Policy Advisor, Animal Welfare Nonprofit

WHO WE ARE

The Humane League (THL) is a global nonprofit ending the abuse of animals raised for food. THL fosters a high-energy culture of teamwork and mission-driven problem solving, and we have earned recognition as Top Charity from Animal Charity Evaluators for all of their rating periods. Over the past few years, we’ve grown to a staff of 100+ talented individuals dispersed across the country and around the world. At THL, how animals are treated in the food system is at the forefront of our everyday work. As such, many of our staff are vegan by personal choice, and all of our THL-hosted events offer fully vegan menus. We welcome all mission-aligned candidates to apply, no matter where you are in your journey to end the abuse of animals raised for food.

YOUR OPPORTUNITY

In 2022, The Humane League launched the Animal Policy Alliance (APA), a national network of state and local animal protection and food policy advocacy groups in the US that include animals raised for food and fur among their legislative priorities. The mission of the APA is to unite to end large scale animal cruelty through policy change. To help accomplish this mission, THL’s Public Policy team works to facilitate the sharing of resources and best practices, organize trainings, develop and coordinate strategies for public policy campaigns, and provide the capacity building and support necessary for those strategies to succeed.

As the Policy Advisor, you will be accountable for conducting state and local-level policy research, supporting the coordination of member groups on impactful public policy campaigns and lobbying strategies at the state and local levels, and interfacing with animal protection groups regarding research needs. Because the APA is a relatively new program and the Public Policy team is small, this role requires a high level of flexibility and comfort with change and uncertainty. This position reports directly to the Senior Policy Counsel.

This is a full-time, remote position. This position requires domestic and international travel, equivalent to 2 or more trips per year.

We are only able to consider applicants who possess United States work authorization.

We have recorded a Q&A webinar for you to find out more about the role and ask any questions you may have. The webinar was hosted by Hannah Truxell, Senior Policy Counsel, Gabriel Wildgen, Senior Director of Public Policy, and Brenna Anderst, Senior Animal Policy Alliance Program Lead. You can view the recording here, and the passcode is NjBB@7+%

This position will close on Tuesday, February 25, 2025 at 1:00pm PDT/2:00pm MDT/3:00pm CDT/4:00pm EDT. Applications received after this date will be reviewed on a rolling basis. If you are experiencing technical issues, please contact careers@thehumaneleague.org prior to the deadline. Please submit applications and all supporting documents in English. All application questions and materials need to be submitted here through the application submission, we do not accept applications through our careers email.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES

• Conduct research and assessments on policy options and proposed legislation at the local and state levels, including feasibility studies, SWOT analyses, and legislative environment analyses, to determine the probability of success.
• Develop lobbying, education, and mobilization materials, such as model legislation, fact sheets, letters, alerts, blogs, and testimonies.
• Draft regulatory comments and testimonies.
• Summarize and communicate research findings to relevant teams and allied groups.
• Track relevant local legislation and identify opportunities for new legislation to protect farmed animals or reduce animal product consumption.
• Assist in planning and executing THL's legislative agenda and campaign strategies.
• Conduct case studies of previous legislative campaigns, both successful and unsuccessful.
• Lead legislative campaign development, evaluation, and implementation in partnership with local, state, and national animal protection groups.
• Support APA member groups on policy campaigns across various levels, utilizing legislative and grassroots tactics.
• Leverage data to design, implement, and evaluate campaigns.
• Develop post-campaign reports to inform future strategies.

In addition to the above essential job duties, other duties may be assigned as business needs arise. These may include non-essential, marginal job duties.

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Legislative Knowledge and Experience: J.D. or graduate degree in law, public policy, political science, or a related field, or 3 years of experience working in a legislature or government agency. Substantial knowledge of legislative processes and the structure of local, state, and federal governments in the United States.
• Campaign Knowledge and Experience: Minimum 3 years of experience working on local and/or state policy campaigns pertaining to issues related to animal agriculture and/or animal welfare. Substantial knowledge of campaign planning components (goals, messaging, tactics, resources, mobilization, lobbying, coalition-building) and ability to identify and analyze legislative campaign opportunities in terms of political feasibility, power dynamics, time, resources required, stakeholder interests, and impact on animals raised for food.
• Research: Experience conducting legislative research pertaining to animal agriculture and/or animal welfare. Ability to conduct multiple research projects simultaneously.
• Technology: Demonstrated experience and proficiency with contemporary office software applications. Ability to learn new platforms quickly and independently.
• Problem Solving and Decision Making: Addresses complex issues and proposes effective solutions, balancing technical expertise with strategic thinking. Analyzes situations, gathers relevant information, and drives informed decision-making in line with team goals.
• Initiative, Proactivity, and Adaptability: Navigates complex changes with resilience, demonstrating adaptability in times of uncertainty. Identifies and addresses issues proactively and takes initiative to implement changes that benefit the team.
• Verbal and Written Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Adept at tailoring communication to an audience’s needs and level of knowledge. Ability to logically, clearly, and effectively summarize research findings and campaign ideas and strategies for non-legal audiences.
• Collaboration and Interpersonal Skills: Solid interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with a variety of internal and external stakeholders. Actively contributes to a team culture of open communication, empathy, and mutual respect. Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and the ability to navigate DEI issues; willingness to defer to APA members' knowledge of their communities and think critically about the potential impacts of campaigns on communities that have been marginalized.
• Organization: Highly organized, with the ability to manage multiple overlapping projects and adapt to shifting priorities. Uses time management and attention to detail to plan, prioritize, and complete work. Optimizes internal processes by analyzing workflow efficiency and implementing enhancements.
• Strategic Thinking: Ability to develop comprehensive, actionable campaign strategies; proficiency in identifying, gathering, analyzing, and synthesizing relevant data and information for legislative campaigns. Identifies potential challenges and proposes strategies to address them effectively.

Hiring Timeline

Once your application has been reviewed, you will be notified via email with further details on the status of your application. If a candidate is moved forward, the interview process will be as follows:

• Work Simulation Exercise (completed remotely)
• Interview (via video call)

Each stage is expected to last a week or two on average. For full details of our recruitment process please review this document.

Compensation and Benefits

The annual compensation range for this role is $80,392-$98,257. At The Humane League, we believe in maintaining a fair and nondiscriminatory work environment for all employees. As part of this commitment, we have implemented a job architecture framework, which levels all of our roles according to size and complexity, as well as a compensation step system, which allows us to account for an individual's total years of related experience when determining their compensation. In addition, we have adopted a no negotiation policy for salaries. To determine a job's level, we carefully consider a variety of factors, including a job's size and complexity, required experience, knowledge, and/or skills, internal comparability, and market data. To determine final compensation, experience will be measured by considering prior work in jobs or activities that are related to the role at THL. Candidates whose experience places them at step 5 or above of their job level within our compensation structure will be awarded a senior designation. These practices are aligned with our organizational values and help us ensure we maintain clear, consistent, and transparent HR processes.

Employees enjoy full medical coverage, optional dental and vision packages, paid sick leave, a 401(k) retirement plan with matching, pet care & Rx discount plans, working from home, up to 16 weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees, wellness benefits, paid holidays, flexible vacation time, professional development, and the supportive environment at The Humane League!

Equal Employment Opportunity

THL is an equal opportunity employer. THL does not discriminate on the basis of any legally protected classifications, including but not limited to race, color, age, national origin, ethnicity, religious creed or belief, physical or mental disability, marital or familial status, legally protected medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, gender, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or any other status or classification protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. THL is committed to the importance of non-discriminatory practices within the nonprofit sector, as well as all workplace environments, and strongly encourages all interested candidates to apply.

Accommodations

The Humane League is committed to fully supporting all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, THL provides reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws throughout the hiring process and employment if hired. If a reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact the People team at accommodations@thehumaneleague.org to initiate the interactive process. THL complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and all other applicable state and local laws.

AI Policy

Original work and thought are essential in the hiring process and allow us to evaluate you based on your own skills and competency. Therefore, the use of artificial intelligence (ChatGPT, Gemini, Rytr, Google Assistant, etc) to generate responses is strictly prohibited. By submitting this application you agree to comply with our AI Policy. Violations of this policy in any part of the recruitment process will result in being dismissed from consideration. If you need a reasonable accommodation to this policy, please see above for more information.