Deputy Director

Position Title: Food Shift Deputy Director

Organization: Food Shift, a project of Earth Island Institute

Location: Alameda, CA (Hybrid)

Status: Full-time, regular, exempt

Compensation: annualized salary equivalent between $75,000 and $88,000

Benefits: Regular Earth Island Institute (EII) employee benefits

Reports to: Food Shift Executive Director

Co-supervises staff alongside the Executive Director

AboutFood Shift

We advance a just and sustainable food system by recovering surplus food and sharing hyperlocal solutions that reduce waste and increase access to culturally appropriate, nutritious food through our consulting practice. We’re a small but mighty Bay Area team rooted in mutual aid, with a collaborative, non-hierarchical leadership structure that values adaptability and learning from one another. Our work is guided by justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI), and by the belief that solutions must be shaped by the people most impacted.

We actively seek a “cultural knit,” not a “cultural fit.” While “fit” suggests a predefined candidate who fits into the organizational jigsaw puzzle, we emphasize a cultural knit, inviting new team members to weave their unique experiences and skills into our fabric.

We strongly encourage applications from BIPOC, multilingual individuals, and those with lived experience of food insecurity or other systemic barriers, whose leadership may have been overlooked but whose skills, insight, and commitment are deeply aligned with our mission. We believe excellence shows up in many forms, and we’re building a team that reflects and strengthens the communities we serve.

Key Responsibilities

You will help bridge bold vision and operational realities, taking on key responsibilities over the first 6 to 12 months under the Executive Director’s guidance. This role is designed to grow into deeper leadership over time, with mentorship across the functions of the Executive Director role and a path toward a Co-Executive Director partnership.

Top priorities:

• Financial sustainability and fundraising
• Operational leadership and organizational health
• External leadership and representation

Your work will be shaped by your strengths and the needs of the organization, with responsibilities approximately distributed as follows:

• Executive operations: 25%
• Fundraising: 25%
• Consulting: 25%
• Special projects: 15%
• Food recovery: 10%

Within that mix, you will contribute to:

• Financial and grant stewardship, including revenue goals, grant deliverables, financial planning and tracking, and support revenue generation sufficient to cover the role’s compensation starting in the 13th month of employment.

• Operational excellence , applying IT, project management, and implementation skills to our food recovery, apprenticeship and internship programs, and consulting practices related to JEDI and California Senate Bill 1383 compliance.

• Partnership engagement, including relationships with community partners, volunteers, donors, funders, and consulting clients.

• Internal culture building, leading with humility, modeling accountability, intergenerational sharing, and contributing to a collaborative, inclusive environment where people can bring their full selves and develop their potential.

• Policy and compliance, including translating ideas into sustainable internal policies and participating in community discussions to shape policy and governmental support for food sovereignty work.

Prior experience in the food ecosystem is not required, though familiarity with the San Francisco Bay Area is valued.

To apply

Your application should include:

• A resume, with up to 3 professional references
• A cover letter including a short description of why you and Food Shift are a cultural knit and how you meet the qualifications for the role.

Email materials to ***email_hidden*** with the subject line “Deputy Director”.

The interview process will begin May 30, 2026 and continue until the position is filled.