Principal Planner, Resilience Planning

Title:
Principal Planner, Resilience Planning

Department:
NJTPA

Reports To:
Director, Environmental and Sustainability Planning NJTPA

Position Type:
Staff

Position Summary:
Under the direction of the Director of Environmental and
Sustainability Planning, the Principal Planner, Resilience Planning will be
responsible for performing a wide range of planning, policy, research, and data
analysis activities in support of the agency's climate resilience and
adaptation goals as identified in the NJTPA Long Range Transportation
Plan.

Resiliency planning at the NJTPA is concerned with
identifying and addressing the climate hazards that impact the transportation
system. The NJTPA recognizes that climate resilience is linked to climate
change mitigation, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This work
includes assessing risks to the transportation system, identifying adaptation
strategies and developing projects that protect the region from climate-related
vulnerabilities and build strong, resilient communities.

The incumbent will serve as the agency's subject matter expert on climate
resilience and advance the agency and the region's understanding of climate
change and its impacts on the transportation system and communities in the
NJTPA region. The ideal candidate will have project management experience,
relevant technical knowledge in resiliency planning, be highly organized, and
be able to excel in a collaborative environment. The incumbent will contribute
to and coordinate resilience activities within NJTPA as well as with outside
agencies (particularly with the New Jersey Department of Transportation, NJ
TRANSIT, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and the Port
Authority of New York and New Jersey), and subregional and municipal
stakeholders. Such coordination will be essential to this work. The incumbent
will understand risk and vulnerability assessment, as well as climate
adaptation and mitigation processes, and will support projects related to
adaptive planning.

This is a hybrid position based in Newark, New Jersey
with the option to work remotely part of the time.

Essential Functions:
- Lead the agency's climate resilience activities and advance
strategies consistent with the Long-Range Transportation Plan.
- Contribute to the agency's long range planning goals of
addressing the impacts of climate change on the NJTPA region, such as
identifying transportation assets vulnerable to extreme weather events and
strategies to increase the resilience of the transportation system.
- Monitor and analyze how federal and state laws, regulations, policies, and
best practices related to climate resiliency affect transportation planning
processes and investments in the region and identify strategies to advance them
within the metropolitan planning framework.
- Manage and/or participate in a range of studies on various transportation-related
planning, serving on technical advisory committees, participating in meetings
with municipal officials, stakeholders, and the public, and provide ongoing technical
assistance to guide the progress and implementation of studies and the content
of their recommendations.
- Support NJTPA subregions and municipalities in identifying
climate change-related vulnerabilities and implementing strategies to develop
sustainable transportation systems, including stormwater management and
Complete and Green Streets policy implementation.

Additional Functions:
- Coordinate with other divisions within the agency and
externally with partner agencies, Transportation Management Associations, state
and local governments, and universities in the region.
- Research, collect and analyze data, and prepare policy papers and other
briefing documents on resilience and environmental-related topics and other
planning projects in the NJTPA region and contribute to relevant
NJTPA-supported studies and projects.
- Be organized and self-motivated. The candidate
should have good communications abilities, outstanding analytical skills, and
the desire and temperament for a collaborative, dynamic work environment.
- Perform other duties as assigned.

Prerequisite Qualifications:
- Graduation from an accredited college
with a bachelor's degree in planning, public policy, environmental science/studies,
environmental engineering or related field.
- Three (3) years of professional planning experience in the areas of
environmental, sustainability, local, regional and/or transportation planning
required.
- At the university's discretion, the education and experience prerequisites
may be excepted where the candidate can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the
university, an equivalent combination of education and experience specifically
preparing the candidate for success in the position.

Preferred Qualifications:
- Graduation from an accredited college with a
master's degree in planning, public policy, environmental studies,
environmental engineering, or related field.
- Demonstrated program management and organizational skills.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) Certification.

Bargaining Unit:
PSA

Range/Band:
25

FLSA:
Exempt
Full-Time