Job Description

Senior Fellows

Department: Urban Ocean Lab

Employment Type: Fixed Term - Full Time

Location: Remote

Compensation: $100,000 - $150,000 / year

Urban Ocean Lab: Senior Fellows Strengthening Urban and Coastal Climate Resilience

Overview
As coastal cities face intensifying climate impacts, many of the federal systems they rely on — for resilience, data, permitting, disaster recovery, coastal management, environmental justice, and more — are being actively dismantled, weakened, or eroded. Despite this, cities, often working alongside states and regional partners, remain the most durable and ambitious engines of climate leadership. Senior Fellows will focus on the systems, programs, and institutional conditions that shape urban climate resilience and adaptation in coastal cities in the United States.

UOL’s theory of change rests on two principles:

1. Local action is where climate solutions take root. Municipal and state climate leaders need support to continue advancing climate initiatives while navigating the funding, regulatory, and data gaps.
2. Governance systems must evolve — structurally, programmatically, and culturally — so they meaningfully support local climate leadership, even during times of political change or federal retrenchment.

Project Focus Areas

The fellowship is designed to generate visionary, strategic, and implementable ideas, tools, and pathways that strengthen coastal and urban climate resilience, supporting near-term progress while also informing longer-term systems change at the local, state and federal level. The project proposal should be grounded in real-world conditions and may focus on one or more of the following interconnected areas:

Strengthening urban climate resilience delivery under instability

• Creating durable frameworks, tools, or platforms that help cities become more resilient to climate impacts, such as flooding, heat, storms, or infrastructure stress
• Identifying pathways to influence climate prioritiesacross levels of government that affect urban resilience outcomes

Reimagining governance and partnerships for coastal resilience

• Designing federal–state–local or public-private partnership and coordination models that improve delivery, equity, and implementation of resilience programs
• Building coalitions, networks or governance innovations that advance coastal and urban climate programs

Rebuilding climate programs and functions critical to coastal communities

• Reimagining programs, authorities, or institutions that have been weakened or no longer meet the needs of coastal cities
• Mapping or prototyping next-generation climate program functions such as resilient funding infrastructure, modernized data systems, or new mission areas

These examples are illustrative, not limiting. We welcome any ambitious idea that strengthens how climate programs and policies are implemented in coastal cities.

What We’re Looking For in Proposals

Please submit a 1–2 page proposal including:

1. Problem + Opportunity: A sharp, locally grounded problem statement.

• What challenge are cities or coastal communities facing in advancing climate action, and how is it shaped or constrained by existing programs, systems, or policies?

2. The Idea: A compelling vision for the program, system, or delivery approach you aim to strengthen or reimagine.

• What system, concept, or approach will you strengthen or redesign?
• What is the intended impact, and how does it align with UOL’s strategy?
• How would this work meaningfully benefit cities and frontline communities, especially in the near term?

3. Plan of Work (12 months): A clear, phased roadmap with engagement and early value creation.

• A thoughtful milestones and engagement strategy, including who you would work with (e.g., cities, states, communities, agencies, networks) and how their input would shape the work
• Clear proposed outputs (e.g., blueprint, prototype, roadmap, model, strategic framework)
• At least one interim product or engagement milestone that could provide value to cities or partners within the first 6–9 months of the fellowship period, even as longer-term systems change continues

4. Partnerships + Impact: How the work gains traction and scales.

• Cities, agencies, community organizations, or networks you expect to work with
• How coastal cities or federal partners might use the product
• A plausible pathway to influence, uptake, or future scaling

6. Qualifications

• Why you are well-positioned to lead this work
• What existing relationships you will leverage to help this work gain traction

7. Project-Related Expenses

• A brief estimate of anticipated project costs (excluding compensation)

8. Additional Materials

• Optional writing samples or alternate project ideas
• Two references
• Resume

We do not expect a full business plan — only a strong, well-reasoned idea. This fellowship is not intended to support stand-alone academic research or climate action plans unless they are clearly designed to inform or reshape how climate programs and systems function. Proposals should reflect the applicant’s own thinking, experience, and judgment. Submissions that are primarily generated by artificial intelligence tools will not be considered. We value clear, authentic articulation of ideas over polished or generic responses.
Who Should Apply
We are seeking senior climate and policy leaders who can translate real-world insight into forward-looking concepts for strengthening climate action amid evolving governance structures.

Strong candidates will bring:

• Direct experience working in or with cities, states, tribal governments, or coastal communities — including local implementation, resilience planning, or community-driven climate work
• Insight into how government systems affect local action, including where they succeed, where they fail and how recent federal changes impact cities and frontline communities
• A track record of producing rigorous policy, strategy, or systems-level work
• Creativity, independence, and strong execution ability
• Ability to engage diverse partners across government, community organizations and other partners

Support Provided

Fellows will spend up to 12 months visioning answers to these questions, guided by milestones co-developed with Urban Ocean Lab to ensure relevance, rigor, and real-world applicability. The fellowship may be extended based on project needs and mutual interest. Support will include:

• Up to 12 months of full-time compensation and benefits, with a salary range between $100-150K commensurate with experience
• Limited funding for project-related expenses, including travel, convenings, research assistance, or technical needs
• Strategic partnership and collaboration with UOL’s leadership and policy team
• Connections across UOL’s network, including city leaders, federal partners, researchers, and community organizations
• Visibility and amplification for fellowship outputs through UOL communications, convenings, as well as broader press and media partnerships, and public-facing events

TimelineApplications will be reviewed on a rolling basis with a priority deadline of March 27, 2026. We aim to announce fellows selected by May 2026.

Informational Webinar
A recording of the informational webinar, you can be found here Passcode: Ja#e1%%U