Clean Trucks amp; Buses Analyst
Clean Transportation Program
Union of Concerned Scientists
Washington,DC or Oakland, CA
The Position
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) is an independent national nonprofit that uses science to protect our health, safety, and environment. We are scientists, engineers, economists, activists, and everyday people who develop and advocate for innovative, practical solutions to some of our planet’s most pressing problemsfrom combating global warming and developing sustainable ways to feed, power, and transport ourselves, to fighting misinformation, advancing racial equity, and reducing the threat of nuclear war.
UCS is looking for an experienced scientist, engineer or analyst who will support our national campaign to clean up the heavy-duty transportation sector in the US. We are expanding our efforts to speed up truck and bus electrification nationwide and are seeking candidate who will leverage their technical skills and expertise to help reduce global warming emissions and harmful pollution that threatens public health and overburdens the communities located near our highways, ports, and other freight facilities primarily Black, Latinx, and Asian-American communities. In this role your work will have real, lasting impacts on how heavy-duty transportation policy decisions are made on both the national and state levels. The right candidate will be able to lead targeted research and policy analysis, effectively communicate analysis and advocate policy positions to various audiences, collaborate with members of Clean Transportation (CT) team and other organizations and community groups, and contribute to UCS’s efforts in advancing racial equity.
Responsibilities
- Lead and participate in research, policy analysis and advocacy efforts on select federal and state transportation campaigns. Participate in planning and strategy sessions for UCS's overall transportation policy agenda.
- In coordination with the Clean Transportation team staff, plan, design, and implement research activities, reports, and other products in support of the CT policy and regulatory agenda.
- Set research objectives and goals and plan and coordinate overall projects as assigned. Develop methodologies in accordance with scientifically sound principles and techniques.
- Manage consultants to assist and support research activities and policy objectives.
- Develop and maintain a working knowledge of clean vehicles technologies, EV charging infrastructure, and related technical, policy, and equity issue areas.
- Conduct literature reviews to monitor and assess current and ongoing research and trends in the transportation sector and related fields. Consolidate work of other researchers and consultants into overall project results; ensure consistency and accuracy of the entire effort.
- Respond to questions from government officials, coalition partners, and other stakeholders to promote UCS policies and positions. Present information on CT issues to various groups, including regulators, legislative committees, civic and community organizations, etc.
- Write testimony, fact sheets, briefing papers, speeches, presentations, web, and other advocacy materials, in coordination with other UCS staff. Participate in conference panels and briefings.
- Respond to occasional press inquiries on selected transportation and related climate issues, contribute to press releases, op-eds, and letters to the editor in consultation with UCS media staff and campaign team. Write and contribute to materials for distribution to the media.
- Contribute to the creation of a culture in which all staff on the CT team are safe, respected, and heeded. Participate in program-wide processes and individual activities to advance internal equity efforts.
Requirements
Qualifications and Experience
The position requires the following:
- A commitment to clean air, addressing climate change, and to support justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion both inside and outside the workplace.
- A commitment to accuracy and traceability in analytical products, data transparency, and documentation and citation of sources and assumptions.
- Ability to critically evaluate the findings and methods used by other researchers.
- Ability to carry out sophisticated analysis. Must be able to carry out analysis and modeling efforts using spreadsheet tools at a minimum.
- Ability to translate analysis results, statistics, and technical information into readily understandable and compelling graphics, talking points, and narrative appropriate for a wide range of audiences. Proficiency with Word and PowerPoint is required.
- Effective verbal communication ski