Outreach Assistant

The FISM Outreach Assistant will work closely with the FISM Project Coordinator to identify key locations in the CT area that boaters depart from to visit Fishers Island. The Outreach Assistant will contact relevant organizations and distribute FISM Save Our Seagrass educational materials directly to boaters. This will include distribution during high-volume days for boaters (e.g. Weekends, events, and holidays).

Key Functions

• Build interest and support for community-driven activism to protect and preserve eelgrass.
• Promote community learning and interest in seagrass-safe boating.
• Target key audiences to provide them with information on eelgrass importance, preservation, and FISM initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Distribute materials at events and other high-volume days at marinas, shipyards, and yacht clubs.
• Identify target audiences to engage in eelgrass and seagrass-safe boating education.
• Fluently answer questions about FISM initiatives and educational messages, including but not limited to the reasons for our initiatives, ecological and eelgrass history of Long Island Sound, reasons why eelgrass is declining, and the ecosystem services that eelgrass provides.
• Represent the FISM Coalition, its mission, and its objectives at yacht club and marina events.

Requirements

Required:

• A personal commitment to conserving and restoring marine and coastal natural resources.
• Knowledge and understanding of current marine conservation issues, policy, and management.
• Self-starter able to enthuse and motivate a distractable or uninterested audience.
• Able to work independently with a dedication to FISM initiatives and education.
• Interest in pursuing a career in a related field.
• Valid driver’s license and clean driving record.

Desirable:

• Experience in community outreach and/or behavior change movements.
• Knowledge of Long Island Sound conservation challenges and associated U.S. state and regional policies.
• Understanding and appreciation of small, island-based cultures.
• First Aid and CPR Certification.

Why work here

Fishers Island Seagrass Management (FISM) Coalition

The FISM Coalition is comprised of community representatives from Fishers Island institutions, including the H.L. Ferguson Museum, Fishers Island Conservancy, Town of Southold, Island Community Board, Fishers Island Development Corporation, Fishers Island Club, Hay Harbor Club, Fishers Island Yacht Club, Harbor Committee, Fishers Island School, Pirates Cove Marina, and Fishers Island Ferry District, as well as from the following groups: commercial and recreational fishing, aquaculture, contracted ferries, landscapers, and divers.

Eelgrass preservation and education are part of a larger strategy to conserve Long Island Sound, as outlined in the Long Island Sound Study’s Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan. The FISM Coalition passed a Plan for Outreach and Engagement in August of 2022. This year, we are launching a Save Our Seagrass (S.O.S) educational movement to empower residents of Fishers Island Sound to protect eelgrass for their own benefit and for the benefit of their families. For this phase of the project, there are two initiatives the Coalition is focusing on: educate and promote the reduction of fertilizer to prevent eutrophication around Fishers Island and educate and engage boaters of Fishers Island about the damage caused by boats and the ramifications of those damages.