Director, Advocacy and Policy

Director Of Advocacy & Policy

Living Streets Alliance is seeking a Director of Advocacy & Policy. As a senior member of the LSA leadership team, reporting to the Executive Director, this position will build upon the organizations history of advancing and garnering support for policies and infrastructure projects focused on multi-modal mobility and will spearhead advocacy initiatives at the intersection of transportation, land use, environment, climate, and social justice. They will develop and drive effective strategies to influence decision-making at both the grassroots and grass-tops levels and mobilize people to act on transportation issues in the Tucson community.

Living Streets Alliance (LSA), is a nonprofit organization working at the intersection of social justice, climate change, public health, and community development, that utilizes streets and advocacy for multi-module transportation to foster a just, sustainable, and vibrant city. We envision streets as living public spaces that connect people to places and to each other and work to bring this vision to life through programs like Cyclovia Tucson and Safe Routes to School, advocating for policies like Complete Streets, partnering with neighborhoods and communities to transform streets and intersections into colorful, inviting, and traffic-calmed spaces for all ages to enjoy, and more.

LSAs commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access Living Streets Alliance is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to fostering an environment that is inclusive and welcoming for diverse board and staff members with different backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences. By welcoming diversity, we mean that our organization embraces differences in gender expression and identity, age, culture, ancestry, ethnicity, race, color, sexual orientation, physical ability, learning style, religion, familial status, marital status, occupation, veteran status, nationality, citizenship, socio-economic status, and the many forms of composite subjectivity and life experiences. LSA acknowledges the role transportation planning has played in creating and exacerbating racial and socioeconomic inequities and recognizes the need for centering and elevating voices that are traditionally underrepresented in transportation planning and decision-making spaces. Hence, we strongly encourage applications from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) individuals, people from working-class backgrounds, women, and LGBTQIA2S+ people.

The ideal candidate will prioritize building relationships internally, recognize the value of divergent perspectives, be a good listener, be skilled in receiving and delivering constructive feedback, have high emotional intelligence, exercise accountability, and approach their role with the mindset of coaching, learning, supporting staff success and reinforcing collective growth.

• Are passionate about walking, biking, and transit and you re-imagine streets and public spaces that promote livable and equitable communities
• Have a strategists mind, are politically savvy, and can grasp and navigate complex policy issues and political landscapes as an effective changemaker
• Are a relationship builder and value working in partnerships and coalitions
• Approach leadership with a mindset of power with rather than power over
• Work well in a collaborative environment, and value co-creation and shared-leadership
• Share a strong desire and ability to learn quickly and grow with the organization
• Are highly organized, detail-oriented, resourceful, and proactive
• Are an experienced and effective team leader who can manage projects, manage staff and delegate skillfully while building accountability, inspiring and motivating team members, and fostering collaborative working relationships
• Can respond and adapt quickly to external shifts in opportunities and timelines to maximize impact and are curious and can comfortably navigate ambiguous and complex situations

Full-time position at $60,000-$75,000 annual salary

Creative, collaborative, and mission-driven environment within an organization that has tremendous local impact

Close-knit team who are passionate about the work and dedicated to learning together

Flexible work schedule, open PTO, and a focus on work-life balance

Group Health Insurance

This is a dynamic position that, on any given day, might be facilitating a coalition meeting, testifying at a Mayor and Council meeting, speaking to the media about an urgent policy issue, working on a policy brief, supporting the organization by speaking with a donor about a current campaign, attending a key LSA event to talk with participants about an advocacy topic, and meeting with a team member to brainstorm about adding a layer of advocacy into an outreach event.

Advocacy, Strategy, Research & Communications (60%)

• Lead, develop, and implement advocacy activities including advocacy campaigns, advocacy strategy and tactics, and organizing
• Monitor the political landscape for strategic opportunities to advance LSAs advocacy priorities and advocacy goals identified in the strategic plan
• Organize advocacy-related actions and events, and mobilize community members to take action on advocacy issues via petitions, action alerts, and other more creative means
• Maintain substantial knowledge of transportation policy at the city, county, state & federal levels of government and track legislative processes, including local, regional, and [occasionally] state-wide policy agendas
• Attend all Tucson Mayor & Council meetings, with an eye toward our strategic plan and objectives and synthesize meeting discussions in relation to our advocacy efforts
• Conduct research and analysis, as needed, to support the advocacy work and craft compelling written content including fact sheets, policy briefs, position statements, reports, and memos
• Oversee the development of LSAs formal response on local and regional policies, plans, and transportation infrastructure projects, and provide written or oral testimony before boards, commissions, committees, and elected bodies, as needed
• Track the implementation of key local and regional policies and plans that intersect with LSAs work and develop strategies for advocacy intervention if needed
• Collaborate with the Communications and Development Manager on strategic communications and messaging including action alerts, blogs, and social media posts
• Represent LSA at conferences, panels, public meetings, and in the press, as needed
• In the runup to key elections, conduct candidate questionnaires or other means of informing the electorate about candidate views on transportation and mobility
• Ensure Living Streets Alliances compliance with lobbying laws, as well as activity tracking and reporting requirements required at the state and federal level; Track and report advocacy and lobbying activity as required to comply with 501(c)(3) regulations

Coalition Building & Partnership Development (25%)

• Build, grow, and maintain strong working relationships with elected officials and their staff as well as government agency leaders and staff to inform, collaborate, and garner support for LSAs policy advocacy efforts
• Build, grow, and maintain partnerships with a variety of individuals and entities including board and commission members, other organizations advancing similar policy issues, transportation-related alliances and coalitions, grassroots groups, and grass tops stakeholders, and bring in allies as coalition partners, as needed
• Represent Living Streets Alliance in meetings with elected officials and associated staff, partners, stakeholders, funders, and the general public as well as on coalitions, advisory committees, and other similar bodies
• Advise internal leadership, staff, and organizational partners on relevant policy implications and provide logical, well-informed recommendations that can lead to direct actions
• Ensure advocacy and policy campaigns center the voices and needs of those most often impacted and marginalized

Organizational Support & Integration (15%)

• Provide thought leadership, expertise, and overall direction to the organization to ensure that advocacy is inextricably linked to LSAs other activities including programs, grant-making, and communications
• Support the team in moving forward with program or service-specific initiatives; help plan for and staff events as needed
• Follow trends and best practices related to LSAs mission and vision
• Engage regularly in thought work with the team around intersectional issues and project-/program-specific reflection and problem-solving
• Support fundraising efforts as needed; assist in the development of grant and project proposals as necessary
• Partner and work with LSAs Board of Directors and leverage LSAs Advocacy Committee (example: attend board meetings on occasion, act as the primary staff liaison to the board Advocacy Committee work with the Chair to develop agendas and provide regular policy and advocacy updates, etc.)

Essential Skills & Qualifications LSA does not have minimum requirements for education or professional experience. We encourage all candidates with relevant experiences and professional backgrounds to apply. We expect qualified candidates to have the following skills and qualifications for this position:

• A deep connection to the mission, vision, and values of Living Streets Alliance
• A proven track record and moderate to significant professional experience in providing strategic direction and visioning