Senior Economist / Project Director

The ideal candidate will be an experienced professional with a track record of academic and professional success. Key skills include applying economic principles to answer real-world natural resource and environmental policy questions and collaboratively leading project consulting teams to productively address client questions. A successful candidate will have previous consulting, industry, or government experience that demonstrates success in building relationships with clients, designing and implementing applied economic analysis for policy decisions, working with diverse stakeholders, and cultivating the professional growth of junior staff.

ECOnorthwest provides a strong peer community of economists, planners, data scientists and policy analysts who collaborate to help new Project Directors develop their professional careers. Typical work includes evaluating benefits, costs, risks, and tradeoffs of resource management decisions, developing funding and implementation strategies, assessing socioeconomic effects including changes in economic activity, distribution of resources, and distributional/equity effects. Clients include federal, state, and local resource management, private companies, and environmental compliance agencies, such as the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, state resource management departments, and NGOs. The work is often completed as part of larger interdisciplinary teams involving partners from other organizations, including scientists and engineers.

The core competencies needed for this role include communication, self-direction, team coordination, and expertise in relevant economic theory, data, and methods.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Ph.D. or master’s degree in an economics-related program or as part of an interdisciplinary economics degree program (economics course work including basic theory and applied analysis, e.g., environmental economics, is required)
• Minimum of five years of applied research experience with demonstrated growth in leading projects with complex resource management questions (demonstrated record of professional  leadership is particularly expected for applicants with a Master’s degree.)
• Experience directing internal teams, serving as a mentor, and supporting more junior staff
• Public speaking skills, networking skills, and the ability to represent the firm in public with integrity and business acumen
• Experience developing and maintaining client relationships in the public or private sectors
• Specific interest and experience in economic analysis of environmental and natural resource policy issues associated with specific topic areas, such as:
  • climate change (mitigation, adaptation, and resilience)
  • renewable energy
  • water resources
  • recreation
  • natural resource damages
  • forestry
  • agriculture
  • fisheries
• Applied experience with economic analyses of environmental regulations or procedural statutes in the United States (e.g., Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Endangered Species Act, etc.)
• Experience with quantitative and empirical economic and econometric methods and other relevant qualitative, quantitative, and statistical methods and associated analytical tools
• Expertise in market and non-market valuation techniques and ecosystem services frameworks
• Expertise in other tools and concepts of environmental economics including discounting, risk and uncertainty, demand modeling, pricing, etc.
• Ability to understand and apply economic frameworks, fluency with a range of quantitative and qualitative research methods, and an ability to interpret and communicate findings in a policy context. 

OTHER DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

• Applied experience using Stata, R, Python or similar statistical analysis programs for regressions and data visualization
• Experience completing socioeconomic studies to fulfill NEPA requirements
• Experience with spatial analysis and associated GIS tools including ESRI-based or QGIS
• Knowledge of survey and sampling design, analysis, and communication
• Ability to demonstrate knowledge of the theories and principles of environmental equity, especially as they relate to the impacts on tribes, minority and/or lower-income groups and communities   
• Familiarity with public data sources (e.g., U.S. Census Data, USDA agricultural statistics, population forecasts, QCEW data, etc.)
• Familiarity with input-output modeling and associated software (e.g., IMPLAN, REMI)

   Pay range:

• The base salary for this full-time exempt position will be commensurate with experience and market rates, roughly ranging from $110,000 – $135,000. 
• This position is eligible for full company benefits including medical/dental/vision/life/disability insurance, flexible spending accounts, 401(k), and paid holidays. The position is also eligible for quarterly production bonuses and year end profit sharing.

   Physical Requirements:

• Ability to work for long periods at a computer.

   Location:

• Work from one of our office locations in Portland, Bend, Seattle, or Los Angeles.
• Hybrid work schedule with in-office work expected Tuesday through Thursday for collaboration.

ECOnorthwest is committed to the work of improving its diversity and inclusiveness as a workplace. Our best work draws on teams within and beyond ECOnorthwest who have diverse backgrounds and experiences that reflect the multifaceted communities we work in. Thus, we encourage applicants who would expand the diversity of lived experiences within our team and who share our values and commitments to advancing equity through research and data justice.

ECOnorthwest is not a sponsoring organization.

ECOnorthwest is an Equal Opportunity Employer.