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Community Practitioner-in-Residence: Call for Applications Due NOv 15, 2020

overview of the practitioner-in-residence position

Beginning in January 2021, The University of Utah’s Environmental Humanities Graduate Program will offer semester-long residencies to community leaders working for environmental and climate justice in Utah. This program is funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The residency is intended for organizers and leaders looking to use the tools of humanities and culture to further transformative solutions to the climate crisis and environmental racism. Practitioners should live in Utah, preferably Salt Lake or the greater Wasatch Front. The residency program aims to forge reciprocal relationships between community practitioners and the Environmental Humanities Program.

Practitioner-in-Residence Role

The Practitioner-in-Residence will serve as a mentor and connector within the Environmental Humanities Program and ideally the larger campus community. They will help the Environmental Humanities Program bridge the “town-gown gap” by bringing knowledge from their community to campus and furthering community-engaged learning opportunities for students. Benefits Community Practitioners will receive $25,000 from the Environmental Humanities Graduate Program for their semester-long residency and will be classified as an independent contractor. Practitioners will have access to the resources and research present at the University of Utah, including the University libraries and faculty. The Environmental Humanities Program attracts many passionate students eager to connect their research to pressing issues in the local community, so there’s also the potential for sustained collaboration beyond the residency.

Expectations

  • Develop a project of personal and community interest that furthers their work for environmental and climate justice using humanities tools, such as storytelling, art, public history, culture, creative writing, communication, language, and ethics
  • Develop a public presentation to be given at one campus-based location and one community-based location
  • Advise Environmental Humanities students on their master’s project, community engaged learning, activism, and job opportunities
  • Hold regular office hours (4-6 hours/week) for student mentorship
  • Bridge the gap between the academy and community
  • Attend lunches and talks organized by the Environmental Humanities Program
  • Coordinate community engagement opportunities for students, such as field visits or volunteering with a community group.

Apply for the Spring 2021 Residency

The Spring 2021 Residency will run for the duration of the semester, January 11- April 27, 2021. To apply, send a cover letter, resume or CV, and a vision statement for your residency.

The vision statement should include:

  1. Description of a project of personal and community interest that you will develop or build upon during your residency, including:

a. How you will use humanities tools to further environmental and/or climate justice in Utah

b. Your plan to leverage the resources of the University

c. Ideas to engage students in your project, such as field visits

2. How prior experience working with communities on climate justice, environmental racism, and/or environmental justice will inform your residency

3. Any experience you have mentoring and advising students/youth

The application is due to Brooke Larsen, Community Engagement Coordinator for the Environmental Humanities Program, by November 15, 2020. Email all materials and direct any questions to j dot brooke dot larsen @ utah.edu.

Last Updated: 6/3/21