Interested in Becoming an AmeriCorps VISTA?
We need you to serve in the Northland!
Eco3 AmeriCorps VISTA members expand the capacity of local organizations and government agencies to reduce poverty and build community resilience, sustainability, and equity in the Northland.
The Eco3 VISTA Program matches passionate individuals to positions with community partners, supports our members with resources and training in community engagement and professional development, and connects members with social, cultural, and outdoor experiences.
We seek candidates that are ready to grow their professional skills, expand their networks, and positively impact their community!
As a VISTA member you will:
- Serve with a local nonprofit or public agency
- Address issues like poverty, health disparities, hunger, affordable housing, equity, climate, energy, and environmental sustainability, disaster preparedness, and community development and resiliency.
- Join a cohort of passionate individuals to live in, serve with, and learn about the community.
- Develop personally and professionally through cohort trainings, projects, and resources.
- Explore the unique outdoor activities, arts, and culture of the Northland!
Learn more about Eco3 and AmeriCorps VISTA:
- Ecolibrium3’s AmeriCorps VISTA program
- The Benefits of Serving as an AmeriCorps VISTA member
- AmeriCorps VISTA page
- How to Apply to AmeriCorps VISTA
We are committed to the health and safety of our AmeriCorps VISTA members, if you have any questions about serving during the COVID-19 pandemic, please reach out.
Get to know the Northland!
Our VISTAs serve across the Northland in many communities, but our nucleus is in the City of Duluth.
Duluth is a beautiful city located right on the shoreline of Lake Superior. Easy access to the beach, hiking trails, winter sports, live music, restaurants, and a community of passionate individuals and organizations are just some of the reasons to spend your year of service here.
Check out the links below to learn more about Duluth and the Northland!
View our positions:
Review the position descriptions below and follow the links to apply through the MyAmeriCorps Portal.
Open Positions:
Available Positions
Promote community engagement in Indigenous-focused practices through building and sustaining new economic and housing development projects along the shores of Lake Superior.
AICHO’s mission focuses on building opportunities for Indigenous people that are rooted in a vision of health and vibrancy while also honoring the resiliency of our community. As a AmeriCorps VISTA member, you will work on a few exciting projects with various teams focusing on developing the Niiwin Indigenous Food Market and Indigenous Art Hub as well as developing 50-100 affordable housing units. VISTA Members will work directly with the Executive Director as well as the various projects development teams. Mostly working in downtown Duluth, Lincoln Park, and Central Hillside neighborhoods, AICHO has been focused on increasing food access to the community through weekly food distribution events and home deliveries for those homebound. Additionally, AICHO is in the process of developing an Indigenous Arts Hub in Lincoln Park that will focus on promoting opportunities for local artists and be a safe space for those vulnerable in the community. Our VISTA member will help increase community engagement in food sovereignty principles with a goal to increase healthy eating practices through improved access. They will also assist with setting up community partnerships, as well as data collection.
Member Duties :
1) Engage in research and data collection that can be used in grants.
2) Work with the development teams on grant writing and researching potential funding sources to sustain the programs.
3) Engage the community to educate and spread awareness of the various projects in development, and gain feedback to bring back to the team.
4) Support AICHO team members on site at the gardens, Art Hub, and Niwiin Market.
5) Engage with the community including residents, local non-profits and business owners, the City of Duluth and St. Louis County.
6) Attend all development meetings for each project.
7) Collect data on the programming to track progress and ensure that it’s effectiveness.
8) Network, build and sustain connections with local food producers and artists that match with AICHO’s mission.
Work with community partners to coordinate the design and development of up to 50 new units of emergency shelter using best practices that elevate human dignity, community, and personal growth.
As the largest provider of emergency services in Northeastern Minnesota, CHUM was a founding partner of Stepping On Up, a 9-member agency coalition working to address unsheltered homelessness. Like most communities around the country, Duluth has seen a sharp increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness. With shortages in housing overall, and waitlists for subsidized housing stretching into years, this has meant crowded shelters, more people living outside, and homelessness becoming a chronic condition. Stepping On Up hopes to alleviate the housing bottleneck as quickly as possible through improved service coordination and the addition of at least 100 new shelter units and 200 new units of permanent housing over the next 5 years.
As an Americorps VISTA member, you will work with Stepping On Up partner agencies, local units of government, and community volunteers to design and develop up to 50 units of shelter that provide more privacy and dignity than traditional congregate shelter, as well as being resource-rich and focused on community and personal skills development.
The VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
Member Duties:
1) Engage in research and data collection on best practices and design for emergency shelter.
2) Hold focus group meetings with people who have experienced homelessness as well as homeless service providers.
3) Work with community volunteers, partner agencies and local units of government to design a shelter model.
4) Develop a budget for construction of the facility; engage with community volunteers, unions and retailers to identify sources of pro bono labor and donated materials.
5) Develop a plan and budget for staffing, and coordinate with local partner organizations to develop a plan for onsite professional service provision, including mental health, substance use recovery, vocational and life skills training, and culturally responsive programming.
6) Work with city and county planning offices and local realtors to identify location(s) for shelter.
7) Work with CHUM grant writers and community partners to identify sources of development and long-term funding.
Promote a deeper level of community engagement in emergency response systems by developing systems to recruit, onboard and train volunteers for various housing, shelter and food distribution programs.
CHUM is the largest provider of emergency services in Northeastern Minnesota. Entering its 50th year of operations in 2023, CHUM has grown from a small group of downtown churches to serving over 8,000 low-income, homeless and hungry individuals a year through its shelter and drop-in center, permanent housing programs, food shelves and emergency winter warming center. It is also a founding member agency of an ambitious 5-year plan to respond to unsheltered homelessness, which aims to increase shelter capacity by 100 beds and permanent supportive housing by 200 units over the coming 5 years.
As an Americorps VISTA member, you will interact with all departments of CHUM to help develop and streamline a process to recruit and train community volunteers in order for CHUM to more effectively respond to growing need in our community.
The VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
Member Duties:
1) Engage in research on best practices for volunteer recruitment, training and retention.
2) Work with CHUM departments and broader coalitions to which CHUM is an active participant to determine volunteer opportunities and barriers those departments may face in managing volunteers.
3) Engage CHUM congregation members and the community at large to determine barriers to volunteering and to educate about volunteer opportunities.
4) Develop a comprehensive volunteer training and onboarding process that will help people better understand the root causes of poverty and to approach their volunteering through a trauma-informed and people-centered lens; this process may involve engagement with St Louis County and other community partners for universal training.
5) Collect data on volunteer retention and effectiveness of various recruitment approaches.
Help improve the efficiency of our volunteer programs, develop a marketing campaign, build an online database and strengthen opportunities for youth & families.
Carlton County Community & Family Initiatives Department seeks to improve community resiliency through improving volunteer programs for individuals within our community. As well as building a strong marketing campaign that will share local stories about resiliency through our online platforms. Another marketing effort will include developing and launching a youth podcast series.
The VISTA will develop and maintain a relationship with local organizations that serve our community. The relationships developed will help to build capacity on our different online databases. The development and planning on these databases will help to build long-term sustainability within our community.
The VISTA member will also have the opportunities to research, design and develop a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training that will be built into our county’s training capacity. The VISTA’s work is expected to be diverse as it will be strongly dependent on what the needs are of the community as well as promoting resiliency and well-being among community members.
VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborate on projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings. Additionally, cohort members will jointly complete one community service project of their cooperative design.
Member Duties:
1) Build capacity, trust, and relationships with local organizations that help to address needs of families and promote their overall wellbeing.
2) Conduct research on different resources/services that are available.
3) Capacity building, maintain up to date events and information on online resource databases for region specific services.
4) Build a marketing campaign through marketing calendar and press release systems.
5) Capture the local stories of resiliency and share through marketing.
6) Research and create a structure for podcasts as a way to market to local youth and empower them to tell their story – including a structured “how to” guide and the resources the county program provides in its implementation.
7) Develop Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) trainings for long-term sustainability.
8) Resource development and embedding categories of resources into online databases.
Identify and analyze existing community efforts, establish a stakeholder network, grow partnerships, and coordinate meetings, presentations, outreach and planning to advance age-friendly efforts.
The Duluth Aging Support Capacity Building VISTA will build the capacity of Duluth Aging Support as we establish the Duluth’s Age-Friendly initiative. The Duluth Aging Support (DAS) mission is to enhance the lives of older adults and caregivers through outreach, awareness, advocacy, and collaborative partnerships.
The AARP Age-Friendly Communities framework is designed to assist communities in making their communities more livable for older adult community members with a focus on eight specific domains of livability. The domains are transportation, social participation, housing, outdoor spaces, health services and community supports, respect and social inclusion, civic participation and employment, and communication and information. This VISTA will research and map out existing efforts underway within the eight domains and identify best practices.
This VISTA will also identify stakeholders, establish new and build on existing relationships, and convene a leadership group to advance our age-friendly community work. In order to engage stakeholders and community members, this position will develop outreach opportunities throughout the community. Finally this VISTA member will support the age-friendly leadership team by creating a needs assessment and the formation of an action plan with a special focus on supports for our low-income, underserved, and disabled older adult community members.
Member Duties :
1. Conduct research and map out existing efforts underway within the eight domains of the Age-Friendly Community Framework and develop best practice guidance documents.
2. Engage with partner organizations to identify a stakeholder group to take part in Age-Friendly work in different capacities and establish new relationships that advance the age-friendly work.
3. Develop outreach materials for network development, including creating presentations for organizations and individuals.
4. Attend community events as a DAS representative to build key relationships with businesses and nonprofits.
5. Develop communications plans to ensure age-friendly content and material are promoted effectively and consistently across all promotion platforms, including the DAS website, social media, blogs, newsletters, podcast, printed material and any other medium.
6. Develop the capacity of the Duluth Age-Friendly stakeholder group to coordinate a needs assessment process.
Support academic, social, and health services for youth and their families in Duluth, MN, by increasing organizational capacity and community outreach.
The Duluth Community School Collaborative (DCSC) is seeking a passionate and driven individual to join our team as an AmeriCorps VISTA Member!
DCSC is a non-profit organization that partners with Duluth Public Schools to implement a Full-Service Community Schools (FSCS) model through four pillars of community schools: (1) expanded and enriched learning time and opportunities, (2) collaborative leadership and practices, (3) active family and community engagement, and (4) integrated student supports.
The Collaborative was originally created to address inequities within the low-income Hillside neighborhood of Duluth. DCSC currently serves Myers-Wilkins Elementary, Lincoln Park Middle School, and Denfeld High School. Our mission is to foster community partnerships that promote wellness and school success for youth and families, creating a community of life-long learners that embrace diversity. Our vision is for youth and families to thrive in a diverse, safe, and caring community that promotes inclusion for all.
The Duluth Community Development Coordinator VISTA member will increase organizational capacity for the Duluth Community School Collaborative by helping to secure sustainable sources of funding, increasing community awareness and connection to the organization, and engaging new volunteer partners.
Member Duties :
1) Develop and implement a strategic fundraising plan to raise funds to support organizational sustainability and ability to respond to changing community needs.
2) Research and write grant proposals to provide financial support for projects serving under-resourced students.
3) Support communication efforts to reach families, students, community members, and community partners, including an organizational newsletter, social media, website, blog posts, and individual outreach channels.
4) Assess volunteer needs and opportunities to expand and/or improve programming through volunteer engagement at each school site and create volunteer outreach and management systems.
Ecolibrium3 VISTA Corps is a dynamic program on the shores of Lake Superior. You’ll work with passionate individuals to build community resilience and develop coordinated anti-poverty strategies.
Ecolibrium3 is a nationally award-winning nonprofit organization as we innovate solutions and implement programs to decrease the economic, educational, environmental, and health disparities experienced by low-income members of our community.
Ecolibrium3’s mission is to lead and inspire change in our community toward an equitable and sustainable future. We accomplish this mission through four program areas including Climate and Energy, Food Systems, Lincoln Park Resilience, and Eco3 VISTA. We excel at using design-thinking to create effective and innovative programs and projects to address many of our community’s most pressing challenges.
Our awards include White House Champion of Change Honors for building resilient communities, EPA Climate Showcase Communities Seeds of Change Award, and Main Street America’s Main Street Forward Award.
The Eco3 VISTA is a 45-member program designed around the Community Resilience Framework emphasizing capacity building in the areas of health and wellness, climate, energy, housing, economic development, disaster preparedness, and food access/sovereignty. Members serve at a variety of hosts sites, participate in the larger Eco3 VISTA cohort for valuable training and project assistance, and learn valuable skills while addressing poverty in Minnesota.
Member Duties:
1) Build the capacity of the Ecolibrium3 VISTA Corps members and community project sites by building member skills and facilitating members’ personal growth.
2) Expand community awareness of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA Program and understanding of the mission of AmeriCorps VISTA.
3) Support VISTA Corps members personally and professionally throughout their service.
4) Assist VISTA members to construct work plans and goals in relation to each member’s VISTA Assignment Description (VAD) and performance measures.
5) Refine the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA Communications Plan
6) Coordinate bi-weekly All-VISTA Meetings and inter-cohort communications.
7) Lead outreach and recruitment for new VISTA members.
8) Create and refine member support resource list.
Research how successful technology projects are managed and identify key characteristics. Develop a technology project success plan and related procedures, documents, and strategies.
The Fond du Lac Band IT Division consists of approximately 32 positions and has dedicated network, systems, and services desk teams. A common misconception is that the IT Division for Fond du Lac mainly supports the gaming operations, but in reality, we support all of the enterprises and programs operated by the Fond du Lac Band. These programs and enterprises sustain the Fond du Lac Band and provide services and resources that reduce poverty, food insecurity, promote access to health care and increase educational opportunities.
At any given time, the IT Division is managing 30 to 40 Technology related projects. These projects range from Health Care systems upgrades, enterprise wireless projects, Enhanced Tribal ID implementation, and Microsoft 365 adaption.
The VISTA will help facilitating user acceptance and effectively market the positive effects of our technology projects – an important and challenging aspect technology adaptation.
The VISTA will also research and develop trainings and an on-boarding strategy to assist the successful completion of our technology projects.
With the high volume of projects, our VISTA will get to experience a fasted paced and ever-changing environment and learn about how technology fits into an organizations culture, along with meeting community and organizational technological needs.
This is a dynamic and exciting position that will provide insight as to how an IT Division of a medium sized organization functions and operates.
Member Duties:
1) The VISTA will work closely with the IT Project Manager, the IT Director, Project Champions, and the Technology Steering Committee.
2) The VISTA will be responsible to identifying inefficiencies in the project management process and provide insight on opportunities for improvement.
3) The VISTA will research industry best practices and determining how they would align with Fond du Lac’s business culture.
4) The VISTA will create project templates and documentation for our projects.
5) The VISTA will create a marketing plan for our project initiatives and securing user engagement.
6) The VISTA will produce a training and implementation strategies for our technology improvements.
7) The VISTA will attend project related meetings and form relationships with technical and nontechnical staff.
Research and identify how the existing IT business systems are utilized throughout the Fond du Lac Tribe and help to streamline and update these processes.
The Fond du Lac Band IT Division consists of approximately 32 positions and has dedicated network, systems, and services desk teams. A common misconception is that the IT Division for Fond du Lac mainly supports the gaming operations, but in reality, we support all of the enterprises and programs operated by the Fond du Lac Band.
These programs and enterprises sustain the Fond du Lac Band and provide services and resources that reduce poverty and food insecurity, promote access to health care and increase educational opportunities.
At any given time, the IT Division is managing 30 to 40 Technology related projects. These projects range from Health Care systems upgrades, enterprise wireless projects, Enhanced Tribal ID implementation, and Microsoft 365 adaption.
The IT Division also manages approximately 40 different business systems. With the high volume of business systems supported/utilized, this position will get to experience a fasted paced and ever-changing environment and learn about how technology fits into an organizations culture, along with meeting community and organizational needs.
The VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
This position will work closely with the IT Project Manager, the IT Director, Project Champions, and the Technology Steering Committee. IT Business Systems Analyst will be responsible to:
1) Identifying inefficiencies in business systems and provide insight on opportunities for improvement.
2) Researching industry best practices and determining how they would align with Fond du Lac’s business culture will be a primary duty.
3) Help to create marketing project initiatives.
4) Help to create an environment that promotes user engagement.
5) Produce a training/implementation strategy is also a key deliverable for this position. This position will attend project related meetings and form relationships with technical and nontechnical staff.
Join Wilderness Health to address the root causes of health inequities in our community. Build internal capacity while collaborating to connect public health practice to social justice.
Wilderness Health is a collaborative of independent providers working together to improve health care in Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin. We believe there is value in keeping health care local. Creating sustainable health care models that aim to low costs and increase quality of care helps us keep health care in our communities. Through smart strategies, such as shared services and accountable care organizations (ACOs), Wilderness Health will lead the transformation for rural health care systems.
Throughout their service our VISTA will help us provide support to network initiatives that address the root causes of health inequities through the assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation process. They will further build internal organizational capacity; collaborate across the network to connect public health practice to social justice; engage network members and community partners; develop partnerships and coalitions; assist in identifying and analyzing health inequities; aid in designing and implementing strategies; develop effective communication efforts; and conduct evaluations.
The VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
Member Duties:
1) Support Wilderness Health Network strategy connecting public health concepts to member hospital operations.
2) Foster a network-wide culture of centering policies, procedures and practices that are aligned with principles of health equity.
3) Support the Child & Teen Checkup program to improve access and preventative health.
4) Assist with development of policies and procedures.
5) Research, collect data, and support evidence-based strategies to address health inequities.
6) Assist with grant writing and project implementation.
Join Wilderness Health to help the members of our community attain optimal health and lead fuller lives by helping connect them to health strategies and activities.
Wilderness Health is a collaborative of independent providers working together to improve health care in Northeast Minnesota and Northwest Wisconsin. We believe there is value in keeping health care local. Creating sustainable health care models that aim to low costs and increase quality of care helps us keep health care in our communities. Through smart strategies, such as shared services and accountable care organizations (ACOs), Wilderness Health will lead the transformation for rural health care systems.
Throughout their service our VISTA will help our network members’ patient populations attain optimal health and lead fuller lives. Our VISTA will assists with coordination of cross-network population health strategies and activities and take an active role in developing and executing health promotion efforts, working with community organizations, and participating in network and community-organized health improvement initiatives. A major component of their position with be assisting with the development, implementation, and maintenance of our telehealth program including development of policies and procedures, data collection and reporting.
The VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
Member Duties:
1) Assist with the development, implementation, and maintenance of the telehealth program including development of policies and procedures, data collection and reporting.
2) Support and coordinate activities that address the network strategy for integrative behavioral health.
3) Develop programming and provide health and digital literacy education to support patient access and comprehension of health information.
4) Develop marketing and educational materials and resources for outreach.
5) Research, collect data, and support evidence-based strategies to address mental/behavioral health.
6) Assist with data aggregation, collection procedures and tracking of project metrics.
Positions Currently in Service
Research, plan, and conduct engagement activities that help to identify and implement actions and policies that advance sustainability and more equitably serve Duluth residents and neighborhoods.
The VISTA will work with the City of Duluth Sustainability Officer to research, plan, and conduct engagement activities that help to identify and implement actions and policies that advance sustainability and more equitably serve Duluth residents and neighborhoods.
Major efforts and supporting tasks include:
– Gather data on potential projects, analyze and improve metrics, and research examples and lessons learned from other cities’ progress. Use data to assess the need for program development and engagement in Duluth and identify common setbacks of potential projects or policies.
– Research energy disclosure program development and results in other cities
– Assist in developing strategies for GreenStep Cities metrics reporting
– Assist in developing priorities for sustainability and climate action work planning that reduce inequities, as identified in the Duluth Climate Vulnerability Assessment
– Program planning and delivery related to sustainability goals in the Imagine Duluth 2035 Comprehensive Plan
– Assist in program development and delivery that support implementation of the Imagine Duluth 2035 Comprehensive Plan’s sustainability-related goals, including:
- Assist in planning and hosting energy-related programs and events o Contribute to grant writing to engage residents and businesses on energy topics (green buildings, efficiency, renewables, conservation, etc.)
- Support planning and development of educational workshops to engage our community around green industries and work force development issues
- Engaging residents to help prioritize sustainability and climate action work plans
- Contribute to energy and sustainability engagement and outreach in Duluth.
The VISTA member will be part of the Eco3 VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings.
Member Duties:
1) Perform research and improving metrics around energy and sustainability and research examples and lessons learned from other cities’ progress. Assess the need for program development and engagement, identify common setbacks of potential projects or policies.
2) Assist in program development and delivery that support implementation of the Imagine Duluth 2035 Comprehensive Plan’s sustainability-related goals, including: assist in planning and hosting energy-related programs and events, attend and present at community events, contribute to grant writing to engage residents and businesses on energy topics and support planning and development of educational workshops to engage our community around green industries and work force development issues.
3) Engaging residents to help prioritize sustainability and climate action work plans. Communication will include listening to community member feedback to develop sustainability and energy stories, progress, and challenges
Support ecological justice along the shores of Lake Superior by improving healthy food access and ecological health in Duluth, Minnesota.
Community Action Duluth’s mission is to empower and engage our community to eliminate poverty. As an AmeriCorps VISTA member you will work directly with our natural resources team in Seeds of Success, our food access programming, as well the Duluth Stream Corps, our programming that improves stream and forest health in the city of Duluth.
VISTA members will spend a majority of their service time with the Seeds of Success program, which is focused on increasing access to fresh and healthy food in Duluth. Mostly working in the Lincoln Park and Central Hillside neighborhoods, SoS operates two food access-focused farmers markets and a deep winter greenhouse, and will be expanding our low-cost grocery program, the Mobile Market.
Our VISTA member will help to increase the reach and sustainability of the Mobile Market and farmers market programs, including growing volunteer and educational programs.
The member will spend approximately one day a week with Duluth Stream Corps, which works with a variety of government agencies, nonprofits, and businesses to improve our stream and forest health in the city of Duluth and beyond. Duluth Stream Corps works in the field to remove invasive species and in the community to educate citizens about ecosystem health.
The VISTA member will have an opportunity to work hands-on in the field and assist with grant writing and partnership building.
VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and trainings. Additionally, cohort members will jointly complete one community service project of their cooperative design.
Member Duties:
1) Engage the community to spread awareness of and involvement with the Mobile Market program, including expanding our new volunteer program.
2) Develop surveys, collect data, and do cost-benefit analyses of programming to track progress and ensure effectiveness.
3) Assist with grant research and management to help sustain programming.
4) Support Seeds of Success’ farmers markets through research, surveying, and data collection.
5) Engage with local stakeholders including residents, local non-profits, and business owners.
6) Help plan educational activities to supplement market programming.
7) Input and track field data for Duluth Stream Corps.
8) Create and implement a plan to increase EBT and PoP spending at Farmers Markets.
Join the Duluth Art Institute in disrupting poverty and racism by empowering the community through bringing art to and inspiring art in everyone.
The Duluth Art Institute is a dynamic organization impacting the lives of community members through the arts, leadership training, and educating low-income residents and residents of color to create healthy, active, sustainable neighborhoods and lives.
The Duluth Art Institute works with artists to develop economic skills and youth to develop the next generation of community leaders. DAI engages in creative placemaking as a strategy to expand partnerships with private, non-profit, and community sectors as a strategy to shape the physical and social character of our community.
The DAI VISTA will support engaging the community, research best practices, and increase financial capacity for innovative programming.
They will also participate in the Ecolibrium3 VISTA cohort operating throughout northeastern Minnesota. Ecolibrium3 VISTA Corps members to build capacity in critical organizations that are advancing community resilience in the areas of housing, economic development, disaster preparedness, health and food access, and energy.
Member Duties:
1) Building and maintaining good relations with partners and stakeholders.
2) Expanding capacity for fundraising through developing strategic relationships.
3) Supporting strong communication plans including press releases, brochures and other marketing materials.
4) Community outreach to include attending other venues such as universities, clubs, and civic groups.
5) Conducting formal and informational presentations on behalf of the organization.
6) Collecting data and information for strategic use such as collecting and analyzing data on local demographics.
Experience in the use of institutional databases, public access sites, and primary research such as market research questionnaires would be an advantage. The coordinator is expected to analyze data and develop results and conclusions. Industry knowledge, statistical and technological skills, and the ability to communicate results clearly & efficiently to a varied audience are required.
With disasters becoming more common in our lives, build your skills to make a difference by working with a network of community leaders preparing for and mitigating disasters, and planning recovery.
The Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation is a member of the 10-state Philanthropic Preparedness, Resiliency and Emergency Partnership. Through this partnership, the Community Foundation has convened community leaders across multiple sectors with the goal of building capacity to mitigate the impact of, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. Focus is particularly on increasing the disaster resilience of community members experiencing poverty, homelessness, mental and physical disabilities, and language barriers. This group of community leaders has formed the Ready North network with the goal of increasing disaster resilience, particularly among our most vulnerable community members.
The VISTA will build the capacity of this network and further its goal by strengthening and establishing whole-community systems and partnerships. With the leadership of the VISTA, these systems and partnerships will focus on communicating disaster mitigation and preparedness tools and building capacity for comprehensive preparedness and recovery. This work will be founded on the VISTA engaging with community partners to analyze gaps and implement solutions to mitigate the impacts of disasters, especially among community members potentially facing the most harm from disasters. Utilizing and building upon skills in leadership, community engagement, communications and community assessment, the VISTA will collaborate with members of the network to strengthen the disaster resilience and capacity of individuals, organizations and community. The impacts of this work are potentially life-altering.
The VISTA member will be one of 24 Ecolibrium3 Resilience Corps cohort members serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, cohort members will also jointly complete community service projects.
Member Duties:
Applying skills in leadership, community engagement, communications and community assessment, the VISTA will collaborate with members of the network to:
1) Utilize data and best practices to understand gaps and solutions for mitigating the impacts of disasters, especially among community members facing the most harm (e.g., families experiencing poverty, homelessness, mental and physical disabilities, or language barriers)
2) Strengthen the multi-sector community disaster resiliency network by establishing network agreements and implementing network best practices across working groups, including through communications
3) Increase the disaster preparedness and resilience of the community, especially among organizations serving community members who potentially face the most harm from disasters, by developing a comprehensive preparedness campaign and publishable disaster recovery campaign, as well as communicating disaster mitigation and preparedness tools.
Eco3 is leading Duluth in climate and energy action to address environmental justice, reduce energy poverty, and build a more sustainable future.
Ecolibrium3 is a nationally award-winning nonprofit organization as we innovate solutions and implement programs to decrease the economic, educational, environmental, and health disparities experienced by low-income members of our community.
Ecolibrium3’s mission is to lead and inspire change in our community toward an equitable and sustainable future. We accomplish this mission through four program areas including Climate and Energy, Food Systems, Lincoln Park Resilience, and Eco3 VISTA. We excel at using design-thinking to create effective and innovative programs and projects to address many of our community’s most pressing challenges.
Our awards include White House Champion of Change Honors for building resilient communities, EPA Climate Showcase Communities Seeds of Change Award, and Main Street America’s Main Street Forward Award.
The Eco3 VISTA is a 45-member program designed around the Community Resilience Framework emphasizing capacity building in the areas of health and wellness, climate, energy, housing, economic development, disaster preparedness, and food access/sovereignty. Members serve at a variety of hosts sites, participate in the larger Eco3 VISTA cohort for valuable training and project assistance, and learn valuable skills while addressing poverty in Minnesota.
Member Duties:
1) Work to improve access to energy efficiency upgrades for low-income households to reduce energy costs.
2) Develop and coordinate outreach strategies for multiple climate and energy projects.
3) Increase citizen participation in the Duluth Citizens’ Climate Action Plan.
4) Coordinate community engagement on the DOE supported Local Energy Action Plan process.
5) Assist in the development of a community resilience hub by building resources to add solar and battery storage to ensure functioning during grid outages.
6) Work with multiple nonprofit and environmental organizations to expand impact through strategy alignment. Apply your skills to advance an equity approach to climate action that prioritizes the economic and health needs of low-income households.
Eco3 leads community efforts to reduce poverty in our community and increase the ability for all to thrive. Key to this work is the development and coordination of effective and strategic communications.
Ecolibrium3 is a nationally award-winning nonprofit organization as we innovate solutions and implement programs to decrease the economic, educational, environmental, and health disparities experienced by low-income members of our community.
Ecolibrium3’s mission is to lead and inspire change in our community toward an equitable and sustainable future. We accomplish this mission through four program areas including Climate and Energy, Food Systems, Lincoln Park Resilience, and Eco3 VISTA. We excel at using design-thinking to create effective and innovative programs and projects to address many of our community’s most pressing challenges.
Our awards include White House Champion of Change Honors for building resilient communities, EPA Climate Showcase Communities Seeds of Change Award, and Main Street America’s Main Street Forward Award.
The Eco3 VISTA is a 45-member program designed around the Community Resilience Framework emphasizing capacity building in the areas of health and wellness, climate, energy, housing, economic development, disaster preparedness, and food access/sovereignty. Members serve at a variety of hosts sites, participate in the larger Eco3 VISTA cohort for valuable training and project assistance, and learn valuable skills while addressing poverty in Minnesota.
Member Duties:
1) Develop and coordinate a strategic communications plan for Ecolibrium3 programming and projects.
2) Improve systems to optimize social media and Eco3’s web presence.
3) Build systems and content to increase participation in low-income programming options.
4) Coordinate with partner organizations on communications plans.
5) Expand skill in all areas of communications including social media, graphic design, web design, press relations, and community outreach and engagement.
The ideal candidate is an excellent writer/copy editor, is comfortable with social media and web design, and preferably brings graphic skills. The candidate should be self-driven, work well with a diverse team, and have a passion for making our community better.
Eco3 Rain Ready Housing Development Specialist, Ecolibrium3, Duluth, MN
Expand green infrastructure along Lake Superior in Duluth, MN, by helping neighborhoods combat household flooding with educational outreach and infrastructure practices.
Ecolibrium3 is a Minnesota 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to “lead and inspire change in our community toward an equitable and sustainable future.” Ecolibrium3 works on all aspects of resilience building including housing, energy, resource management, economic development, and health, and is the convening organization in low-income neighborhoods along Duluth’s St. Louis River. In collaboration with the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation, Ecolibrium3 is working to help individual homes and neighborhood blocks in underserved communities become more resilient to flood events and reduce damaging impacts from extreme precipitation events.
This collaboration is part of a larger partnership, known as the Great Lakes One Water Partnership, which will offer guidance and support throughout the appointment. The overall mission of the Great Lakes One Water Partnership is to increase civic engagement, resilience awareness, and innovation capability for communities around the Laurentian Great Lakes. For the Lake Superior team in particular (the team you will be working with), our mandate is to prepare communities for extreme precipitation events, accelerate the use and adoption of innovative green and grey water infrastructure, and create communities resilient to large coastal storm events.
The VISTA will conduct a landscape analysis within marginalized socio-economic neighborhoods of Duluth to identify the needs of these communities in developing rain ready housing, apply for funding opportunities to implement solutions, and coordinate collaboration with community stakeholders.
Member Duties:
1) Conduct neighborhood assessment in Duluth, MN, and host community-wide meetings regarding household flooding.
2) Establish and maintain collaborations with community organizations and individuals.
3) Apply for funding opportunities to fund project implementation and prioritize and scale actionable items.
4) Implement rain ready housing action items within a neighborhood of Duluth, MN.
5) Present results of landscape analysis and project implementation at local and regional conferences/meetings.
Tackle healthy food access issues in a low-income neighborhood of Duluth, MN, by expanding capacity of an urban farm, assisting in development of a food hub, and expanding nutrition education.
Ecolibrium3 is a nationally award-winning nonprofit organization as we innovate solutions and implement programs to decrease the economic, educational, environmental, and health disparities experienced by low-income members of our community.
Ecolibrium3’s mission is to lead and inspire change in our community toward an equitable and sustainable future. We accomplish this mission through four program areas including Climate and Energy, Food Systems, Lincoln Park Resilience, and Eco3 VISTA. We excel at using design-thinking to create effective and innovative programs and projects to address many of our community’s most pressing challenges.
Our awards include White House Champion of Change Honors for building resilient communities, EPA Climate Showcase Communities Seeds of Change Award, and Main Street America’s Main Street Forward Award.
The Eco3 VISTA is a 45-member program designed around the Community Resilience Framework emphasizing capacity building in the areas of health and wellness, climate, energy, housing, economic development, disaster preparedness, and food access/sovereignty. Members serve at a variety of hosts sites, participate in the larger Eco3 VISTA cohort for valuable training and project assistance, and learn valuable skills while addressing poverty in Minnesota.
Eco3 is managing a 2.5-acre urban farm site with 6,000 s.f. of high tunnel production area. The Eco3 Farm is located at Lake Superior College and will be undergoing its first full season of production in 2022.
Member Duties:
1) Develop an urban farm management plan including planting schedule, regenerative agriculture approach, financial plan, and processing/distribution.
2) Recruit and manage volunteers to ensure optimized production.
3) Create and test food growing and nutrition education courses for delivery to low-income households experiencing health disparities.
4) Liaise with nonprofit organizations interested in distributing food grown at the urban farm.
5) Assist in the design and implementation of a food hub commercial kitchen.
6) Develop food growing spaces and programming that are accessible to individuals with limited mobility.
Eco3 seeks a member that is self-motivated and works well with diverse individuals.
Empower the Black community by reconstructing cultural and socio-economic narratives and unapologetically embracing what it means to be Black. Join a team offering alternative education programs and connecting our community to resources and opportunity.
The Family Freedom Center seeks to empower the Black community by reconstructing cultural and socio-economic narratives and unapologetically embracing what it means to be Black, both historically and present day. Family Freedom Center will do this by exploring alternative means of education and providing resources that bridge the gap between community and students. This bridge will engage members of the organization with love, respect, guidance, knowledge, and pride. As an AmeriCorps VISTA member you will work directly with our Executive Director and staff, our elder outreach program, our youth outreach program, building up our web presence, and exploring and identifying grant opportunities that fall in line with Family Freedom Center’s organizational mission.
VISTA members will be on ground zero when it comes to re-evaluating, creating, and re-booting the Family Freedom Center’s online platform. It is Family Freedom Centers goal and vision to create an interactive platform that allows members, in a user-friendly manner, to connect with Family Freedom Center on various online platforms. That will allow Family Freedom Center members to receive and get information about various programming opportunities, as well as crucial local updates and services. VISTA members will research, study, and write grants that fall under the mission and goals of Family Freedom Center and the programming opportunities provided by the organization.
Serve on the Fond du Lac Reservation to enhance tribal food sovereignty and build an Agricultural Division in the Tribal Planning Office.
VISTA members will be serving on the Fond du Lac Reservation working on the Band’s food sovereignty efforts and the development of a new Agricultural Division. Activities will include program development, Tribal-based trainings, grant writing, and attending meetings to coordinate and support Tribal efforts to address poverty-related food insecurity. The VISTA member will be based in the Fond du Lac Reservation’s Planning Division and will work with all divisional staff throughout their term. There will be other opportunities to work on other types of projects such as transportation and comprehensive planning and grant writing. Some travel to offsite trainings may occur. The project site, located in the Sawyer, MN, is a thirty-six-acre farm that will be the initial core of activities as well as potential onsite housing, with opportunities in other locations on the Reservation.
Member Duties:
1. Research innovative food programs that use small agricultural properties to support education, economic development and food production.
2. Develop components for a business plan that could be implemented at various agricultural properties to expand community garden projects to other underserved tribal members.
3. Develop recommendations for structure of an Agricultural Division using input from staff, tribal members, and research.
4. Assist with developing programming that is listed as priorities in the Local Foods Strategic Plan and Food Sovereignty Assessment.
5. Educate community on Food Sovereignty efforts through a marketing campaign using print, social, electronic and radio media outlets including development of a media guide for future use.
Support children and families in the Lincoln Park neighborhood by recruiting and managing volunteers, doing community outreach and working on Policy, System, and Environment changes.
Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative (LPCFC) is a non-profit in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Duluth that works to support children and families by connecting them to resources and opportunities, embracing our cultures, and building community and well-being through strong and equitable leadership.
We aim to do this by creating age and culturally appropriate, stimulating, safe, and welcoming environments for children and families to connect with LPCFC staff, volunteers, and each other.
We organize programming, in collaboration with other organizations, businesses, and institutions that provide a variety of support for children and their caregivers.
The LPCFC VISTA will ensure the sustainability and effectiveness of these programs through building and maintaining community partnerships, participating in fundraising and grant writing efforts, recruiting, managing, and supporting volunteers for all programs, and assisting in other organizational needs regarding our Strategic Plan, serve on Board Committee, work with staff, volunteers, community members in the Health POWER program to plan monthly Grocery Giveaway events, weekly Walk and Talks events, participate in community gardening projects, and help build a new program that focuses on creating a Youth Advisory Committee that will work towards reducing e-cigarette and commercial tobacco use.
LPCFC’s VISTA member will be part of the Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA cohort serving in northeastern Minnesota. Although each member is serving in a unique position, all cohort members will participate in VISTA specific activities such as regular cohort meetings, collaborative projects, professional development opportunities, and training. Additionally, cohort members will jointly complete one community service project of their cooperative design.
Member Duties:
1) Participate in LPCFC’s efforts in reaching, selecting and supporting volunteers, and assist in creating and/or revising policies and procedures to improve the effectiveness and sustainability of volunteer recruitment as needed.
2) Participate in outreach systems and assist in building and maintaining partnerships with community organizations in order to enhance the quality and spread the word about LPCFC programs. Develop targeted marketing materials.
3) Serve on Development Committee, which advises and assists the director and board with fundraising goals to support LPCFC programs.
4) Assist the committee in developing resources to support fundraising efforts.
5) Manage the Big Red Bookshelf program and facilitate the Big Red Bookshelf Coalition.
Support equitable access to training and education in the historic preservation of Minnesota’s buildings by building organizational capacity and community programming.
Northern Bedrock’s mission is to develop enduring workforce and life skills through service learning in historic preservation and community stewardship. The VISTA will increase organizational capacity to provide equitable access to historic preservation training and education by developing engaging, community-focused programming. Northern Bedrock Historic Preservation Corps was developed to address two converging needs: 1) an aging stock of historic structures and landscapes in need of maintenance and repair and 2) create a pathway for young adults into the preservation trades workforce. Northern Bedrock utilizes a corps model to address these two converging needs through a historic preservation AmeriCorps program. The VISTA will collaboratively develop new programming models that focus on promoting community-focused heritage stewardship projects and providing equitable access to historic preservation and restoration resources. Community focused historic preservation programming can alleviate the costs of homeownership, stimulate local economies, and empower communities by promoting the visibility of unique cultural identities.
Member Duties : The Northern Bedrock Historic Preservation Corps VISTA will:
1) Collaboratively develop a Historic Preservation Ambassador Program. The Ambassador program will connect historic preservation professionals with neighborhoods looking to revitalize their local communities.
2) Cultivate relationships with local communities to develop NB C.A.N. Do! – a network of historic preservation professionals.
3) Develop a list of historic preservation professionals, resources, education, and hands-on training opportunities to increase access to historic preservation resources.
4) Assist with planning, advertising, and promoting NBHPC Historic Preservation outreach.
5) Research and assist with the development and management of grant funded initiatives.
6) Assist with program evaluation and reporting.
Engage with Northfield community members on a climate justice project to find economically viable solutions to transportation needs while creating a cleaner environment and an equitable community.
The City of Northfield has a long history of residents caring deeply about environmental issues and adopted a Climate Action Plan in November 2019 to help the City both mitigate greenhouse gas emissions as well as to build resilience. The transportation sector makes up about 12% of the greenhouse gas emissions in the City of Northfield, but is also an area of disparity. The focus of this position will be to develop low-carbon transportation options with a focus on active transportation accessible to all. Increasing these transportation options address barriers to economic and community participation by low-income households.
As a community of 20,000 residents with two liberal arts colleges, we have limited transportation options beyond private vehicles. As an AmeriCorps VISTA member you will work directly with city staff as well as community partners to engage a wide range of community members, especially those that are typically underrepresented in decision making, to assess transportation needs, barriers, and possible low-carbon solutions. This work will be part of a multi-city community engagement project that is starting in southeast Minnesota with assistance from the University of Minnesota Extension and Regional Sustainable Development Partnership. In addition to transportation planning, you will work on increasing active transportation for youth by developing some Bike and Walk to School efforts over the 2021-2022 school year.
Member Duties :
1. In collaboration with community partners, engage community members using a variety of methods to assess needs, barriers, and solutions around transportation.
2. Attend training and workshops with southeast city partners on community engagement processes.
3. Develop evaluation methods and collect data.
4. Research low carbon/active mobility transportation options and best practices from other communities.
5. Summarize findings and write report.
6. Organize Bike/Walk to school and other bike education events focused on youth.
7. Create communications pieces (print, videos and social media) to support projects
8. Research and write grant proposals to provide financial support for the projects.
9. Potential to assist with other projects around waste reduction and energy efficiency as time permits.
Help create systems to get locally grown produce to low-income families while responding to climate change! Be part of our diverse network of BIPOC, Immigrant, & Latino community partners.
PRAIRIE is a MN non-profit focused on equitable food production, ecological research & demonstration, land stewardship, social renewal, and creating access to land, training and resources with BIPOC and other underserved individuals. This project pilots several interrelated initiatives that will impact local urban food systems and ecological services including water quality, carbon sequestration, and pollinator habitat. It will further impact educational opportunities and career pathways as youth & adults learn employable skills in regenerative agriculture, and ecology-related fields such as soils, water quality, food systems, and social services dealing with food and environmental health.
Member Duties:
1) Help develop systems that support Youth Stewards & adult partners as they respond to climate change, focusing on the need for locally grown produce for food shelves and low-income families and on creating pollinator habitat.
2) Research & develop a system to match local excess fresh food with hungry people.
3) Help design curriculum that supports neighborhood-based, youth, and family gardens to expand food access with a focus on educating youth as food producers and land stewards.
4) Help to establish the need, interest and a local demonstration of an urban lot.
5) Explore creating access to land, organic practices, & resources for BIPOC & underserved urban gardeners.
6) Work with K-20 students & faculty to build long-term support for local food production through creating a “Food & Ecology Career Pathway” by linking community gardens, farms, & developing employable skills.
Advance your interest in public health by building capacity to reduce the harm caused by opioids in northeastern MN. Work with county health officials and build strong partnerships.
St. Louis County Public Health and Human Services has taken the lead in addressing the opioid epidemic in northeastern Minnesota. With one of the highest rates of overdose and opioid related deaths, St. Louis County is working with multiple partners to create effective prevention models in rural and urban environments.
The Opioid Reduction VISTA will work in close collaboration with public health, universities, regional alcohol, tobacco, and other drug prevention programs, and nonprofit community partners to reduce morbidity/mortality from the opioid crisis.
The two main areas of focus for the Opioid Reduction VISTA are to expand efforts to collect and properly dispose of unused medication and to grow community education and awareness programs.
The VISTA member will increase community education & awareness on proper disposal of unused medication through identifying rural community events to partner with Take Back Events, collaborating with St. Louis County Environmental Services, identifying pharmacies in northeastern St. Louis County to promote disposal, and by increasing the number of drop off locations.
Member capacity building for community education will include, presenting to local organizations about substance abuse issues- prevention, intervention, harm reduction, treatment options, and recovery efforts being worked on through collaborative groups.
Education activities may also include partnering with local high schools in curriculum and program implementation to prevent substance abuse and creating positive social norms messaging.
Member Duties:
1) The VISTA will help educate the public on unused medication disposal and develop an implementation plan for collection, increase community awareness of how and why to use drop boxes, develop and disseminate signs promoting drop box disposal use at pharmacies, and increase opportunities of unused medication disposal in rural St. Louis County.
2) The VISTA will participate in grant work being completed in conjunction with partner organizations, such as the Green Dot program and vaping cessation programs. They will complete designated tasks, provide feedback, assist where needed.
3) The VISTA will partner with the Program Coordinator to maintain information on the We are Resourceful website and ensure it is up to date as well as attend meetings necessary to carry out this work.
4) The VISTA will partner with Public Health Educators and School Liaisons to provide area schools and daycare providers with prevention education opportunities.
5) The VISTA will partner with area organizations on expanding the reach and response for the DEA Take it to the Box bi-annual events (October 2022 & April 2023) and attend Grant Steering Committee meetings.
6) The VISTA will evaluate community forum data- entering into spreadsheets and helping develop summaries, evaluate in-person and virtual community events data and reports to determine event improvements and effective evaluation methods for future forums.
7) The VISTA will research funding opportunities for community coalitions and assist in grant applications.
8) The VISTA will develop new and review existing planning and evaluation methods for future forums in St Louis and Carlton County and assist in conducting focus groups and assisting with data analysis.
9) The VISTA will attend and support the work of local substance use prevention coalitions such as CAPE, EPARC, and Community Solutions (located in Virginia, Ely, and Duluth respectively). They will participate and help coordinate Community Solutions community events, May Mental Health month events, National Recovery month events around the Iron Range with the CAPE Coalition and other community partners.
On beautiful Lake Superior, work with an arts and community development organization to build long-term systems change, creating more inclusive, sustainable, and creative communities.
Zeitgeist Center for Arts & Community builds inclusive, creative, sustainable social systems in people, institutions, and communities. That means taking down systems of oppression, piece by piece, in creative ways. In their place, Zeitgeist builds connections to more inclusive, sustainable, and creative systems that address the cultural, social, and economic determinants of health in long-lasting, cycle-breaking ways.
To achieve those goals, the VISTA will work with our programs: Healthy Hillside (an effort to reduce health disparities and build community vision) and Places for People (a program that cultivates placemaking, neighborhood design, and active equitable transportation to increase neighborhood vitality).
A main goal this year for Places for People is to build a community vision and strong coalition to help transform 6th Ave East – an outdated old Highway that ripped a neighborhood apart and negatively impacts the health of local residents – into a reimagined street that works for everyone of all ages/abilities and all modes of getting around. Designing city streets for everyone and all modes advances public health, safety, equity, access to jobs, economic vitality, and sustainability. A stronger, more connected community is possible and this VISTA will help make that happen.
Daily tasks could include: research, grassroots organizing, coalition building, campaign development, messaging/framing, and event coordination. This work will also include building out creative ways to share stories and community voices through our org’s artistic venues including theater, film, and visual arts.
Member Duties:
1) Work with the Zeitgeist Community Team to build a community vision and strong coalition for 6th Ave East Redesign by conducting research, grassroots organizing, coalition building, campaign tactics development, messaging and framing, and event/activity coordination.
2) Help to research, develop, and implement creative ways to share community vision and local stories that help to bring attention and shared understanding of community challenges and opportunities.
3.) Integrate this work into internal Zeitgeist systems, policies, practices and evaluation.
Summer Positions
Support small farmers, empower folks with food access, and lead farmers market programming!
The Farmers Market VISTA will be involved in all things farmers market while also having the opportunity to cross train in the Mobile Market and gardens. This position could start any time in May. It can be an 8-week, 9-week, or 10-week duration depending on your start date.
Community Action Duluth’s mission is to empower and engage our community to eliminate poverty. Individuals and families in the Duluth Community prosper with access to quality education, affordable housing, healthcare, gainful employment and meaningful involvement in civic life. Through partnerships, people with low-incomes find support, resources and relationships that help them overcome economic, racial and cultural barriers to establishing and maintaining self-sufficient and connected lives.
The Seeds of Success (SoS) program has a long history of working to improve food access by empowering people with gardening and cooking skills and creating farmers markets that focus on improving food access in high-barrier neighborhoods. Most recently, SoS has launched a mobile grocery store that pops up in low-income senior centers and other low-access areas of the city.
Member Duties:
- Identify professional goals and co-create a work plan with program manager.
- Assist staff and full time VISTA to coordinate twice-weekly farmers markets and work with community partners to offer high-quality programming at the markets.
- Cross train on garden care, mobile market coordination, and other aspects of the work of Community Action Duluth, led by the interests of the VISTA volunteer.
- Design and implement a project over the course of the service term: leading a class, creating and administering a survey, writing a grant, etc.
Join us to bring high quality food to the community. Learn about food sourcing, inventory management, and creating community!
The Mobile Market VISTA will assist with our growing mobile grocery program. VISTAs will cross-train at our Mobile and Farmers market as well as our garden site. This position could start any time in May. It can be an 8-week, 9-week, or 10-week duration depending on your start date.
Community Action Duluth’s mission is to empower and engage our community to eliminate poverty. Individuals and families in the Duluth Community prosper with access to quality education, affordable housing, healthcare, gainful employment and meaningful involvement in civic life. Through partnerships, people with low-incomes find support, resources and relationships that help them overcome economic, racial and cultural barriers to establishing and maintaining self-sufficient and connected lives.
The Seeds of Success (SoS) program has a long history of working to improve food access by empowering people with gardening and cooking skills and creating farmers markets that focus on improving food access in high-barrier neighborhoods. Most recently, SoS has launched a mobile grocery store that pops up in low-income senior centers and other low-access areas of the city.
Member Duties:
- Identify professional goals and co-create a work plan with program manager.
- Assist staff and full time VISTA to source high quality food, manage inventory, survey participants, and provide customer service at the Mobile Market’s pop-up locations across the city.
- Cross train on garden care, farmers market coordination, and other aspects of the work of Community Action Duluth, led by the interests of the VISTA volunteer.
- Design and implement a project over the course of the service term: leading a class, creating and administering a survey, writing a grant, etc.
Join us to analyze and advocate for current community needs and interests of older adults in Duluth. You will be supporting the initiatives’ outreach and community information sharing and the development of accessible age friendly design plans and partnerships for activities, services, resources that contribute to creating an age friendly community where all can thrive.
The Duluth Age-Friendly Capacity Building VISTA will provide support to establish and grow the Duluth Age-Friendly initiative. Duluth Age-Friendly’s mission is to create, support, and sustain a community where everyone can thrive. This work will enhance the lives of older adults through outreach, awareness, advocacy, and collaborative partnerships.
The AARP Age-Friendly Communities framework is designed to assist communities in making their communities more livable for older adult community members with a focus on eight specific domains of livability. The domains are transportation, social participation, housing, outdoor spaces, health services and community support, respect and social inclusion, civic participation and employment, and communication and information.
This VISTA will identify stakeholders, establish new and build on existing relationships, and participate in a leadership group to advance our age-friendly community work. In order to engage stakeholders and community members, this position will develop communication strategies and outreach opportunities throughout the community. They will organize and support community events and evaluate survey results from event surveys, focus groups, and the current ongoing needs assessment. This VISTAs work will contribute to the formation of an action plan with a special focus on support for low-income, underserved, and disabled older adults in our community.
Member Duties:
- Assist the Duluth Age-Friendly Coordinator in advancing initiative goals and development.
- Contribute to the development of Duluth Age-Friendly’s strategic communication plan and resource library (including a branding guide, photo collection, graphics, etc.)
- Attend community events and meetings as a Duluth Age-Friendly representative to build key relationships with current and potential partner organizations and community members.
- Support the Duluth Age-Friendly Outreach specialist with events, tabling resources, and other outreach activities, and needs assessment distribution.
- Identify, collect, and distribute community resources and information via multiple information avenues including canvassing, social media, and event attendance.
- Assist in the development of a physical resource library at the LNPK Resilience Hub to provide resources for older adults, care givers, and anyone interested in age-friendly design.
Interested in learning about urban agriculture? Want a unique outdoor experience working in the dirt while making a positive impact in your community? Join the DCGP team in Duluth, MN!
We are seeking an individual to assist the Duluth Community Garden Program’s Land Stewardship Coordinator in caring for our 21 community gardens this summer, from soil building projects to invasive species management, establishing pollinator gardens, and maintaining garden infrastructure. Growing experience and basic carpentry skills are a plus, but not required, as long as you have the passion and interest in learning. The majority of the time spent in this position will be in the field, so the ability to work outdoors in a variety of weather is important. The position would start in May (exact date is flexible), and the position can be 8-weeks, 9-weeks, or 10-weeks in duration, depending on your start date.
Member Duties:
- The VISTA will work primarily in the field completing hands-on tasks at our gardens, with some time in our office as well. The VISTA will help with projects such as building soil in community garden plots, establishing a new community garden, managing invasive plants, establishing pollinator gardens, and repairing garden infrastructure.
- The VISTA will manage our seed garlic project, helping with grow and maintain our garlic beds.
- The VISTA will help plant and care for our four Giving Gardens, and will help with community engagement, such as tabling at community events.
- The VISTA will have the opportunity to build connections during their service with community gardeners, DCGP volunteers, and partner organizations.
- The VISTA’s duties are flexible according to the needs, interests, and career goals of the member. We want this experience to be personally and professionally fulfilling for you and will work with you on designing a work plan that meets your goals.
Are you looking to make a lasting change in your community this summer? Do you enjoy working outdoors and can’t wait to get your fingers in the dirt? Are you passionate about building community resilience and combating poverty? Then join Ecolibrium3 as a Summer VISTA on the beautiful shores of Lake Superior.
We are seeking individuals that have a heart to serve their community primarily in the area of creating food security but would love to see how your passions and skills can be utilized over the summer within our other projects as well. This position features a flexible start – anytime in May or June. It can be an 8-week, 9-week, or 10-week duration depending on your start date. We do have some housing options available for our summer VISTAs.
Member Duties:
- VISTAs will work at our Eco3 Urban Farm, located in the heart of Duluth, to create food security for low-income community members. Members will complete hands-on tasks including nurturing and caring for our current gardens and learn community development by helping to expand our farm for future growing, education, and economic development.
- VISTAs will work at the Eco3 Resiliency Hub, connecting with community partners and engaging in activities supporting our core programs – Eco3 Energy, Eco3 Climate, Eco3 Main Street and Eco3 VISTA.
- VISTAs will establish a personal leadership development plan at the beginning of their service. Through this plan, members will identify areas of individual professional growth to focus on during their service.
Interested in making a lasting impact on a local indigenous community? Come and laugh, learn, and get your hands in the soil in a relaxing, low-key environment! Join Fond du Lac Ag Dept this summer!
Fond du Lac Agricultural Division is seeking individuals to assist in caring for gardens, harvesting produce, soil building projects, managing pollinator gardens, seed saving, learning and managing garden pests, and guiding tours and/or finding volunteers to give tours of our Gitigaaning (The Place of the Gardens) and Na’enimonigamig (commercial kitchen/cannery). Any previous knowledge of the above is a plus, but not a requirement as long as you have a passion for food sovereignty and indigenous food ways. The majority of the time spent in this position will be in the field, so the ability to work outdoors in a variety of weather conditions is important. The position would start in June (exact date is flexible), and the position can be 8-weeks, 9-weeks, or 10-weeks in duration, depending on your start date.
Member Duties:
1. The VISTA will work primarily in the field completing hands-on tasks at our gardens, with some time in the office as well. The VISTA will help with projects such as building soil using no till methods, maintaining pollinator gardens, maintaining seed gardens and seed saving, and organizing farm tours.
2. The VISTA will help plant, maintain, harvest, and clean vegetables and fruits at our gardens.
3. The VISTA will help with community engagement, such as tabling at community events.
4. The VISTA’s duties are flexible according to the needs, interests, and career goals of the member. We want this experience to be personally and professionally fulfilling for you and will work wit you on designing a work plan that meets your goals.
This project focuses on strengthening the diversity within the next generation of leaders. Help lead this movement by working to develop, implement, and evaluate a youth leadership development program.
The Lakes Area Yes Network is dedicated to creating vibrant, loving, prosperous neighborhoods through our support of children and families in the places they call home. We are new to the Detroit Lakes area, but across Minnesota, Yes Network has grown from an all-volunteer group providing food for children in low-income neighborhoods in 2011 to one of the top 5 non-profits in Minnesota in the number of summer meals served.
We will also include summer programs that bring children together for meals, organized outdoor games, enrichment activities, art/music, and youth leadership development. Together, these components encourage good nutrition, summer learning, physical and mental health, as well as social emotional well-being.
Member Duties:
- Vistas will help serve both breakfast and lunch to children in low-income neighborhoods, this providing increased food security to families with scarce resources.
- Vistas will also provide age-appropriate activities that keep children active, help them develop new skills, and keep them safe.
- Vistas will provide educational and enrichment activities that help children learn new ideas, use their imagination, and express themselves creatively.
How to Apply or Get More Information:
If you would like more information check out these resources:
- AmeriCorps VISTA national website
- Current Ecolibrium3 AmeriCorps VISTA members and host sites
- Contact Patrick at Ecolibrium3 with questions or inquiries
- Apply using the national AmeriCorps portal