Position DetailsStewards Individual Placement Program (SIPP) provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants work with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits building institutional capacity, developing community relationships, and supporting ecosystem health. Visit one of the last unspoiled coastal wetlands on the Atlantic Coast. Discover 6,000 years of human history and experience the beauty of salt marshes, coastal dunes, and hardwood hammocks. The resource management division of Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve help conserve the natural resources and preserve the historic resources of the park. This project will develop leadership and increase participatory citizenship values by exposing the youth intern to face-to-face interactions across the entire breadth of the park’s natural and cultural resources. By completing in-field GPS mapping of these resources and office time creating GIS maps of the locations and boundaries of these resources, this will increase the park’s ability to protect these resources and will provide the youth intern with experience in identifying threatened and endangered natural species.This project develops a resource stewardship ethic by understanding how the park’s numerous cultural resources, including historic structures and archeological resources, are affected by climate change and erosion. Traveling to, and helping to map, those areas most in danger of immediate or foreseeable loss, will enable the youth intern to understand the need to document and develop strategies to protect these fragile links to our nation’s past.One youth intern will be employed for a year at TIMU completing a GIS based project that exposes them to the park’s entire suite of natural and cultural resources. The intern will be providing data mapping of fire related activities (mastication, proposed prescribe burn areas, etc.) and will be working to develop protocols for continued and future mapping of state threatened gopher tortoise burrows. They will also be working alongside the Southeast Archeological center to provide a more robust set of available data for future projects. The park currently lacks up to date data of its 46,000 acres, and the intern will be working with local organizations, such as JAXGIS and the NPS Lands Office to provide higher quality mapping as well as identifying areas for future purchase and protection. The intern will also have the opportunity to develop maps of hiking trails, as well as work with other local interns to collaborate on GIS related projects to aid other locations in increasing the robustness of their maps and resources. Position Responsibilities will include:
Develop protocols for GPS collection, collect in-field GPS points, polygons,
of natural and cultural resources
define proper GIS management of data
Create Park maps (using Avenza or ESRI’s Field Maps) available for download to mobile phone users that can later be used in areas of the park that may not receive good or any cell signal
Interpretation and Education surrounding park maps and data
Benefits:
Living allowance: $634/week (pre-tax)
Education Award of $6895 upon completion of service (pre-tax)
$5000 Professional Development funds to be used for training, travel, etc.
Training opportunities available
Onsite housing available
Required Skills
Bachelor’s degree
Ability to effectively use Microsoft Word, Excel and Access
Required Experience
Familiarity with operating handheld GPS Units
Familiarity with ESRI suite of products i.e., Field Maps, Survey123
and other products such as Avenza are desirable.
Experience using ArcGIS Pro