Company description

Wasatch Community Gardens (WCG) is a community-based, nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people to grow and eat healthy, organic, local food. Since 1989, we have provided children, adults, and families in Salt Lake County with access to land and education for growing and eating fresh produce, while building and nurturing community connections through gardening and healthy food. We accomplish this through six main programs: Advocacy & Justice, Community Garden, Community Education, Youth and School Gardens, Job Training, and Volunteers.

Job description

WCG's Advocacy & Justice Program (AJP) supports the organization’s efforts to improve accessibility and equity in everything we do. The AJP Director will collaborate to further develop the Program over the first two years in the role. The AJP Director is responsible for understanding the needs of those we serve while supporting WCG staff and programming to adapt to those changing needs. This position requires interpersonal relationship and communication skills, commitment to continuous learning about intersectional justice principles/movements, bringing others along on the learning journey, and strong community connections in Salt Lake County.

The Director will work in three key areas:

Program Development: setting clear goals and structure.
Organizational Capacity: embedding AJP principles further into WCG practices, programs, training, and systems.
External Advocacy & Partnerships: laying groundwork for long-term advocacy while centering community power.

Program Development (30%, ~12 hours/week)

First, the AJP Director will collaborate to establish internal program structure, evaluation, and understanding of past/current initiatives.

• Launch AJP with a clear purpose, milestones, transparent communications utilizing the organization’s program design modules.
• Lead internal audits to identify successes/gaps across WCG programs.
• Establish phased goals with regular progress updates.
• Lead the READI (Race, Equity, Access, Diversity, Inclusion) Committee; integrate into AJP.

Organizational Capacity Building (40%, ~16 hours/week)

The AJP Director will collaborate with all departments to support existing and future READI-related goals/initiatives.

• Identify challenges in our processes, implement solutions to any program barriers to access.
• Lead READI Committee to co-design integration of equity practices.
• Provide regular, realistic, supportive, educational trainings/tools to staff on READI principles, organizational goals, rules of engagement.
• Build transparent systems for cross-department collaboration, capacity check-ins, and realistic timelines for program adjustments/implementations.
• Meet with WCG programs, departments, committees, leadership to understand and support ongoing needs related to:
  • Equitable access to ongoing/new programming, information, events for community members and partners
  • Stewardship of relationships with diverse organizations and marginalized community members
  • Culturally competent programming development and delivery
  • Accountability in decision-making.
  • Other strategic READI-related goals
  • Outreach/engagement opportunities that build trust with community
• Lead Sabores de Mi Patria workshops with support from program staff.

External Advocacy & Partnerships (20%, ~8 hours/week)

As WCG continues to understand the role of the organization within the broader landscape, the AJP Director will play an important role in advancing partnerships and formalizing an advocacy platform.

• Work with Marketing & Communications team to establish, maintain language/materials that explore WCG’s historical and current participation in food justice movements.
• Participate in local/state community spaces to understand ongoing grassroots efforts that align with WCG’s mission, how WCG may be able to lend advocacy support.
• Represent WCG in local/state advocacy spaces and grassroots coalitions on food justice, climate, land access, housing issues.
• Celebrate, elevate authentic relationships with organizers, decision makers, and community leaders.
• Support community-led programming that centers food justice.
• Work with organization leadership, committees to establish and maintain an advocacy platform that is mission-focused and addresses community-defined priorities.

Additional Responsibilities (10%, ~4 hours/week)

• Oversee all data collection, reporting
• Conduct regular evaluation of programming delivery, effectiveness
• Report on performance, participant numbers, demographics, etc. regularly
• Oversee program budget, track expenses, process reimbursements
• Participate in program trainings, staff meetings, program meetings, other committee meetings
• Participate in WCG events, general staff responsibilities

Required Qualifications:

• Multilingual - preferably Spanish and English
• Minimum 3 years demonstrated experience working in food/environment/social justice, social services, nonprofit, or related field
• Minimum 3 years experience with culturally competent community involvement, organizing, empowerment
• Minimum 3 years practicing and sharing anti-racism, inclusion, and equity principles in food justice
• Ability to work effectively with diverse community members, staff
• Ability to handle conflict professionally, navigate contentious situations using emotional intelligence
• Strong written/verbal communication, data collection, reporting skills
• Basic computer skills (MS Office, Google suite, Apple)

Preferred Qualifications:

• Personal lived-experience of systemic hunger, poverty, housing insecurity, or its root causes (such as racism, anti-Blackness, xenophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia, sexism, heterosexism, cis-sexism, ableism, ageism, anti-fatness, ethnocentrism, and/or classism or other systems of oppression) - preferably in Salt Lake County
• Bachelor’s or higher degree (or equivalent lived/professional experience) in food/environment/social justice, social services, nonprofit, related field
• Experience working in local Utah politics
• Existing relationships with local grassroots organizers, community leaders, justice advocates or commitment to building these
• Existing relationships with lawmakers, elected officials or commitment to building these
• Experience implementing accessibility standards related to physical, mental, visible, invisible disabilities or desire to learn
• Experience in facilitating discussion and learning around race, equity, access, diversity, inclusion with peers
• Community organizing and facilitation experience

Hours:

Full-time (40 hours/week), schedule may vary. Requires some evenings/weekends with advance notice.

Salary and Benefits:

Hiring range of $50,000-$55,000, salary growth range of $50,000-$60,000. Includes health insurance, 401k, HSA, paid holidays, sick and vacation leave, access to garden produce.

Exempt from overtime pay.

Compensation

this position is: salaried, $50,000 - $75,000

Application instructions

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Deadline

January 05, 2026