Job Description:

Part-time Project Coordinator (contract) South Osborne Intergenerational Garden Project

$15/hour ~10 hours/week, contract basis April 16, 2012 - November 2012 

The South Osborne Community Co-opʼs Intergenerational Garden Project is seeking an energetic, organized and community-minded person to:

• Act as the primary go-to person for the Intergenerational Garden Project
• In cooperation with the volunteer leaders of each of the four garden sites, provide a coordinated “umbrella” structure and coordinate activities and keep the project on task
• Record-keep for the project: budgeting, photo-taking, project activities, etc.
• Promote the project and provide community outreach • Seek funding for the project, submit funding reports as needed
• Provide direction and supervision to 1 Urban Green Team youth staff for the project
• Coordinate community events and educational opportunities related to IGP
• Liaise with other community gardeners and food security workers in Winnipeg
• Assist the four gardening groups with accessing resources and volunteer labour
• Continue writing of a community “toolkit” that was started in 2011
• Collaborate with community groups involved in IGP

Qualifications:

• Experience in program planning, development, promotion and reporting
• Familiarity with the South Osborne neighbourhoods
• Excellent written & verbal communication skills in English (additional languages an asset)
• Strong understanding of local food security issues, intergenerational community gardening and food justice.
• Practical skills in conflict resolution, facilitation and community building
• Experience working with diverse groups of people and diverse age groups
• Experience with outreach to small institutions, community groups, and individuals
• Practical understanding of seasonal gardening in Manitoba (gardening
  experience and interest an asset)
• Familiar with word processing and internet use
• Ability to network with, motivate and involve potential, new and existing
  participants and organizations
• Ability to self-motivate and to work from home
• Graphic design skills are an asset

Some weekend and evening duties, and some weeks will be busier than others. There might be opportunities for additional hours, contingent on securing more funding. Please note that physical ability to perform typical garden tasks (eg. heavy lifting, shoveling, bending, repetitive garden tasks, etc) is not a requirement of this position. SOCC has space, but we also ask that the coordinator be able to work from home, on occasion, using their own computer and provide their own transportation to and from all garden sites.

About the Intergenerational Garden Project:

The Intergenerational Garden Project (IGP) is a community-based initiative that is a project of SOCC. Using 4 diverse community garden sites, the IGP connects participants of all ages (children, young adults, middle adults, and seniors) through food and gardening, providing food-skills learning opportunities while building a strong food community hub in the neighbourhood. Working with local day cares, community clubs, seniorsʼ residences, and community volunteers, participants learn to plant, care for, harvest and preserve local and organically grown produce while building community and relationships across generations.

About the South Osborne Community Co-operative (SOCC):

SOCC is a community-based volunteer network that works to strengthen the South Osborne community by fostering the idea of neighbours helping neighbours through awareness of sustainable food systems. It is our goal that members of the community in the Lord Roberts and Riverview neighbourhoods make progressive change in how they think about their food. SOCC runs several programs on a volunteer basis, including rescuing fruit from local backyards, building gardens on private and community land, and hosting film and discussion nights and a monthly food buying club. We work in partnership with like-minded organizations and programs (e.g. Harvest Moon Society, Fruit Share, Sustainable South Osborne, Lord Roberts Community Centre and Riverview Community Centre) and are run by an energetic volunteer board. Our initiatives are powered by dedicated and knowledgeable community volunteers.

Submitting an Application:

Interested individuals may submit a cover letter and resume (electronically only please) to:
urban.community.cooperative@gmail.com no later than March 30th, 2012. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted. Thank you for your interest!

Cooperatively, Evan Bowness – South Osborne Community Cooperative Inc.