Permaculture Designer

Position Title 

Transform Your Yard (TYY) Permaculture Designer

Managers and Teammates: Nicole Wires, Rahul Patel, Aaron Godinez, Obichukwu Lebeke, Bobby House

PJ Headquarters

Our nursery is located at the Sogorea Te Land Trust land at 319 105th Ave., Oakland, CA 94603. This address is where you will usually meet every morning, unless directed to a different site by your Manager.  The Permaculture Designer can work remotely, from home or elsewhere, with a computer.

Our farm is located at 4823 Hilltop Dr., El Sobrante, CA 94803.

Planting Justice locations are generally open Monday through Friday and some weekends between 8am – 6pm.  Without prior permission, you should not be at Planting Justice locations outside of these hours. 

 

Responsibilities, Permaculture Designer

The main responsibilities of the Permaculture Designer are to conduct on-site consultations, develop permaculture designs, and support with project management and installation of permaculture landscapers for full paying clients around the Bay Area.  Responsibilities include:

  • – Respond to initial client consultation requests & schedule consultations
  • Draft designs (including plan view, plant lists & pictures) & estimates based on consultations, and submit designs to Project Manager; revise as needed
  • Communicate with Site Leaders during the work week to assess progress and support with problem solving for installations
  • Input data & tracking information for TYY installations, including tracking outstanding invoices, contracts, measuring TYY impact, managing TYY financial reports, etc.
  • Coordinate garden maintenance client work and conduct garden coaching sessions with clients
  • Delegate public speaking opportunities to the TYY team
  • Attend weekly TYY meetings, Wednesday mornings from 8:30-10:30
  • Manage communications with past, current and prospective clients by email

 

Desired Skillsets

  • Permaculture Design Certificate or equivalent experience
  • Proficiency and experience in at least 75% of the following: Landscape Design, Native/Edible/Medicinal plant identification and knowledge of growing conditions, basic carpentry, irrigation installation, word processing/excel, drivers’ license and clean driving record. Willingness and excitement to meet 100% of these needs quickly.
  • Organizational skills & ability to manage many details simultaneously
  • Software for design: Adobe design suite: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign
  • Additional CAD drafting skills a bonus but not required

Expectations

  • Work 5 days per week, approximately 36-40 hours per week, which includes onsite training & professional development hours. 
  • Show up to work on time and well rested, fed, sober, and ready for work
  • If unable to make it to work due to illness or emergency, contact your managers and team at least 12 hours before the work is to begin.
  • Work cooperatively as a member of a team
  • Ask questions and for help when unsure how to handle a task
  • Learn new skills and share existing skills with others
  • Be a role model with other participants through good example, good work ethic, and good communication
  • Maintain positive relationships with clients before, during, and after installation, and promptly report to Project Manager and team any concerns, changes to the scope of work, and any/all problems that may arise during installation

 

Salary/Benefits

  • Permaculture Designers are compensated with a starting hourly rate of $19, with opportunity for advancement
  • After 90 day probationary period, the employee is eligible for 100% FTE of our standard PTO package: 20 days Paid Time Off (includes vacation, wellness, and sick days), increasing to 25 days in Year 3 and 30 days in Year 5.
  • Paid annual holidays: New Year’s Day, 4th of July, Thanksgiving + Day After Thanksgiving, Christmas, Juneteenth and Indigenous People’s Day
  • Unpaid Time Off/Extended Vacations beyond Paid Time Off: possible with prior coordination, scheduling and approval at least 2-weeks ahead of time
  • Unpaid sick leave: as needed
  • Health care coverage including dental, vision, life insurance and chiropractic coverage after 90 days after date of hire.

 

Hiring Timeline

Please submit your resume and cover letter or expression of interest to tyy@plantingjustice.org.  Applications will be reviewed as received, and the position will remain open until filled.