WRA is an employee-owned environmental consultancy. We are a tenacious team of planners, engineers, designers, and scientists committed to leaving the landscapes we love better than we found them.
We are seeking an expert in riverscape and/or shoreline restoration with a minimum of 20 years of experience. Your background could be in any of several relevant disciplines such as civil engineering, aquatic or riparian ecology, fluvial or coastal geomorphology, hydrology, hydraulics, or landscape architecture. Most important is your passion for habitat restoration, demonstrated through a diversity of successful riverine and/or coastal restoration projects. You will ideally have an established presence in the restoration community and be able to leverage existing relationships to expand WRA’s growing portfolio of river and shoreline restoration projects. You will mentor and advise technical staff and project managers to support their professional development by drawing on your professional experience across all phases of restoration including assessment, planning, design, construction, and monitoring. A significant portion of your experience is based in California, and you have a working knowledge of natural and managed river systems as well as the policy, planning, and regulatory framework affecting restoration project development in the state.
You will join our growing interdisciplinary team of river restoration professionals including engineers, landscape architects, fluvial geomorphologists, ecologists, and fisheries biologists. Our projects range from marsh and floodplain restoration or dam removal to urban stream rehabilitation across California. We are passionate about restoring riverine and coastal systems that support healthy and resilient natural and human communities. We are invested from start to finish in projects applying our expertise in site selection, topographic surveys, hydrologic monitoring, hydrologic and hydraulic analysis of river and tidal systems, assessment of ecological functions, biological surveys, monetization, drafting, design, project management, construction monitoring and management, performance monitoring, and adaptive land management. As a team, we strive to make positive lasting changes to rivers where we work and play.
WRA has a diverse portfolio of projects with clients including decades long private clients, public agencies, and non-profit organizations. In addition to our technical expertise, we help clients deliver on their projects by helping draft grant proposals, prepare financial models, partner with investors, and engage stakeholders.
You may work in-person at one of our San Francisco Bay Area or San Diego offices or be remote within the state of California. Regardless of your work arrangement, in-person, remote, or hybrid, you will be excited to collaborate with staff in many technical disciplines across the company. You could be a senior technical specialist on the team or in a leadership position overseeing the team, depending on your experience and interest.
At WRA, you will have 3 major areas of impact:
- Increase our Impact and Industry Presence - Help grow a successful riverscapes and shoreline restoration practice within a well respected company
- Technical Expertise and Strategic Input - Provide technical expertise and strategic input to the development and implementation of complex and impactful restoration projects throughout the state
- Mentorship - Be an engaged mentor to a multidisciplinary team of practitioners who are passionate about habitat restoration and delivering high quality products
In this role, you will:
- Collaborate with a team of landscape architects/designers, engineers, and ecologists with a strong passion for habitat restoration work;
- Support the development and implementation of the team Marketing Plan;
- Work with Operations and Marketing teams to ensure healthy backlog
- Work with Project Managers to ensure team-led projects are on budget, schedule, and that A/R and WIP are at healthy levels
- Play the role of Principal-in-Charge and Project Manager on appropriate projects
- Provide technical expertise in the field of stream and/or coastal restoration;
- Ensure team members receive appropriate training and mentoring to advance their professional careers
- Oversee landscape architects, engineers, and ecologists on project work.
To be successful in this role, you will need:
- A Bachelor's degree in a relevant engineering or earth sciences field;
- A minimum of 20 years of experience in various aspects of aquatic habitat restoration in any of several relevant disciplines (i.e. civil engineering, aquatic or riparian ecology, fluvial or coastal geomorphology, hydrology, hydraulics, or landscape architecture;
- The ability to collaborate with and guide engineers and scientists in the implementation of ecologically robust and resilient river and shoreline restoration projects;
- The ability to manage multiple projects and tasks; determine project and task urgency in a practical way; and use goals to guide actions; if necessary, create detailed action plans; organize and schedule people and tasks effectively; and
- To possess a strong desire to grow the restoration practice through internal mentorship, business development, external thought leadership, and by leveraging your extensive industry networks and presence.
