunteer opportunity.
• August:  Sarah Gannon-Nagle will coordinate with the LAC branch to complete a review of the volunteer for SNRE.  Student would be required to take a survey which creates a volunteer report and do a 2-3 page volunteer report for the donor.

Student Assistance
Contact Kim LeClair if you need any assistance.  
kleclair@umich.edu
734.764.1402