Presentation at 9th Massachusetts Green Careers Conference on October 5, 2017

1. For Love of Land and Wildlife
Craig MacDonnell
Chief of Wildlife Lands

2. The Big Picture of Conservation
Job Hunting
Craig MacDonnell
Chief of Wildlife Lands

3. Sorting Out and Rambling: Various
Thoughts on the Conservation Field
Craig MacDonnell
Chief of Wildlife Lands

4. Major and Minor Arcana
of Conservation Jobs
Craig MacDonnell
Chief of Wildlife Lands

5. MAJOR ARCANA:
All-Purpose Conservation Job
Flow Analysis
• Do you want to make lots of money?
• If YES, pursue other fields.
• If NO, continue to next question.

6. Flow, cont’d
• Do you want a predictable 9 to 5 job?
• If YES, pursue other fields.
• If NO, continue.

7. Flow, cont’d
• Do you want to go to heaven?
• If NO, enter politics or go to law school.
• If YES, continue!

8. Flow, cont’d
• Do you believe in climate change?
• If NO, go directly to hell.
• If YES, continue!

9. Flow, finis.
• Do you eat kale, wear hemp, carry a water bottle
24/7, wash your used plastic bags, drive a hybrid,
or have a man-bun?
• YES or NO, it doesn’t matter.
• Get in line with everyone else!
• In other words, conservation is for all of us.

10. MINOR ARCANA:
What is your discipline?
• Q: Are you trained in the sciences?
• A: If so, pursue organizations where science
drives most of the decisions.
• Examples
– MassWildlife
– TNC
– Manomet Center for Conservation Science
– Union of Concerned Scientists

11. MINOR ARCANA:
Discipline, cont’d
• Q: Are you trained in economics, law or
policy?
• A: Think about where those fields
predominate.
• Some examples
– Conservation Law Foundation
– The Trust for Public Land
– The Trustees of Reservations
– Appalachian Mountain Club

12. MINOR ARCANA:
Discipline, cont’d
• More examples
– Open Space Institute
– MASSPIRG
– Sierra Club
– Environmental League of MA
– Environment Massachusetts
– Clean Water Action
– Mass Climate Action Network

13. Passion – Opportunity - Persistence
• In the conservation job field, these matter.
• Passion is up to you. (Easy in this era.)
• Opportunity: This field is still young.
• Persistence is rewarded in such fields.

14. Passion – Opportunity - Persistence
• With apologies to HAMILTON:
– Are you “young, scrappy and hungry?”
– Then say it: “I’m not givin’ away my shot!”
– “How lucky we are to be alive right now!”

15. Practical Advice on Your “Shot”
• Demonstrate credibility
and experience
– Skills: GPS, GIS,
orienteering,
map/compass, deed
RSH, negotiation and
mediation, public
speaking, species ID
– Volunteer (my story)
• Outreach
– Avoid the internet and
social media
– Meet other humans,
regularly and
shamelessly
– Network multiple
degrees of separation

16. Questions?