Community Conservation Officer

Why work with us?

At Council, we’re proud of our region. We collaborate with community to achieve truly sustainable outcomes, enhance our enviable lifestyle, and create award-winning places and spaces that are uniquely Sunshine Coast. So, if you love it here as much as we do, and you want to shape our region for the future – you’ll want to join our team!

With the vision to be Australia’s most sustainable region -Connected. Liveable. Thriving, our region is a model of sustainability, where caring for our environment, creating vibrant communities and growing our local economy is a way of life.

About the Role

Community Conservation Officer - Full time role:

9 day fortnight. Regular weekend work. Includes: 2 regular Saturdays a month plus additional adhoc weekend work. Weekend work paid overtime.

Community Conservation Officer - Part-time role: 2.5 days a week and regular weekend work. Workdays not negotiable: Monday, Tuesday and half-day Wednesday, and 2 regular Saturdays a month. Plus additional adhoc weekday and weekend work. Weekend work paid overtime.

Environmental Operations Branch is responsible for the preservation, management and enhancement of council’s diverse range of environmental and recreational assets and in partnership with our community, the rich biodiversity of the region’s landscapes. The branch plays an active role within council, liaising with other units, as well as with the community to maintain and deliver high quality environmental outcomes.

The Community Conservation Officer is centred on coordinating community volunteer involvement and participation in bush regeneration activities on council managed environment reserves.

In this dynamic role, you’ll work side-by-side with volunteers and collaborate across teams to deliver meaningful environmental outcomes. You’ll be responsible for:

• Planning and coordinating bush regeneration activities through BushCare group working bees, school and corporate groups, community planting events, and citizen science activities.
• Co-designing regeneration work plans with volunteers, and stakeholders.
• Managing projects, budgets, contractors, and reporting using relevant software and GIS systems.
• Developing site-specific work instructions for contractor delivery.
• Leading, mentoring, and training volunteers while ensuring safety, inclusion, and compliance with WHS and Council policies.

About you

You’re a confident and capable environmental professional with a passion for community-led conservation. You thrive in hands-on fieldwork, enjoy working collaboratively, and bring a strong mix of technical expertise and people skills to the role.

To succeed in this role, you will have:

• A tertiary qualification in Environmental Management, Conservation, Natural Resource Management, or equivalent experience.
• Demonstrated experience in bush regeneration, including restoration planning, plant and weed identification, and managing ecologically sensitive areas.
• Proven ability to lead and manage volunteers — including onboarding, training, tasking, and navigating group dynamics with professionalism and respect.
• Strong project, budget, contractor, and reporting skills, including use of GIS and records management systems.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to mentor volunteers and collaborate across diverse teams and communities.
• A current “C” Class driver’s licence, ACDC Licence, and Blue Card (or ability to obtain).
• Willingness to work flexible hours, including weekends
• Satisfactory completion of a criminal history check
• Appointment to this position is subject to completion of a pre-employment medical assessment.

Our Culture & Employee Benefits

Council is committed to creating an inclusive, culturally diverse, healthy, skilled and dedicated workplace culture. As an employee you will enjoy a range of benefits and working styles to suit you:

• Wellbeing: Your wellbeing is important to us therefore we offer a number of different initiatives such as discounted health related memberships, fitness passport, employee assistance program and development opportunities. 
• Extras: Those extras make a difference therefore we offer salary packaging options on novated leases, superannuation, smartphones and devices.

How to apply

You must apply separately to each role to be considered for both - this can be the same cover letter and resume.

Your written application should include:

• A 1-2 page cover letter demonstrating your ability to fulfil the mandatory and desirable requirements on the Position Profile. Keep the key responsibilities in mind when addressing this criteria; and
• A current resume or curriculum vitae.

Once you have these two documents ready, click ‘Apply Now’ and follow the prompts to complete your application.

Further Information

Helpful information to assist you in completing your application is available on the Sunshine Coast Council website.

To learn more about Council’s vision and projects, you can view the Corporate Plan 2025-2030.

For specific enquiries contact Wendy Cliff during business hours on 0418 374 786 or [email protected].

We're working hard to create an inclusive workplace that reflects the diverse community we serve. If you require adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process, please reach out to the Recruitment Team [email protected].

At Sunshine Coast Council, we embrace differences in gender, age, ethnicity, race, cultural background including First Nations, disability, religion and sexual orientation. To deliver the best service to our region we want a workforce that reflects the diverse community that we serve. Sunshine Coast Council strongly encourages all suitable applicants to apply for this role.