Community Manager / Community Coordinator

About CESA

Conservation Engineering Society of Aotearoa (CESA) is a charitable NGO dedicated to protecting and restoring Aotearoa's natural heritage by making technology more accessible to conservation organisations and communities. We need your help to make that happen!

We work alongside landowners, NGOs, community groups, and local authorities to deliver meaningful environmental outcomes across New Zealand.

The Opportunity

This is an unpaid volunteer role. As our Community Manager / Community Coordinator, you'll help build the community that makes CESA possible.

You'll be one of the key people helping our volunteers and staff stay connected, informed, and engaged. Working closely with committee officers, team leaders, and other volunteers, you'll help create a welcoming community where people can contribute, develop their skills, and feel connected to CESA's mission.

Depending on your experience and availability, this role can be structured as either a Community Coordinator or Community Manager, with greater responsibility and ownership available as you develop within the organisation.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Acting as a friendly and approachable point of contact for CESA staff and volunteers

• Helping new volunteers feel welcomed, connected, and supported

• Coordinating CESA training, workshops, field trips, meetings, and other activities

• Supporting the onboarding and coordination of volunteers across CESA's projects and activities

• Operating the volunteer recruiting & on-boarding process

• Helping build a positive, respectful, and inclusive culture within CESA

The Impact

CESA is a volunteer-driven organisation, which means our community is at the heart of everything we do.

As we grow, we're bringing together engineers, scientists, conservationists, students, professionals, community members, and people who simply want to contribute to protecting Aotearoa's natural heritage.

Your role will help turn that collection of people into a connected community.

You'll help volunteers find their place, help people stay engaged, create opportunities for people to meet and collaborate, and make sure the people contributing to CESA feel supported and valued.

Ultimately, you'll be helping build the organisational foundation that allows CESA to deliver more conservation impact.

Who We're Looking For

You don't need a specific qualification for this role. We're much more interested in how you work with people.

We'd love to hear from you if you're friendly, organised, proactive, and genuinely enjoy helping people connect and work together.

We're particularly looking for someone with:

• A willingness to gain experience (or have experience in) an HR type role
• A friendly, approachable, and socially confident personality
• Empathy, patience, and a genuine interest in supporting others
• Good organisation and reliability
• The ability to communicate with people from a wide range of backgrounds and levels of experience
• The confidence to identify problems and know when to escalate them
• An appreciation for conserving Aotearoa's natural heritage
• Respect for Māori knowledge and community-led conservation

You don't need to be an expert in conservation or engineering. If you're good with people and want to help build something meaningful, we'd love to hear from you.

What to Expect

This is a fully remote, unpaid volunteer role, with opportunities to attend CESA's office, events, workshops, and field activities where appropriate.

You'll supply your own computer and internet connection.

The role is flexible and designed to fit around your existing commitments. Workdays and hours are open for discussion**** and will be agreed based on your availability and the needs of the role, however a regular availability of 4-hours per week is required.

Some activities, particularly community events, workshops, and field days, may require occasional attendance at an agreed time and location.

Why You'll Love It

• Build a real community around an organisation doing meaningful conservation work
• Develop practical experience in HR, community management, volunteer coordination, and event organisation
• Work alongside engineers, scientists, conservation professionals, and other volunteers
• Build your leadership and people-management skills
• Help shape how a growing conservation organisation engages with its community and staff
• Flexible arrangements that fit around your life
• Be part of a purpose-driven, collaborative team striving to make a real difference for Aotearoa's environment