Climate Ecology Internship

USFS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is available with US Forest Service (USFS), Pacific Southwest Research Station located in Missoula, Montana.

At the heart of the U.S. Forest Service's mission is their purpose. Everything they do is intended to help sustain forests and grasslands for present and future generations. Why? Because their stewardship work supports nature in sustaining life. This is the purpose that drives the agency’s mission and motivates their work across the agency. It’s been there from the agency’s very beginning, and it still drives them. To advance the mission and serve their purpose, the U.S. Forest Service balances the short and long-term needs of people and nature by: working in collaboration with communities and our partners; providing access to resources and experiences that promote economic, ecological, and social vitality; connecting people to the land and one another; and delivering world-class science, technology and land management.

Research Project: The Tahoe Central Sierra Initiative (TCSI) is a multi-stakeholder partnership to quantify socio-ecological resilience in a 2.4 million acre landscape in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Spatially explicit landscape disturbance-succession models have been forecasted across the TCSI landscape for various climate and management scenarios. This project aims to quantify refugia of five resources under those different climate and management scenarios, 1) wildlife species and habitats, 2) tribal resource values such as mature hardwoods, meadows, and culturally important wildlife, 3) large trees and mature forests, 4) fire dynamics, and 5) wilderness areas.  

The project is aimed to help answer the following questions:

Learning Objectives: The fellow will be collaborating with tenured landscape ecologists with a breadth of experience working in applied science. The fellow will receive training, support, and tremendous opportunities to be a part of a high functioning and successful research team researching important conservation and restoration issues in the west. 

Mentor:  The mentor for this opportunity is Pat Manley (pat.manley@usda.gov). Please contact the mentor if you have questions about the nature of the research.

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: As soon as a qualified candidate is identified. Start date is flexible and negotiable, and will depend on a variety of factors.

Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be extended upon recommendation of USFS and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Level of Participation: The appointment is part-time (20 hours per week).

Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience.

Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.

ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and USFS. Participants do not become employees of USDA, USFS, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.

Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email USForestService@orise.orau.gov and include the reference code for this opportunity. (USDA-USFS-2021-0200).