• Please note: The deadline for this position has been extended to February 20, 2023.

The NPS Mellon Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship Program places recent humanities PhDs with NPS sites and programs across the agency. In collaboration with NPS staff and partners, the incoming cohort of fifteen (15) Fellows will contribute to planning and preparation for America at 250, an initiative inspired by the semi-quincentennial of the Declaration of Independence. This event provides an opportunity for the NPS to tell a more inclusive story of the American past and present. The NPS is committed to exploring the full complexity of our history, even if that history is uncomfortable, contested, or erased. The humanities research supported by this Fellowship will expand these efforts, encouraging creative approaches to documentation, interpretation, and outreach.

This opportunity is supported by a generous grant from The Mellon Foundation through the National Park Foundation (NPF). The project is administered via a three-way agreement among NPS, National Park Foundation (NPF), and American Conservation Experience (ACE).

Job Title: National Park Service Mellon Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship: Reintegrating Indigenous Ecological Knowledge into Northeast Waterway and Park Co-Stewardship

Employer: American Conservation Experience (ACE)

Department: EPIC Program, National Park Service (NPS) Division

Location: Boston, MA

Status: Temporary, Full-time, Exempt

Term: Position is fully funded through August 31, 2025

Start Date: September 2023

Host Description:

The NPS preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The Park Service cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout this country and the world. Native American Nations are some of the most critical partners to land stewardship in meeting the NPS mission.

The Office of Native American Affairs (ONAA) represents NPS-Tribal Relations and supports policy review, implementation, and a robust working relationship with indigenous communities. The ONAA is led by the Native American Affairs Liaison, who assists NPS staff with training, consultation guidance, and technical support. The Liaison also supports tribal governments and Indigenous people to collaborate on NPS park policy, access, youth engagement, partnerships, and collaborative agreements with self-governance Tribes.

The Tribal and Cultural Affairs (TCA) program of the NPS's Interior Region 1 harnesses the power of research and communication to connect traditionally associated communities and Native Peoples with places that are essential to their identity. Since 1981, the NPS has developed a diverse network of practicing cultural anthropologists in parks and regional offices, and a national program office in Washington DC. These anthropologists apply new knowledge of community dynamics within a restorative justice framework and use current anthropological methods to connect parks and people.

Partnership Wild & Scenic Rivers are a unique category of designated rivers managed through long-term partnerships between the National Park Service and community, local, regional, and state stakeholders. Congress has specified in some Wild and Scenic River designations, that rivers are to be administered by the Secretary of the Interior through the NPS in partnership with local governments, councils, watershed groups and non-governmental organizations, generally using cooperative agreements. In these 'Partnership' Wild and Scenic Rivers communities protect their own outstanding rivers and river-related resources through a collaborative approach.

The National Parks of Boston, comprised of Boston National Historical Park, Boston African American National Historic Site, and Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area are situated at the intersection of the political, social, and environmental revolutions of the last three centuries. The parks work to tell a complete and truthful American story that encompasses the struggle of black Americans, the indigenous movement for sovereignty and self-determination, as well as the intensity of the American Revolution, abolition of slavery and civil rights movements, and the ecological awakening of the 20th century that led to the clean-up of Boston Harbor.

ACE is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing rewarding environmental service opportunities for young adults and emerging professionals of all backgrounds to explore and improve public lands while gaining practical professional experience. The EPIC NPS Division works alongside the National Park Service across the United States, from Alaska to Puerto Rico, to support the NPS in its mission to "preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations" while providing career promoting individual placement opportunities.

Position Description:

As the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence approaches in 2026, the National Park Service hopes to take advantage of a unique opportunity to address the harms of colonialism to both people and environment. Seven generations after the events of the American Revolution, the Partnership Wild & Scenic River and the Northeast Cultural Resources programs are exploring ways to bridge the siloes of social and biological sciences with the natural and cultural humanities to approach public space with an eye for biocultural stewardship. The ONAA, TCA, and Partnership Wild and Scenic Rivers program, together with the National Parks of Boston, seek the assistance of a post-doctoral researcher in Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) or Indigenous Knowledge (IK) systems. The successful candidate will assist program managers in navigating avenues for possible collaboration with Native partners on waterway and park management. They will participate in formal and informal consultations, help create cross-cultural communication protocols, and promote TEK/IK practices in land and water management. The fellow will not be responsible for developing or maintaining these nation-to-nation relationships but should consider this an opportunity to conduct research and share expertise in cross-cultural settings. These conversations should ultimately lead to co-developing a biocultural landscape co-stewardship strategy document to support sovereignty and self-determination of indigenous communities, enhance climate resilience, and better the stewarding practices of NPS parks and programs in the Northeast.

This fellowship centers TEK/IK as a pathway towards healing the rift imposed on Native peoples and their homelands from settler colonial violence. Following consultation and collaboration efforts, the fellow will develop a regional strategy that merges cultural and natural resource remediation with approaches to Indigenous protocols endorsed by the Region's Native Nation's environmental programs and cultural teachings. The fellow will pilot the strategies and tools they develop on a selection of three regional riverways and parks in Boston, to begin these conversations in sites of high connectivity, ecological value, and historic significance. This effort will result in a toolkit of approaches, which parks and programs can use to initiate co-stewardship engagement with Native partners and apply traditional knowledge responsibly and sustainably.

Each NPS Mellon Humanities Postdoctoral Fellow will complete work in four areas. Fellows will (1) perform project-based research; (2) share research results; (3) produce and substantially contribute to interpretive and educational products; and (4) pursue career-focused work.

1) Project-Based Research: The fellowship is structured on three components: 1) research and convey the variety in understandings of indigenous ecological knowledge tied to the lands and waters of the Tribal communities whose homelands are proximate to the National Parks of Boston and three Wild & Scenic Rivers in the northeast, 2) act as an intercultural facilitator to support better relationships between park and program staff and indigenous knowledge keepers and leaders, and 3) develop a toolkit of processes and techniques that parks and programs in the northeast can utilize to move from engagement to co-stewardship with indigenous partners. The fellow is not responsible for developing or maintaining nation-to-nation relationships, but rather will be looked to for TEK expertise and how best to merge conventional and TEK practices into active co-stewardship. Output should center inter-generational exchange of IK/TEK from Native elders to Native youth, cultural revitalization, and incorporation of indigenous teaching into NPS resource management.

At the end of year one, the Fellow will consult with their mentorship team, as well as other subject matter experts as needed, to revise or propose a project for their second year.

2) Sharing Research Results: Reciprocal collaboration and knowledge sharing is essential to the cross-cultural and interdisciplinary nature of this project. Following culturally responsive protocols and federal law, the results of research will be shared with other land management agencies, and partner organizations. Respect for indigenous cultural property and the right to cultural privacy is critical for these efforts to be successful, and all sharing of IK/TEK practices will be done through agreed upon protocols with the individual Tribes involved in this collaboration. In parallel process, the NPS will share their research, extant data collections, and institutional knowledge with the fellow as law and policy allow to create a united body of ecological knowledge and practice. Reciprocity is important for the broader opportunity of co-learning in the process of improving policy and relationships between the NPS and their indigenous counterparts, and the terms of these reciprocal exchanges will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

The Fellow will be expected to develop and sustain connections with program-provided mentors and host staff, associated NPS staff, members of their Fellowship cohort, and other Fellows across the tenure of the program. In addition to being provided mentorship and support themselves, the Fellow will have the opportunity to mentor others and to enrich staff knowledge by organizing events such as virtual speaker series and presentations. Twice a year, the Fellow will participate with their cohort and other Fellows in a virtual conference for NPS staff and partners to provide updates about their research. The Fellow will be responsible for tracking and reporting accomplishments and for supplying copies of interpretive, educational, and research products to their host and to the National Coordinator.

3) Interpretive and Educational products: The final product of the fellowship will be a toolkit which offers well-defined processes of engagement, clear guidance on culturally responsive treatment of TEK and indigenous intellectual property, and numerous creative and non-conventional techniques for parks and programs in our region to approach to co-stewardship. Core to the toolkit will be innovative education and interpretive program approaches that bridge community building and formal consultation and introduce the idea of co-stewardship. The toolkit will lead NPS staff from early engagement with tribal communities, to cooperation, and eventually to co-stewardship of parks and rivers. This type of toolkit, tailored to the Northeast, is needed precisely because of the unique harms experienced by indigenous communities in this region. This toolkit will challenge parks and programs in the northeast to end practices of indifference, fear, and inaction regarding tribal communities, and offer opportunities for healing and restorative justice. In a way, this toolkit presents a series of small acts of reconciliation. More than a guidance document, the toolkit will establish a process for parks and programs that will live and change as iterations of engagement teach our region more about the healing needed and how TEK can play a role.

In addition to a toolkit for engagement and co-stewardship, the fellow may assist in updating park and river interpretive displays, websites, and programs in ways that challenge and expand dominant narratives of the American Revolution and that perpetuate the legacy of colonialism. By using a TEK framework, we may reimagine how the NPS talks about science, nature, and history in ways that reintroduce human people as part of the ecological web and centers the often-ignored idea of the biocultural landscape at the heart of most histories. It unlocks the power to alter our approach to park management and tell different stories of our shared history that recognizes the critical element of ecological setting in critical moments in history and why it still matters today.

4) Career-focused research and products: In consultation with their mentors, the Fellow will carry out a career-centered project. About 20 percent of the Fellowship will be dedicated to this scholarly work that advances the Fellow's career path. The fellow will be integrated into a network of National Park Service professionals and collaborators to take part in the intricate relationships and working dynamics of water and land management. Mentors both in and outside of the NPS will be able to support the fellow in expanding their professional network and offering guidance in their research and product-development. This project is an opportunity for a post-doctoral candidate to expand their doctoral research and apply their findings to great effect, while the sharing and implementation of the fellow's research will result in expansive professional relationship-building and prospects for career development.

Essential Responsibilities and Tasks:

• Research, document and synthesize traditional ecological practices of indigenous communities relevant to each river or park in the project in a reciprocal process, offering opportunities for knowledge-sharing and trust-building throughout.
• Participate in conversations between TEK practitioners, indigenous water keepers, academics, and National Park Service staff to bridge the gap between conventional stewardship methods and methods based in indigenous knowledge. (The fellow is not responsible for developing these nation-to-nation relationships but should consider these facilitations an opportunity to conduct research and promote TEK practices in cross-cultural contexts.)
• Identify specific tribal needs and ways to support indigenous sovereignty that might be met through a co-stewardship model.
• Attend NPS trainings and workshops to develop a deep understanding of how co-stewardship policies may be implemented between federal agencies and indigenous communities
• Work closely with the mentorship team to pilot techniques for co-stewardship with indigenous communities using TEK as the mechanism and the park or river managed by the National Park Service as the venue.
• Develop and annotate a list of key contacts within tribal communities proximate to each river and park site to support continuity of communications and relationships

Required Experience and Qualifications:

• Must be a PhD in any field of the humanities or humanistic social sciences. Scholars who received or will receive their PhD between May 1, 2018, and August 15, 2023, are eligible to apply. For more information on eligibility, visit the National Park Foundation site at https://www.nationalparks.org/nps-mellon-humanities-postdoctoral-fellowship
• Traditional Ecological Knowledge Keeper, Water Keeper, or Indigenous Knowledge systems practitioner.
• Strong intercultural facilitation skills, experience communicating across cultural and disciplinary divides.
• Strong civic engagement skills, including community organizing, campaign management, restorative justice work, community outreach.
• Proficiency in strategic and practical writing.
• Proficiency in developing curriculum, lesson plans, education and/or interpretative programming.
• Strong policy analysis skills and a willingness to learn policy development practices
• Comfort in cross-disciplinary research.
• Familiarity with western science and conventional resource stewardship and landscape management approaches.

Other Requirements:

• Must be a US citizen or Permanent Resident, as required to comply with U.S. government contracts.
• Must be proficient in English.
• Must pass a federal criminal background check; Fellowship is also contingent upon a successful security background check with the NPS.
• Must be willing to abide by ACE Policy and Federal Drug Free workplace policies and laws. ACE reserves the right to drug test at any time.
• Must verify that they are fully vaccinated for COVID-19 by the time they start their fellowship or request a medical or religious exemption.
• Must be willing to abide by a requirement to acknowledge The Mellon Foundation, the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation, and American Conservation Experience, in any publications generated by this project.
• Must be willing to abide by federal policy that research results, publications, films, videos, artistic or similar endeavors resulting from the fellowship, other than the specifically career-focused work, will become the property of the United States, and as such, will be in the public domain and not subject to copyright laws.
• Consent to being photographed and to the release of such photographic images.

Physical Demands, Work Environment, and Working Conditions:

• Physical Demands: Requires frequent sitting, standing, walking, using hands to handle or feel, reaching with hands and arms, talks and hears with or without assistive personnel and/or devices. Manual dexterity required for use of computer keyboard/mouse and other office equipment with or without reasonable accommodations. May be occasionally required to stoop, kneel, climb stairs, and/or crouch (all physical demands are required with or without reasonable accommodations). The National Park Service host will provide reasonable accommodations, if needed, to meet task assignments.
• Vision Requirements: Requires close, distance, peripheral and depth perception vision as well as the ability to focus. The National Park Service host will provide reasonable accommodations, if needed, to meet task assignments.
• Environmental: Mainly indoor, office environment conditions; indoor air quality is good, and temperature is controlled. This is describing both provided office spaces and home office spaces.
• Noise Environment: Moderate noise such as in a business office with equipment and light traffic. This is describing both provided office spaces and home office spaces.
• Travel: This position requires domestic travel as needed for program duties.

Salary & Benefits:

Compensation: Starting annualized salary $65,000 with annualized COLA to $67,600 for Year 2 (40 hours/week for 52-weeks). Paid bi-weekly, a two-week pay period. Travel funding is provided, and Fellows will not be responsible for allowable/approved program travel. Each Fellow will receive an annual research fund of $3,000.

Medical/Health Benefits: ACE offers competitive medical and ancillary plans (health, mental health, dental, vision, flexible spending accounts, and other supplemental benefits). Fellows are also eligible to participate in ACE's 403b retirement plan, which includes a 1% employer contribution for participating, contributing staff.

Holidays, Vacation, and Sick Time: As a Fellow, you will be eligible to accrue up to 80 hours of paid vacation time annually during your first two years of continuous employment. Additionally, ACE observes 13 paid annual holidays and provides 10 days (or 80 hours) of paid sick time annually.

Additional Benefits: Outdoor Perks - As an ACE Fellow, you will be eligible to receive pro deals which include deep discounts on outdoor gear providing 30 - 50% off retail prices on 100s of established outdoor gear brands.

To Apply: Please submit: 1) a cover letter stating interest and vision for the Fellowship (letters may include a summary of the dissertation, a statement of personal research interests and plans, discussion of past engagement with public humanities, discussion of willingness to participate fully in NPS research and education programs); 2) a comprehensive curriculum vitae; 3) a writing sample accessible to the general public; 4) confirmation of Ph.D. award by August 15, 2023; and 5) names and contact information for 3 professional references.

Deadline to apply: The deadline to apply for this position is February 20, 2023, or until 75 applications have been received.

Questions about the application process should be sent to mellonhumanities@usaconservation.org

American Conservation Experience provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, American Conservation Experience complies with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. ACE encourages all qualified individuals to apply and does not discriminate on the basis of any protected status, including veteran and disability status. ACE is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities under the ADA and provides the opportunity for employees to request reasonable accommodations during the hiring process.