Executive Director

About Us:

Founded in 1936, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is America's largest and most trusted grassroots conservation organization with 52 state/territorial affiliates and more than six million members and supporters, including hunters, anglers, gardeners, birders, hikers, campers, paddlers, and outdoor enthusiasts of all stripes.

The NWF's mission is to unite all Americans to ensure wildlife thrive in our rapidly changing world through programming focused on conserving wildlife, restoring habitats and waterways, expanding outdoor opportunities, connecting children with nature, and addressing the causes and consequences of climate change.

To complement this work, NWF Action Fund (NWFAF) was established in 1989 as a separate and distinct 501(c)(4) social welfare organization that works to advance key conservation issues through advocacy, elections, and accountability. Through a mix of focused grassroots, legislative and political campaigns, NWFAF fights for solutions to protect, restore, and connect wildlife habitat; transform wildlife conservation; and connect all Americans with wildlife and nature. While NWFAF shares a common mission and values with NWF, the Action Fund is legally independent and operates with its own board of directors, governance structure, and finances.

About the Role:

NWF Action Fund is hiring an Executive Director.

The Executive Director is responsible for the NWFAF’s primary purpose and electoral activities in federal, state and local elections. The Executive Director also oversees NWFAF’s connected National Wildlife Federation Political Committee. This includes developing programmatic and electoral work, supporting the board of directors, developing and managing budgets, and compliance.

NWFAF builds political power to embolden and support elected officials and candidates from both parties to take strong wildlife and conservation action, and serves as a central force uniting communities, organizations, and leaders from across the political spectrum around a common conservation vision. During a critically important electoral cycle, the Executive Director has an exciting opportunity to grow NWFAF’s work and impact.

The essential functions of the job will include:

•  Grow NWFAF’s profile and influence with elected officials at all levels of government.
•  Working with the Chief Advocacy Officer, oversee and strategically grow NWFAF’s primary purpose work, which includes public policy, advocacy, and campaigns in agriculture, climate, water, and public lands.
•  Develop and execute NWFAF’s bipartisan electioneering strategies related to candidates, ballot measures and voter education to support efforts to protect wildlife and wild places and connect people with nature and the policies that support it.
  •  Identify a bipartisan slate of candidates for elected office who may be appropriate for support or opposition, and manage endorsement program in partnership with NWFAF Board, NWFAF CEO, and NWFAF senior staff.
  •  Organize efforts in support of endorsed candidates, including both coordinated and independent expenditures.
  •  Coordinate with NWFAF Board, NWFAF CEO, relevant NWFAF senior staff, and affiliates to identify ballot measures that may be appropriate for support or opposition.
•  Build a broader conservation constituency.
  •  Build and secure meaningful, lasting grasstops and state (affiliate) advocacy programs on a cross-section of issues that support protection of wildlife and communities.
  •  Coordinate with the affiliated 501(c)(3) National Wildlife Federation staff to align conservation priorities.
• Execute critical fundraising responsibilities including but not limited to:
  • Supporting the design and implementation of short and long term fundraising strategies
  • Engage in stewardship with major gift and institutional prospects and donors with face-to-face meetings, presenting in virtual and/or in person events, various correspondence as appropriate, etc.
  • Solicit qualified prospects for initial gifts and solicit renewal gifts from existing donors per fundraising strategy
  • Identify and cultivate prospective major donors and institutional donors through personal and professional network
• In addition, this position requires strong nonprofit management skills including maintaining appropriate legal separation from the 501(c)(3). It also requires the ability to work with key stakeholders to ensure that NWFAF fulfills its 501(c)(4) and PAC reporting and compliance requirements, including laws governing lobbying and campaign finance.

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