Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.

Development Manager, Action Fund

Posted Date 22 hours ago(7/26/2025 4:31 AM)
Job ID
2025-5776
# of Openings
1
Group
Development

Overview

NRDC is a non-profit environmental advocacy organization. We use law, science, and the support of 3.1 million members and online activists to protect the planet's wildlife and wild places and to ensure the rights of all people to clean air, clean water, and healthy communities. NRDC was founded in 1970 and our people helped write some of America's bedrock environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act and many of the implementing regulations. Today, our team of more than 700 lawyers, scientists, economists, policy advocates, communications experts, and others work across the United States and the globe from our offices in Beijing; Chicago; New Delhi; New York; San Francisco; Santa Monica; and Washington, D.C.

 

The NRDC Action Fund is an affiliated but separate organization from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The NRDC Action Fund’s mission is to build political support in the United States for protecting the planet and its people. We mobilize influential constituencies, experts, community leaders and others to directly advocate for clean air and water, public health, biodiversity, and a stable climate. We support candidates who stand up for environmental protection, and we expose those who side with polluters rather than the public good. The NRDC Action Fund is a primary purpose c4 with a majority of its work being advocacy, not electoral. The NRDC Action Fund has both a PAC and a super PAC, NRDC Action Votes.

 

NRDC Action Fund is seeking a Development Manager to work with the Development team at any of NRDC offices, with Washington, D.C. preferred.


Position Summary

 

Reporting to the NRDC Action Fund Director of Development, the Development Manager supports major gifts, foundations, digital and direct mail staff in implementing effective engagement strategies for Action Fund donors at the $5,000 - $1M level. This is an operational role that provides key support for frontline fundraisers to raise money for the Action Fund. While this is not a management position, the Major Gifts and Action Fund teams are highly collaborative, and value strategic contributions from all team members. In addition to major gifts team members, the Development Manager will work with staff across the development department to support the Action Fund’s principal gifts, foundations, and membership revenue streams. The Development manager will also work with a diverse range of operations and program staff, including advocates, scientists, and litigators, who work to fulfill the NRDC Action Fund’s mission and grow its political impact in Washington and across the country. This position is a dynamic learning opportunity for someone who wants to learn more about major gifts and political fundraising within a large, decentralized, hybrid team. The ideal candidate should be responsive to team needs and comfortable working across departments.

 

The position you are applying for is part of the bargaining unit represented by The Washington Baltimore News Guild (WBNG / The Newsguild-CWA Local 32035).  

Responsibilities

  • Partner with the Director of Development, Action Fund Major Gifts Officer, Donor Relations and other major gifts fundraisers to execute donor-centric strategies for the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of gifts as needed.  
  • Work with research and fundraisers to identify and develop a pipeline of Action Fund major gifts prospects. 
  • Liaise with the donor relations team to develop Action Fund cultivation and stewardship materials such as a general proposal and annual year-in-review to be distributed in mass communications, events, and one-on-one meetings, as well as support for tailored email communications for fundraisers.
  • Work with Donor Engagement, Membership, Foundations, and the Major Gifts Eastern and Western Region teams to plan Action Fund cultivation events and donor meetings, both in-person and virtual, and support their associated internal prep and logistics. 
  • Develop and maintain expert familiarity with the Action Fund’s programmatic needs, budgets, priorities, and regional work and promote integration across the development department by developing best practices and processes for working with the Action Fund.
  • Monitor budget and spending for the Action Fund Major Gifts team and collaborate with donor systems and adeptly manage Salesforce and other processes to track donor gifts and projections and moves management. 
  • Assisting colleagues on the Action Fund and development staff with fundraising support for additional priorities as needed, including grasstops advocacy (Green Leaders for Change), GiveGreen, and the NRDC Action Fund PAC. 
  • Enable the board to steward the Action Fund’s financial health by partnering with foundations, membership, and major gifts team members to provide reports on the Action Fund’s current and expected revenue. 
  • Support GiveGreen candidate fundraising events and platform.

The above list of duties is not comprehensive but generally demonstrates the types of matters under this position’s responsibility. Other duties may be assigned.

Qualifications

Minimum Education & Experience

  • Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience required.
  • 4-7 years of experience working in a high-volume non-profit Development department.

Skills, Abilities, Competencies

  • Organized project manager with outstanding attention to detail.
  • Ability to quickly learn and navigate databases.
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Excel, Word, PowerPoint and Outlook.
  • Knowledge of 501(c)(4) and PAC fundraising restrictions and related political activities a plus.
  • Comfort working in hybrid environment.
  • Confident in navigating a large, decentralized team that spans various regions.
  • Excellent writing, editing, and verbal communication skills.
  • High-level of professionalism and discretion when communicating with board members, executives, fundraisers, and support staff.
  • Strong customer service orientation that centers donors as a critical part of mission-driven work.
  • Ability to work accurately and with composure under deadline pressure.
  • Experience working with advocacy or environmental groups preferred.
  • Ability to travel to our U.S. based offices, approximately 5-10% annually
  • Ability to work occasional evenings for events
  • Commitment to NRDC’s and the NRDC Action Fund’s mission, values, and DEI principles

NRDC and the NRDC Action Fund are committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion, both in our work and in our workplace. We believe that celebrating and actively welcoming diverse voices and perspectives is essential to solving the planet's most pressing environmental problems, and we encourage applications from candidates whose identities have been historically under-represented in the environmental movement.

 

We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

 

We offer competitive salaries, excellent benefits, and a supportive working environment. Salary is based on a nonprofit scale and is commensurate with skills and experience. Internal equity will be reviewed and considered to determine a final offer. For this position, the salary range is $100,000 to $110,000.

 

NRDC operates under a hybrid work model. Employees are required to come to the office 8 days per month.

 

As a science-based organization, NRDC aims to do our part to help contain the COVID-19 public health crisis. For the sake of health, safety, and equity, we ask that people be vaccinated unless they have an approved medical or religious accommodation or other exemption in accordance with state and local law. We consider a person to be vaccinated two weeks after receiving one full course of a CDC-approved vaccine. In accordance with state or local law, new hires will be asked to attest to vaccination, those wishing to do so may request medical or religious accommodations or other exemptions via NRDC Employee Relations. NRDC treats all vaccine-related data confidentially, in keeping with local, state, and federal laws.

 

To apply, visit www.nrdc.org/careers and upload your résumé and cover letter. Please mention where you saw this posting and upload any additional materials that showcase your abilities. Due to the high volume of applications, we will contact only those candidates we would like to interview. Please no phone calls, emails, or in-person résumé drop-offs.

 

If you experience technical problems while applying or if you are a person with a disability and need assistance applying online, please reach out to iCIMS Customer Care at 1-800-889-4422.

 

For more about NRDC, visit www.nrdc.org.

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