Kupu calls for Conservation Leaders applicants on Hawai‘i Island

Kupu, Hawai‘i’s leading conservation and environmental education nonprofit, is seeking applications for the Conservation Leadership Development Program.

Recent high school graduates, college graduates and young professionals looking to establish a career in conservation are strongly encouraged to apply by Sept. 8. 

The Conservation Leadership Development Program focuses on developing the next generation of environmental stewards. The next full-term cohort begins in October 2023 and ends in September 2024. Participants will be matched with a conservation host site for the program, where they will learn and serve alongside conservation experts. This extensive network of partner sites offers exposure to the fields of ornithology, botany, natural and aquatic resource management, biology, marine biology, Hawaiian cultural studies and more.  

Conservation Leadership Development Program host sites on Hawaiʻi Island include:  

• Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources – Division of Forestry and Wildlife
  • Nā Ala Hele Trails  
  • Napuʻu Conservation Project at Puʻu Waʻawaʻa Forest  

• Keauhou Bird Conservation Center – San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance  
• Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
  • Natural Resource Management  
  • Cultural Resource Management  
  • Wildlife Department  
  • Education and Interpretation  
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife – Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge
  • Visitor Service Program  
  • Outplanting Program  
  • Biology Program 
• Outreach Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death – UH Mānoa, CTAHR  

Conservation Leadership Development Program participants for this term will receive a monthly living allowance of $2,560, earning a compensation package valued up to $36,000,plus health insurance.

Upon completion of the service term, participants will receive an education award of $6,495 and have access to the Kupu Pathways program, which offers a kick-start to college (no transcripts needed) through Arizona State University.